I know I didn't need to, but I figured I should probably put up Palestine's complete history, just so (if they want to), new people can read it. I also added post-war, pre-this thread history. Enjoy! (I'm also gonna mention that I was tempted to ask for a switch to the U.S., since it seems weird nobody is playing it. But I decided I should just stick to Palestine. I love my eyepatched now-king too much. X3)
A Brief History of Palestine
Life in Palestine had always been hard under the Ottomans. It was nothing more than a strip of sand connecting to major territories for the Sultan and his men, and was treated like it. The only thing they ever cared about was Jerusalem, which was treated like a trophy, rather than a city where people lived.
So, of course, people had been upset with the Sultan and the entirety of the Ottoman Empire for a very long time. They just never had the strength, or, even, the unity, to do anything about it. So for years, Palestine, or, as it was known in the Ottoman Empire, the Jerusalem-territory, lived in poverty, and could only sit back and watch as the large amount of Turks living in Jerusalem enjoyed a good life, while they withered away.
It would be until Jelal, a young man who had been drafted into and then discharged from the Ottoman army, showed up that something would change. Jelal, using connections he had gained during his time in the army, managed to get into contact with a Persian man who would be able to fuel his rebellion. The only condition was that he needed to have his army before he received the tools.
This was the start of the Palestinian Liberation Army, an underground movement that would eventually rise to a regional power over the Ottomans. Using Jelal, a man who turned against the Ottomans despite the hardships he faced, as the face of it, a rebellion was eventually sparked.
At first, the Ottomans didn't really treat it as anything major. The military base they had set up in Beersheba was the only place in the region where weapons were kept, and not a single weapon was allowed to go missing, otherwise the men on guard duty would be tried for treason. So the Ottomans had safely assumed that this was just a small riot, and only poked at it every once in a while.
So when the word came in that the rebels had taken Beersheba, there was an outrage. Not only did they somehow manage to take over an armed and fortified position, they did so with, or so the Turks thought, nothing in the way of legitimate firearms.
With men already fighting in Armenia, Greece and Syria, as well as enforcing control over Egypt, there was barely anyone that could get to Palestine. And the only way to get to them was to sail troops all the way down to Egypt, since the Syrians blocked their land route. This provided the Palestinians with the perfect chance for success, as the Sultan had ordered that the majority of troops in Palestine were to be stationed in Jerusalem, and to keep the city his at all costs.
Within just a couple of months, the PLA had taken control of the entire Southern part of the nation, and found an ally with Jordan. Knowing well that they had to stop the incoming Ottomans from the Egyptian border, a small group of Palestinians went with the Jordanian army into Sinai, which they would later take complete control of, halting the Egyptian Ottomans from moving in any further. For the PLA, this was considered a checkmate, and a plan was made to take Jerusalem.
Midday, Hebron. The PLA had a diversionary force fake an attack on Jerusalem from the West of the city, while the rest of the army snuck around from the East, into Hebron. At first, all seemed like it was going according to plan, and the army split into three forces upon entering the city. This was to make the entire army seem smaller, and to ensure that they could clean out all Ottomans in the area, leaving none to report to Jerusalem.
But soon enough, the Palestinians would learn that they were wrong. It had seemed that the Ottomans had planned for this, since it seemed all the Turkish troops in Jerusalem were there, vastly outnumbering and outgunning the Palestinians. It got to the point that almost half of the PLA there had been killed, and it seemed like a surefire victory for the Turks.
Then Ras Hassan arrived.
With the help of him and his army, the PLA was able to retake Jerusalem, and everything North of it, as well. Hassan quickly became a hero of the Palestinian people, and a few Palestinians even opted to stay with him, serving as some sort of personal guard. He was considered just as much a hero of Palestine as Jelal, putting him above even the people of Jordan, much to the anger of a few higher ups in the country.
When the Ottomans finally fell, and gave in to the terms of the rebels, Palestine was free. Almost immediately upon gaining their freedom, they agreed to enter into a union with Jordan, strengthening both nations, and aiding the Palestinians against the threats of a now independent Syria, who was claiming that Palestine was to become an extension of their territory.
Jelal, who had taken serious injuries during the Hebron attack, awoke to a free nation. He quickly learned that people were trying their hardest to get him to become the leader of their nation, but he refused. He claimed he was too young and inexperienced to be in control of the nation. But the people didn't listen. They pushed and pushed and pushed until one of Jelals friends and advisers, Zafar, put forward an idea. Since the people were still trying to decide what kind of government their nation should have, and since Jelal didn't want all the power and authority of having absolute control of the nation, Zafar offered up the idea of a constitutional monarchy. With this, they would name Jelal the monarch of the nation, while the people would run the rest of the nation.
After the first vote in Palestine, it was decided. With a whopping eighty-seven percent agreeing to it, Jelal Farsakh become the first monarch of an independent Palestine, which he agreed to, even if it took plenty of talking him into it. Following this, a minister was appointed to each region. Issa Farsoun to Sinai, seeing as he was the head of the operation that took it, and a trusted member of the PLA. Jordan was obviously kept in control of Mahmoud Kawar, and Zafar Al-Hawwash becoming the Prime Minister in Palestine.
Since then, the only major events to happen have been border conflicts with Syria, which, through fierce negotiations, Zafar was and still is keeping from escalating any further. Palestine was also declared a “religiously neutral” and “free” state, mainly following the example of Persia, who they owed all of their early success to.
Now, Palestine is still just fixing up the post-war country, and is to soon finalize it's constitution. The border conflicts in Syria continue, and a minor political conflict is going on with Egypt.
