November 19-28, 2012, Current Events Lesson Plan
Current Event:
After eight days of fighting, a cease-fire was announced in the Israeli-Gaza conflict on Nov. 21, 2012. On November 14, Israel responded to rocket fire from Gaza with an airstrike that killed the head of the military wing of Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist group that controls Gaza. The cease-fire was brokered chiefly by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, and Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi.
Objective:
Since the formation of Israel in 1948, the Jewish state and its Arab neighbors have fought numerous wars. During that time, some Arab countries have opposed Israel’s existence. But the conflict has also involved a struggle by Palestinian Arabs to establish their own country in some or all of the land occupied by Israel. At least 150 people were killed during the eight-day conflict in November 2012. Through the years, many attempts have been made to bring a permanent peace to the Middle East. The Behind the Headlines news story and related World Book articles explore the diplomatic efforts made to halt the fighting in the latest conflict.
Words to Know:
• Arab-Israeli Conflict
• Gaza Strip
• Hamas
• Israel
• Middle East
• Muslim Brotherhood
• Palestinian Authority
• West Bank
• Mahmoud Abbas
• Hillary Clinton
• Ban Ki-moon
• Mohamed Morsi
• Benjamin Netanyahu
Discussion Topics:
1. Egypt, the United Nations, and the United States were involved in peace plan discussions between Israel and Hamas. Ask your students why Israel and Hamas would have other countries or the UN help with peace talks. (They might say that they would want parties that are more neutral or that could act as a go-between.) Why would Egypt, the UN, or the United States want to get involved in peace talks? (They might say for humanitarian reasons or that the UN and other countries didn’t want the conflict to expand.)
2. Israel and Gaza are in the Middle East. Ask your students if they know any other Middle Eastern countries. (They may say Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey.)
3. Ask your students what they know about the Middle East. (They might say it has large reserves of oil; Christianity, Islam, and Judaism originated there; it was home to the Assyrian, Babylonian, Egyptian, and other early civilizations.)
4. Ask your students to use the World Book’s Timelines feature to create a timeline of Arab-Israeli conflicts and peace efforts since 1948.