Ultimately dissolved by Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser in 1959, the All-Palestine Government was largely symbolic since it was established in 1948, but nonetheless garnered diplomatic recognition from most members of the Arab League. Since the 1979 Egypt–Israel peace treaty, the official Egyptian position has supported the creation of an independent Palestinian state that encompasses the Gaza Strip in addition to the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
The All-Palestine Protectorate was an entity established by the Arab League on 22 September 1948, during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, purportedly to provide Palestinian governance for Palestine. After the war, the Gaza Strip was the only former-Mandate territory under the jurisdiction of the All-Palestine Government. However, the members of the Government were consequently removed to Cairo, and had little or no influence over events in the Gaza Strip.[3]
[T]he contrast between the pretensions of the All-Palestine Government and its capability quickly reduced it to the level of farce. It claimed jurisdiction over the whole of Palestine, yet it had no administration, no civil service, no money, and no real army of its own. Even in the small enclave around the town of Gaza its writ ran only by the grace of the Egyptian authorities. Taking advantage of the new government's dependence on them for funds and protection, the Egyptian paymasters manipulated it to undermine Abdullah's claim to represent the Palestinians in the Arab League and in international forums. Ostensibly the embryo for an independent Palestinian state, the new government, from the moment of its inception, was thus reduced to the unhappy role of a shuttlecock in the ongoing power struggle between Cairo and Amman.[3]
Suez Crisis (1956)
The Egyptian monarchy was abolished in June 1953, with the Kingdom of Egypt being superseded by the Arab Republic of Egypt. In 1956, Egypt blockaded the Gulf of Aqaba, assumed national control of the Suez Canal, and blocked it to Israeli shipping—both threatening the young State of Israel and violating the Convention of Constantinople of 1888. France and the United Kingdom supported Israel in its determination that the canal should remain open to all nations as per the convention.
On 29 October 1956, Israel, France and the United Kingdom invaded the Gaza Strip and Sinai Peninsula initiating the 1956 Suez War. Under international pressure, the Anglo-French Task Force withdrew before the end of 1956, and the Israeli army withdrew from the Sinai and Gaza in March 1957.
History
United Arab Republic (1958–1971)
In 1959, the Gaza Strip was officially merged into the short lived United Arab Republic (UAR, which united Egypt and Syria). In September 1961, Syria became an independent state again by withdrawing from the UAR. However, Egypt continued to be officially called the UAR up until 1971, when it was officially renamed as the Arab Republic of Egypt once again. In 1962, the UAR government established a Palestinian Legislative Council elected by the population. The constitutional document began with the following:[5]
The Gaza Strip is an indivisible part of the land of Palestine and its people are part of the Arab Nation. The Palestinians in the Gaza
Strip shall form a National Union composed of all Palestinians wherever they may be - its aim being the joint work to recover the usurped lands of Palestine, and the participation in fulfilling the call of Arab Nationalism. The National Union shall be organised by a decree from the Governor-General.
On 5 June 1967, weeks after Egypt blockaded the Straits of Tiran and cut off Israeli shipping, Israel attacked Egypt, initiating the Six-Day War. It quickly defeated the surrounding Arab states and occupied the Gaza Strip, along with the West Bank and other territory, ending Egypt's occupation.
Camp David Accords (1978)
In 1978, Israel and Egypt signed the historic Camp David Accords which brought an official end to the strife between them. The second part of the accords was a framework for the establishment of an autonomous regime in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The Arab Republic of Egypt thus renounced any territorial claims over the Gaza Strip.
The influx of over 200,000 refugees into Gaza during the 1948 war resulted in a dramatic decrease in the standard of living. Because the Egyptian government restricted movement to and from the Gaza Strip, its inhabitants could not look elsewhere for gainful employment.[7] In 1955, one observer (a member of the United Nations Secretariat) noted that "For all practical purposes it would be true to say that for the last six years in Gaza over 300,000 poverty stricken people have been physically confined to an area the size of a large city park."[7]
Shlaim, Avi (1990). "The rise and fall of the All-Palestine Government in Gaza". Journal of Palestine Studies. 20: 37–53. doi:10.1525/jps.1990.20.1.00p0044q.