Hamas’ attack of Israel on Oct. 7 shocked many, was unsurprising to some, and captured the attention of all. A breach of a security fence separating Gaza and Israel resulted in hundreds of Israeli civilians gunned down and tortured and raiding the Supernova music festival. The history of relations between Israel and Palestine are a lengthy, convoluted, unilinear series of events that intersects political, religious, and geographic spheres. The dispute is over holy land that Israelis and Palestinians both claim and refuse to acknowledge the presence of each other.
This conflict has received mass attention in media, spurred protest movement, and been invited into conversations everywhere. This is due to the catalyst that is the Oct 7. attack on Israel by Hamas. Depending on who you ask, Hamas could be a terrorist group or the militant Islamist group. Either way, they have controlled Gaza since 2006, and took Israel by surprise when they fired rockets on and stormed Israeli cities. The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) states the “Israeli cabinet formally declared war against Hamas, followed by a directive from the defense minister to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) to carry out a ‘complete siege’ of Gaza.” This was followed by an Israeli aid blockade and “Israel ordered more than one million Palestinian civilians in northern Gaza to evacuate ahead of a possible ground assault.” An anonymous IHS junior responded to the initial attack with “frustration and confusion.”
Regardless of this new spotlight, the war has been a prolonged struggle beginning over 70 years ago. An anonymous IHS sophomore said, “I do not know the full history from 1940-, but I know Israel separated from Palestine in 2005.” One could begin with this split or the Holocaust, but the official catalyst is in 1947. The Guardian says, “The starting point for many people is the United Nations’ vote in 1947 to partition land in the British mandate of Palestine into two states – one Jewish, one Arab – following the destruction of much of European Jewry in the Holocaust.” Israel was then established as a country in 1948 after the genocide. The country encompassed a Jewish population, an Arab majority, and Christian minority. The Arabs and Christians were called Palestinians and were disinclined to give up their land to form a Jewish state. The CFR stated “[The] State of Israel was created, sparking the first Arab-Israeli War. The war ended in 1949 with Israel’s victory, but 750,000 Palestinians were displaced, and the territory was divided into 3 parts: the State of Israel, the West Bank (of the Jordan River), and the Gaza Strip.” From then on, a period arose that the Seattle Times described as “mutual violence, failed peace” with Palestinian self-determination in the throes of undecidedness. Through parliamentary elections in 2006, Hamas won control of Palestine. However, this was not recognized by European nor US governments, because of Hamas’ status as a terrorist organization. Relations between the two sides have gone to extremes. The Seattle Times continued, “Through the 1970s, the Palestinians formed ‘Black September to carry out revenge assassinations and hijackings. Israelis formed ‘Wrath of God’ to assassinate Palestinian leaders.” There have been peace talks and territorial divisions in an attempt to reconcile but the conflict persists. From the Seattle Times, some outstanding events include “2018, [when] the Trump administration canceled funding for the UN Relief and Works Agency, which provides aid to Palestinian refugees, and relocated the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a reversal of a longstanding U.S. policy,” and Jerusalem Day 2021 when Hamas launched rockets into Israeli territory. Israel responded with airstrikes and bombardments on targets in Gaza. A cease-fire occurred after 11 days of fighting, resulting in the death of 250 Palestinians and 13 Israelis, 2,000 wounded citizens, tens of millions of dollars of damage done to non-military buildings, and the displacement of 72,000 Palestinians.
The US has faced both criticism and urgency on the decision to consistently give about $3 billion in aid each year to Israel due to people’s divergent views on which side should be supported. Channel 4 News put it simply that “Hamas does not believe Israel should exist, and that Palestine should cover the whole area from the River Jordan to the Mediterranean Sea.” Palestinians demand that Israel withdraw and deconstruct the 144 Jewish settlements from the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem, which Israelis opposed to. Palestinians desire their own nation, a capital in East Jerusalem, and control of the Old City in its holiness. Palestinians also want Israel to recognize the rights of Palestinian refugees to return to homes in land that is now Israel. The Seattle Times states, “Israel says it will not recognize the right of return, but will allow a limited number of refugees to settle in Israel on humanitarian grounds.” With both sides unwilling to budge, no aims have been fulfilled.
In a scandalized media landscape, it can be difficult to sift through fact and fiction. Freshman Muskaan Chaudhry acknowledged, “When the war started, it was hard to find websites and articles with reliable information.” Senior Jeena Roy of CARE Club is combatting this. She helped to coordinate a Teach-In for all to “learn about what has been and is still going on with Palestine and Israel.” It is still imperative to educate ourselves as the next generation of policymakers, voters, and citizens.
