The State of Israel was created on May 14, 1948, following the declaration of independence by the Israeli Provisional Government. This occurred after the United Nations adopted Resolution 181 in 1947, which called for the partition of Palestine into separate Jewish and Arab states. The partition plan was rejected by Palestinian Arabs, who felt it unfairly favored the Jewish population.
Upon Israel's declaration of independence, Arab forces from Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia, alongside Palestinian Arab militias, attacked the newly formed state, triggering the Arab-Israeli War of 1948. Despite initial setbacks, Israeli forces eventually gained the upper hand. By the end of the war in 1949, Israel had expanded its territory beyond the areas allocated to it under the UN plan. The armistice agreements that followed allowed Egypt to retain control of Gaza and Jordan to control the West Bank.
The war led to the displacement of a significant portion of the Arab population, with many fleeing or being expelled from their homes in the territory now controlled by Israel, marking the beginning of the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
