An area of land along the Mediterranean coast, bordered by Egypt and Israel; it is not internationally recognised as belonging to any sovereign nation, but is governed by Hamas and militarily controlled by Israel, and is the focus for much territorial dispute and regional conflict
(Politika Siyaset) Gaza today constitutes an open-air prison. According to Amnesty International, 1.4 million Palestinians are subject to a collective punishment whose aim is to suffocate the Gaza Strip
{i} Disengagement Plan, plan that was proposed by the former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon (adopted and enacted by the government in August 2005) for the removal of all permanent Israeli presence in the Gaza Strip and from 4 settlements in the northern West Bank
the Gaza Strip a coastal area in the Middle East, between Egypt and Israel, which belongs to Israel but is controlled by Palestinians. Arabic Qi Ghazzah Hebrew Reuat Azza Territory, southeastern Mediterranean Sea coast. Occupying 140 sq mi (363 sq km) northeast of the Sinai Peninsula, it is also the location of the city of Gaza, which has been a prosperous trading centre for much of its history and was first mentioned in the 15th century BC. Often besieged by invaders, including Israelites, Assyrians, Babylonians, and Persians, it declined in importance after the Crusades. It was ruled by the Ottoman Empire from the 16th century. After World War I (1914-18), the city and the strip became part of the British mandate of Palestine. Following the first Arab-Israeli war (1948-49), the territory was occupied by Egypt, and the city became that country's headquarters in Palestine. The occupied area was later reduced to an area 25 mi (40 km) long, which became known as the Gaza Strip, still under Egyptian control. In the Six-Day War (1967) the area was captured by Israel. The area's chief economic problem was the large number of Palestinian Arab refugees who lived there in extreme poverty. In 1987, rioting among Gaza's Palestinians marked the beginning of the first intifdah. Continued unrest led, in 1993, to an agreement between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization granting limited self-rule to the Palestinian population of the Gaza Strip and West Bank. A breakdown in further negotiations in 2000 led to another outbreak of violence
Area on the Western edge of Israel, right on the Mediterranean Sea This area is where the original Philistines were headquartered and where the Palestinians currently have the greatest population
Narrow, 25-mile-long strip of land along the Mediterranean Sea that Israel captured from Egypt in the 1967 War The region is home to over one million Palestinian Arabs, in addition to about 4,000 Jews The Cairo Agreement has led to autonomy for the Gaza Strip's Palestinian residents within the framework of an Israeli military withdrawal from the region