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The ancient Israelites were nomadic people. The Israelites came from southwest Asia. They were a small group practicing Judaism. According to their belief, the Jews or the Israelites are descended from Abraham, a herder who lived in Mesopotamia (Iraq now) about 1800 B.C. The god made an agreement with Abraham called Tankan. That if Abraham moved to the land of Canaan (present-day Israel and Lebanon) , him and his descendants would be blessed. Abraham descendants later were called the Israelites.
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They migrated from Mesopotamia to Canaan (present-day Israel and Lebanon) during the second millennium B.C. The Israelites traveled around and lived the Near East and Egypt. The Israelites are also called the Hebrews, and they are often referred to by this term in ancient writings. The Hebrew Bible is also known as the Old Testament of the Christian Bible.
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The Jews believed that god was going to reveal all of the important laws to a prophet, or in other words, a messenger of god named Moses. According to the Hebrew Bible, Moses led the Israelites from Egypt. In Egypt, the pharos, or rulers, didn’t like Judaism because they believed that they were the gods. They didn’t want anyone to worship any other gods. They then forced the Jews into slavery. This and a long drought is why the Israelites moved from Egypt.
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The Israelites under King David created a kingdom in the area that is today
known as Israel. This happened around 1000 B.C. Jerusalem was the capital city of the kingdom. By 922 B.C., the kingdom of the Israelites had split into two states- Israel and Judah. The people of Judah came to be called the Jews.
The Jews later were conquered by the Romans. Many of them were forced to leave their homeland. They moved all over the world, especially in Europe, in later centuries.
known as Israel. This happened around 1000 B.C. Jerusalem was the capital city of the kingdom. By 922 B.C., the kingdom of the Israelites had split into two states- Israel and Judah. The people of Judah came to be called the Jews.
The Jews later were conquered by the Romans. Many of them were forced to leave their homeland. They moved all over the world, especially in Europe, in later centuries.
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In Europe and other countries the Jews suffered from a lot of
hardships. In the late 1800s, some Europeans Jews decided to come back to the
area where their religion started from, which was called Palestine at the time.
These settlers were called Zionists. They wanted to set up a safe homeland for
the Jews.
The British ruled Palestine, after World War I. The British people supported some Jewish homelands in Palestine. The Palestinian Arabs also claimed this is their homeland. The British tried to limit the number of Jews passing into Palestine, so they could keep peace with the Arabs. During World War II, the murder of six million Jews by the Nazis in the Holocaust increased more support for the Zionist movement.
In recent years, the region has been facing a lot of conflict between the Arab countries and Israel. In 1947, the U.N voted to divide Palestine into separate Arab and Jewish territories. Arabs in and out of Palestine strongly opposed the decision. When the British left the area, in May 1948, the Jews set up Israel in their part of Palestine.
Since this period of time, Israel and its Arab neighbors have fought major wars.
The British ruled Palestine, after World War I. The British people supported some Jewish homelands in Palestine. The Palestinian Arabs also claimed this is their homeland. The British tried to limit the number of Jews passing into Palestine, so they could keep peace with the Arabs. During World War II, the murder of six million Jews by the Nazis in the Holocaust increased more support for the Zionist movement.
In recent years, the region has been facing a lot of conflict between the Arab countries and Israel. In 1947, the U.N voted to divide Palestine into separate Arab and Jewish territories. Arabs in and out of Palestine strongly opposed the decision. When the British left the area, in May 1948, the Jews set up Israel in their part of Palestine.
Since this period of time, Israel and its Arab neighbors have fought major wars.