Are the West Bank and Gaza parts of Israel?

When Israel invaded the Gaza Strip Thursday, no military operation was happening in the other part of the Palestinian territories, the West Bank. The two territories have had drastically different relationships with Israel and the rest of the world. In the Gaza Strip, the government is led by the radical Islamist movement Hamas. read more

Before the State of Israel was established in 1948, the West Bank and Gaza Strip were simply parts of Mandate Palestine; their ‘borders’ are the result of Israeli expansion and armistice lines. 300,000 Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip became refugees during Israel’s conquest in June 1967; the vast majority were unable to return. read more