Edexcel IGCSE History: The Middle East, Conflict, Crisis and Change, 1917–2012 (4HI1)

Breadth Study B7, “The Middle East: conflict, crisis and change, 1917–2012”, is one of eight breadth studies in change in Section B of Pearson Edexcel International GCSE History (4HI1) Paper 2. It follows the Arab–Israeli conflict from the Balfour Declaration and the British Mandate in Palestine, through the creation of Israel and the wars of 1948, 1956, 1967 and 1973, to the peace efforts of Camp David and Oslo, the Intifadas and the Gaza War of 2008–09. Questions focus on change and continuity across long periods.

Related: Revision notes | Practice questions | Paper 2 overview

Syllabus coverage

The specification (Issue 5, February 2026) names five themes: international involvement; disputed territorial claims; military conflicts — the key wars; political and diplomatic attempts at lasting peace; and the role of terrorism. The (c) essay normally draws on two or more key topics. The five key topics are:

1. Build-up of tension in Palestine, 1917–46 — the Balfour Declaration, Jewish immigration, clashes between Jews and Palestinians, the Peel Commission, Arab and Jewish terrorism and the King David Hotel (1946).
2. The creation of Israel, the war of 1948–49 and the Suez Crisis of 1956 — Britain hands the problem to the UN, the partition plan, the first Arab–Israeli War and Israeli victory, the refugee problem and terrorism, the Law of Return; Nasser and the Suez Canal, the British, French and Israeli attack, the UN and the superpowers, and the results.
3. Tension and conflict, 1956–73 — Nasser and Arab aims, the Six-Day War (1967) and its impact, Arafat and the PLO, Black September and the Munich Olympics (1972), the Cold War, and the Yom Kippur War (1973).
4. Diplomacy, peace then wider war, 1973–83 — Kissinger’s shuttle diplomacy, the Camp David Agreements and the roles of Sadat, Begin and Carter, and the war in Lebanon (1982–83) and the PLO.
5. Attempts to find a lasting peace, 1987–2012 — the first Intifada, the motives of Arafat, Rabin, Netanyahu, Hamas, Hezbollah and the USA, the Oslo Accords (1993), Rabin’s assassination, the second Intifada (2000), the Roadmap (2003) and the Gaza War (2008–09).

Why did tension build in Palestine, 1917–46?

In the Balfour Declaration (November 1917) the British government supported “a national home for the Jewish people” in Palestine, while promising not to prejudice the rights of existing non-Jewish communities. Britain ruled Palestine under a League of Nations mandate from the early 1920s. Jewish immigration grew, especially after Hitler came to power in 1933, alarming the Arab majority, who feared losing their land. Clashes included riots in 1920–21 and 1929 and the Arab Revolt of 1936–39. The Peel Commission (1937) proposed partition for the first time; Arabs rejected it. Britain’s 1939 White Paper restricted immigration, angering Zionists. Both sides used terrorism: Arab groups attacked Jewish settlements and British forces, while Jewish groups such as the Irgun and Lehi attacked British targets. In July 1946 the Irgun bombed the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, the British headquarters, killing 91 people.

How was Israel created, and why did it win in 1948–49?

Exhausted and unable to keep order, Britain handed the problem to the UN in 1947. The UN partition plan (November 1947) proposed separate Jewish and Arab states, with Jerusalem under international control; Jewish leaders accepted it and Arab leaders rejected it. Israel declared independence on 14 May 1948, and armies from Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq invaded. Israel won because its forces were better organised and motivated, gained arms from Czechoslovakia during a truce, and faced Arab armies that were divided and poorly coordinated. The 1949 armistices left Israel with more territory than the partition plan had offered. Around 700,000 Palestinians fled or were driven out, creating a lasting refugee problem in camps in neighbouring states, which fed later terrorism and raids. Israel’s Law of Return (1950) gave every Jew the right to settle there.

What were the causes and results of the Suez Crisis (1956)?

