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Story: Israel
Completes Gaza Pullout, 08/22/05
Reading Comprehension Questions: 1. What major event is occurring in Israel this month?
2. Where is the Gaza Strip and why is it controversial? Who lived there?
3. Who were the Jewish settlers living in Gaza? What did many of them believe?
4. Who decided to pull settlement out of Gaza? When did this occur and why was it so surprising?
5. Recently, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's government has said the price of settlement upkeep and protection had become too great. But what other reasons do Middle East experts give for the settlement pullout?
6. What did initial polls indicate about Israeli opinions regarding the planned settlement closure?
Discussion Activity (more research might be needed): 1. If you were Prime Minister Ariel Sharon what would you have done about the Gaza settlements? Explain your answer with clear examples and reasoning? 2. What should happen with the settlers who were forced to leave their homes in the Gaza Strip? What responsibility does their government have to them? Should those who left willingly be treated differently than those who resisted leaving their homes? Explain your reasoning. 3. "Gaza could become a much, much better place than it is today, a place where people can live with some measure of dignity," Eyad Sarraj, a Palestinian psychiatrist and human rights activist, told the Los Angeles Times. "Or, as hard as it is to imagine, it could become even worse." What is supposed to happen in the Gaza Strip now that Israel has evacuated all its settlements there? Who has a direct stake in the outcomes there? How might different outcomes occur? What role, if any, should the United States play in the area? Write a 300-500 word essay on either of these topics providing clear examples. Send your completed editorial to NewsHour Extra (extra@newshour.org). Exceptional essays might be published on our Web site. |