The End of the Mandate and Civil War
The passage of UN Resolution 181 in November 1947 immediately triggered widespread violence. What had been sporadic intercommunal conflict escalated into a full-scale civil war between Jewish and Arab militias across Palestine during the final months of British rule. Jewish forces, generally better organized and equipped, went on the offensive in the spring of 1948, seeking to secure territory allocated to the Jewish state under the partition plan and often expanding beyond those lines, capturing key towns and transportation routes. Arab militias, often poorly coordinated, attempted to resist and attack Jewish settlements and convoys. This period saw significant displacement of civilians on both sides, particularly Palestinian Arabs fleeing or being expelled from areas coming under Jewish control.
Declaration of the State of Israel
As the British Mandate officially expired, British forces completed their withdrawal. On May 14, 1948, David Ben-Gurion, head of the Jewish Agency, proclaimed the establishment of the State of Israel in Tel Aviv. The new state was immediately recognized by the United States and the Soviet Union.
The First Arab-Israeli War (1948-1949)
The day after Israel's declaration of independence, armies from five neighboring Arab states – Egypt, Transjordan (now Jordan), Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq – invaded the territory of former Mandatory Palestine, joining local Palestinian Arab forces already fighting. Their stated aim was to prevent the establishment of the Jewish state and, in some formulations, to "drive the Jews into the sea." The ensuing conflict, known to Israelis as the War of Independence and to Palestinians as the Nakba, lasted for over a year.
Despite initial Arab advances, the newly formed Israel Defense Forces (IDF), incorporating Haganah veterans and bolstered by arms imports and global Jewish support, managed to halt the invasions and launch successful counter-offensives. By the time fighting ended with a series of armistice agreements signed between February and July 1949, Israel controlled significantly more territory than allotted under the UN partition plan, including West Jerusalem, the Galilee, and parts of the Negev. The armistice lines, known as the Green Line, served as Israel's de facto borders until 1967. No Arab state recognized Israel.
The Palestinian Nakba ("Catastrophe")
For the Palestinian Arabs, the 1948 war resulted in a devastating national trauma known as the Nakba (catastrophe). During the conflict (both the civil war phase and the interstate war), an estimated 700,000 to 750,000 Palestinians – constituting roughly 80% of the Arab population residing in the areas that became Israel – fled or were expelled from their homes. The causes of this mass displacement are debated, involving a combination of direct expulsions by Israeli forces, fear of massacres (following actual events like Deir Yassin), the collapse of Palestinian leadership and society, and encouragement to leave temporarily by some Arab leaders (though the extent of the latter is contested). Hundreds of Palestinian villages were depopulated and subsequently destroyed or resettled by Israelis.
The displaced Palestinians became refugees, seeking shelter in neighboring Arab countries (Lebanon, Syria, Jordan), the Jordanian-controlled West Bank, and the Egyptian-controlled Gaza Strip. Israel subsequently passed laws preventing the refugees from returning to their homes and properties, confiscating their land and assets. The Palestinian refugee problem, including the demand for a "right of return," became one of the most intractable core issues of the ongoing conflict.
Gaza's Fate in 1948
The Gaza region experienced the war and its aftermath acutely. The Egyptian army invaded through Gaza and initially advanced northwards before being pushed back by Israeli forces. The 1949 Armistice Agreement between Egypt and Israel left Egypt in control of a narrow strip of land along the coast, approximately 41 kilometers (25 miles) long and 6 to 12 kilometers wide, stretching from the Egyptian border near Rafah to just south of Ashkelon. This area became known as the Gaza Strip.
Crucially, the Gaza Strip became a refuge for a massive influx of Palestinians displaced from towns and villages in southern Palestine that fell under Israeli control (like Jaffa, Lydda, Ramle, Beersheba, and numerous villages). Its population swelled dramatically, perhaps tripling overnight, with refugees constituting a large majority of the inhabitants, living in crowded camps established by international aid organizations. The Strip was thus transformed into what was essentially a vast refugee camp, cut off from its former hinterland and politically separated from the West Bank (which was annexed by Jordan). It fell under Egyptian military administration, which governed the territory until 1967. The events of 1948 are thus foundational and defining for both modern Israel and the Palestinians. For Israelis, it represents the achievement of sovereignty and independence after centuries of diaspora and persecution. For Palestinians, it signifies catastrophic loss, displacement, and the fragmentation of their society, the consequences of which continue to shape their reality. Gaza's specific trajectory after 1948 – its transformation into a densely populated, isolated enclave under external administration – was directly determined by the war's outcome.