Palestine/OPT

The origins of conflicting Zionist and Arab nationalist claims over Palestine date from the late nineteenth century. In their current manifestation they comprise a bitter stalemate between the state of Israel and Palestinian opposition, contesting the annexation of Palestinian territories following Israel’s victory in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and calling for the establishment of a Palestinian state.

In late 2011, the Palestinian Authority submitted a formal request to the UN for recognition as an independent state.

The humanitarian crisis in Palestine/OPT has heightened since Israel’s blockade of Gaza in 2007 and the military offensive in December 2008. The blockade restricts the movement of people and goods, preventing the majority of the population from working or accessing agricultural land; over 75% of the population of Gaza is dependent on foreign aid. Restrictions on importing goods have crippled public service provision and infrastructure and created an environment of chronic food insecurity.

The increasingly fragile situation resulted in a more than doubling of humanitarian aid to Palestine/OPT in five years from US$477.9 million in 2005 to US$1.2 billion in 2009.