July 17, 1951: Lebanese Prime Minister Riad Al Solh escapes an assassination attempt in Amman. Jordanian security forces increase security for King Abdullah's visit to East Jerusalem
July 19, 1951: Several men are arrested in East Jerusalem accused of planning to kill the king.
July 22, 1951: After praying at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, King Abdullah meets secretly with Mossad director Reuven Shiloah and Minister Moshe Sasson. Abdullah informs them that he's willing to negotiate peace with Israel, with the support of the Lebanese Prime Minister Riad Al Solh.
August 27, 1951: Golda Meirsecretly travels to Amman to inform King Abdullah that the Israeli government is willing to enter into negotiations with Jordan and Lebanon.
August 30, 1951: The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs receives a message from the Lebanese Prime Minister through the French embassy:
"Lebanon is willing to make peace with Israel as soon as a peace with Jordan is achieved"
September-December 1951: During these months there are more meetings and contacts between Israel and Jordan, the British especially support Abdullah to stabilize the eastern area and its most important Arab ally. Often the discussions get heated a little, but they manage to take a good course.
February 18, 1952: The Israeli government announces that a peace agreement has been reached with Jordan. In Amman the announcement is given in a more discreet way, there are demonstrations against the agreement in Amman, Irbid and Nablus, but they are quickly repressed. The agreement is widely condemned by the Arab League, in particular by Egypt, Syria and Iraq, the tone of the Lebanese conviction is suspiciously mild.
March 12, 1952: The delegations of Israel and Jordan meet in the city of Nicosia on the British island of Cyprus for the signing of the peace treaty whose terms are the following:
"Treaty of Friendship, Reconciliation and Mutual Assistance between the State of Israel and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan"
- Recognition of the State of Israel by Jordan.
- Normalization of diplomatic relations between both countries.
- Israel will annex the Latrun salient and its no-man's land.
- Israel will annex the no-man's land around the area of Ramat Rachel.
- Israel will annex part of the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood to create a corridor towards Mount Scopus.
- Israel will annex an area east of Mount Sion corresponding to the City of David.
- A corridor will be created from Mount Scopus to the Mount of Olives that will be annexed by Israel.
- The Old City of Jerusalem will be divided between Israel and Jordan, Israel will annex the Armenian and Jewish Quarters while Jordan will annex the Christian and Muslim Quarters, the Temple Mount will remain under Jordanian control. There will be freedom of movement for people within the old city, but they will need to show their passport to the border authorities if they wish to exit it to the other country.
- Israel will recognize the Jordanian sovereignty over Judea and Samaria and will refrain from making any future territorial claims on them.
- Israel will recognize the rest of the 1967 armistice line, the Jordan River and Wadi Ara as the definitive border between the two states.
- Both states will provide financial assistance to each other.
- Jordan will absorb the refugees of the 1948 war by granting them their nationality.
View attachment 364372
The State of Israel after the Nicosia Peace Treaty
View attachment 364370
Division of Jerusalem
March 13, 1952: The news of the peace treaty with Jordan provokes an outburst of general jubilation in Israel, especially because of the news that Jewish holy places will once again be in their hands. In Jordan there are mixed reactions, there are demonstrations against that are repressed again by the army. In the rest of the Arab world there are large demonstrations against Abdullah's head calling him a traitor. The rest of the world in general looks favorably on the peace treaty.
March 14, 1952: From Gaza, Amin al-Husseini declares a holy war against the "infidel jews and the traitor Abdullah", despite making a lot of noise, his call does not get an answer.
March 19, 1952: The Arab league suspends Jordan from the organization, Lebanon abstains from the vote.
April 24, 1952: The works to mark the definitive borders between Israel and Jordan begin. The former inhabitants of the Jewish Quarter of the Old City begin the reconstruction works.
August 12, 1952: The marking of borders ends, the demonstrations in the Arab world have calmed down. Israeli and Lebanese diplomats have begun to meet in secret in Paris.
August 28, 1952: In a session of the Lebanese parliament, Prime Minister Riad Al Solh delivers a speech in which he describes the benefits of making peace with Israel now that Jordan has. After a heated debate of 14 hours, the parliament, composed mostly of independent candidates, approves the sending of a delegation to Israel to negotiate a peace treaty. Damascus is furious.
September 01, 1952: A car bomb explodes outside the Lebanese Parliament, 13 passers-by and 2 ministers are killed, all suspicions are directed at Damascus.
September 14, 1952: The Lebanese delegation arrives at Jerusalem to discuss the probability of a peace agreement and its possible terms.
September 16, 1952: Two grenades are thrown at the Maghen Abraham Synagogue in Beirut, 5 people are killed. Again the suspicions are directed at Damascus.
September 20, 1952: The Lebanese delegation returns to Beirut after a successful negotiation with the Israeli government. The Lebanese Parliament is satisfied, although many ministers (pressured by Damascus) are opposed to it.
November 04, 1952: The Lebanese and Israeli delegations meet in Paris to sign the pace treaty whose terms are the following:
"Treaty of Peace and cooperation between the Lebanese Republic and the State of Israel"
- Recognition of the State of Israel by the Lebanese Republic.
- Recognition of the pre-1948 borders as definitive between both states.
- The creation of an economic assistance program between both countries
November 05, 1952: The news of the Lebanese-Israeli peace treaty once again sparks a wave of jubilation and festivities throughout Israel. The approval levels of Prime Minister David Ben Gurion reach 90%. In Beirut attitudes are much more discreet, many Maronite leaders express their approval for the peace treaty stating that it will bring stability to the country. The Sunni and Palestinian communities are quiet, strangely quiet, many are shocked by the fact that the refugee issue has not been mentioned. of the 1948 war. But the Lebanese government has "other plans" for them.
November 07, 1952: In an emergency session the Arab League suspends Lebanon from the organization, at the same time, Damascus suspends diplomatic relations with the country.
To be continued...