Mideast tensions

What triggered the current tensions?

On June 12, three young Israelis were kidnapped near the West Bank city of Hebron. According to the Israeli army, the religion students - Naftali Fraenkel (16), Gilad Shaar (16) and Eyal Yifrah (19) - were last seen near a bus stop in the area of the Jewish settlement of Gush Etzion, southwest of Bethlehem. From there they apparently had planned to hitchhike home and were picked up by a vehicle with an Israeli license plate.

The occupants kidnapped the three teenagers, apparently killing them immediately. The Israeli army launched a massive search and rescue operation, during which six Palestinians were killed. After 18 days, the bodies of the three Israeli teenagers were found under a pile of rocks in a field near Hebron.

What is the political context?

Relations between the Israeli and Palestinian governments are currently strained. At the end of April, the leaders of Hamas and Fatah declared plans to jointly rule the Palestinian territories. On June 2, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas swore in the new unity government. The transitional government of 17 ministers consists of experts who belong to neither the moderate Fatah, headed by Abbas, nor the radical Islamic Hamas.

At the same time, Abbas declared that the new government would recognize signed peace treaties with Israel. Israel criticized the government, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying that Abbas could not simultaneously make peace with Israel and Hamas, which has called for the destruction of Israel. Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, compared Netanyahu with the terrorist network Al-Qaeda, while Israel said it would hold the Palestinian Authority responsible for attacks from Gaza.

What is known about the perpetrators?

The identity of the perpetrators is not yet known. An al Qaeda splinter group announced in leaflets that it had kidnapped the three youths in revenge for the death of three of their fighters at the hands of Israeli soldiers earlier this year. In a second statement, the al-Quds brigades apparently took responsibility.

Shortly after the crime, Israel accused Hamas of having abducted and killed the youths. The Hamas leadership has neither denied nor confirmed its responsibility. It's assumed that a local group may have committed the crime independently, without direction from the Hamas leadership. Israel's Shin Bet security agency has identified two Hamas members from Hebron as the perpetrators, but has said the suspects are in hiding.

What are the Israeli settlements?

The three murdered teenagers lived in various settlements in the West Bank. These settlements were built in the area taken over by Israel in the Six-Day War of 1967, putting them outside the so-called Green Line which marked the Israeli territory after the war of 1949.

By the end of 2012, according to Israeli rights group B'Tselem, there were 125 settlements in the West Bank that were recognized by the Israeli government. There are also around 100 unofficial settlements, mostly built by radical religious and nationalist settlers. A total of about 515,000 Israelis live in these settlements.

What is the legality of these settlements?

The legal status of these settlements is controversial. The United Nations considers them to be illegitimate. According to UN resolution 66/78, dated January 12, 2012, the settlements were built "in breach of international law." The resolution went on to say that "the Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem, and in the occupied Syrian Golan are illegal and an obstacle to peace and economic and social development."

The basis of the UN's assessment is the 49th article of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, which prohibits the "forcible transfer" of a civilian population to other states.

Israel contradicts this view, stating that the West Bank and the Gaza Strip have never been part of a sovereign state since the end of Ottoman rule. The annexation of the West Bank by Jordan had also not been internationally recognized. Therefore, the definitions outlined in the Geneva Convention do not apply to these areas.

What have the consequences of the murders been so far?

Since the kidnapping and murder of the three youths, violence has increased on both sides. During raids by the Israeli army, six Palestinians were killed. Some 420 Palestinians were arrested, most of them Hamas members. A commentator with the Palestinian newspaper "Al-Quds" has accused Israel of wanting to "collectively punish" the Palestinians.

After the teenagers' funerals earlier this week, the Israeli army launched airstrikes on the Gaza Strip, in which five people were injured, according to Palestinian authorities. Israel justified its actions on the grounds that it must defend itself against attacks from Gaza. On Monday (30.06.2014), roughly 20 rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel. The Israeli army has now bolstered its troops on the border with the Gaza Strip.

The situation has also worsened in Israel. On Wednesday (02.07.2014), a 17-year-old Palestinian boy, Mohammed Abu Khdeir, was killed by yet unknown gunmen in East Jerusalem. Netanyahu has since urged all sides "not to take the law into their own hands," calling on police to act quickly and investigate the "heinous act." Hamas, however, has announced it wants vengeance for the murder.