Egypt’s leader Nasser wanted to build the Aswan High Dam and lead the Arab world. When the USA and Britain withdrew their offer to fund the dam (July 1956), Nasser nationalised the Suez Canal to use its revenues. Britain and France, the canal’s main shareholders and users, secretly agreed with Israel, which wanted to stop guerrilla raids from Egyptian territory, that Israel would invade Sinai and Britain and France would then intervene to “separate” the sides. The attack began in late October. The USA opposed it and put financial pressure on Britain, the USSR threatened intervention, and the UN called for a ceasefire and sent an emergency force. Britain and France withdrew. Results: Nasser became a hero of Arab nationalism, Britain’s world role was shown to be weakened, the Soviet Union gained influence in Egypt, and Israel gained access to the Gulf of Aqaba.

Why did conflict continue, 1956–73?

Nasser and other Arab leaders aimed to defeat Israel. In May 1967 Nasser asked UN troops to leave Sinai and closed the Straits of Tiran to Israeli shipping. On 5 June Israel struck first, destroying Arab air forces on the ground. In the Six-Day War it captured Sinai and Gaza from Egypt, the West Bank and East Jerusalem from Jordan and the Golan Heights from Syria. Israel’s success came from surprise, air superiority and military skill. The war left Israel occupying large Arab populations; Arab states were humiliated, and UN Resolution 242 called for withdrawal in return for peace.

Palestinian resistance grew. Yasser Arafat, leader of Fatah, became chairman of the PLO in 1969. After fighting with the Jordanian army in Black September (1970), the PLO was driven out of Jordan. A group named Black September killed eleven Israeli athletes and coaches at the Munich Olympics (1972). The Cold War shaped the conflict: the USSR armed Egypt and Syria, the USA armed Israel. On Yom Kippur (6 October 1973) Egypt and Syria attacked; early success came from surprise and Soviet anti-aircraft and anti-tank missiles, but Israel recovered with a US airlift of weapons and crossed the Suez Canal. Arab oil producers used an oil embargo against Israel’s supporters. The war restored Arab pride and made Israel more open to negotiation.

How did diplomacy lead to peace, then wider war, 1973–83?

US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger’s shuttle diplomacy (1973–75) produced disengagement agreements between Israel and Egypt and Syria. Egypt’s President Sadat visited Jerusalem in 1977. At Camp David (1978), hosted by US President Carter, Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Begin agreed frameworks that led to the Egypt–Israel peace treaty (1979): Israel returned Sinai and Egypt recognised Israel. Other Arab states expelled Egypt from the Arab League, and Sadat was assassinated in 1981. In 1982 Israel invaded Lebanon to destroy the PLO’s bases; the PLO was forced to leave Beirut for Tunis. The massacre of Palestinians at the Sabra and Shatila camps by Lebanese Christian militia, and attacks on Western peacekeepers in 1983, widened the conflict.

How did the search for peace develop, 1987–2012?

The first Intifada (from December 1987), a mass Palestinian uprising in the occupied territories, drew world attention; Hamas was founded during it and rejected Israel’s existence. Arafat, weakened and seeking statehood, and Israeli Prime Minister Rabin, seeking security, signed the Oslo Accords (1993) with US backing: mutual recognition and limited Palestinian self-rule in Gaza and parts of the West Bank. Rabin was assassinated by an Israeli opponent of the deal in 1995, and Netanyahu (Prime Minister from 1996) slowed the process. The second Intifada (from 2000) brought suicide bombings and Israeli military operations. Hezbollah, founded in Lebanon in the 1980s, attacked Israel from the north. The Roadmap for Peace (2003), backed by the USA, EU, UN and Russia, failed over violence and settlements. In the Gaza War (December 2008–January 2009) Israel attacked Hamas in Gaza; over a thousand Palestinians and thirteen Israelis were killed.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best theme for a (c) essay? International involvement (Britain, the UN, the USA and USSR) or disputed territory, which both span the whole period.

Why did Oslo fail to bring lasting peace? Extremists on both sides, Rabin’s assassination, settlements, terrorism and disputes over Jerusalem and refugees.

Why was Suez significant? It ended Britain’s role as the dominant power in the region.

Official syllabus

Pearson Edexcel International GCSE History (4HI1) specification, Issue 5, February 2026, Paper 2, Breadth Study B7 — qualifications.pearson.com.