Despite attempts made to extend the cease-fire in Gaza, fighting resumed on Monday, November 27. The Israel-Palestine conflict rages on, as it has since 1948.
The 2023 Israel-Hamas war began on October 7, 2023, after Hamas, the current controller of Gaza, launched a surprise, multi-faceted assault on Israel from the Gaza Strip with the hopes of achieving complete Palestinian control over all land from the Mediterranean Sea to the Jordan River. Israel retaliated to Hamas’s attack by killing hundreds of civilians in Gaza.
The Israel-Palestine conflict dates back to 1948 when Israel was officially established as a country in order to provide Jewish people a safe haven from the Holocaust. However, the Jews were just one of several minorities in the area, with Arabic being the primary identity, according to ABC.
Arabs and other non-Jewish communities united, forming the Palestinians. These people looked unfavorably upon having to give up their land to establish a Jewish State.
Britain, which held control of the area at the time, proposed creating another new country, Palestine, for Palestinians that would exist alongside Israel, according to the UN.
However, Palestinians and neighboring Arab countries rejected this proposal, instead claiming that Palestine should cover the entire area from the Mediterranean Sea to the Jordan River. They decided to declare war on Israel.
The war ended with Israel controlling around 78% of the land, significantly more than was originally suggested in the proposal. Palestinians were mainly confined to the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The Israeli government controlled access to and movement within these locations, making them feel much like open prisons.
In 2006, Hamas was elected leader of the Gaza Strip. It intended to expand Palestinian territory and completely take over Israel. It did not believe Israel had a right to any territory between the Mediterranean Sea and Jordan River.
The fighting has persisted since Hamas’s election. Both sides of the conflict have been guilty of war crimes for their attacks on civilians.
Israel’s position in the war was incredibly promising as it had a powerful military as well as an Iron Dome that shot down Gaza attacks before they could hit Israeli cities.
However, Hamas launched its largest, unprecedented assault on Israel on October 7, 2023, which shocked Israel and the rest of the world. The assault killed hundreds of Israeli civilians and soldiers and spread terror throughout the country.
Israel responded to Hamas’s assault by raiding and instilling fear in the Gaza Strip. Thousands of Palestinians were brutally murdered and many attempted to flee the conflict. As of November 26, 2023, at least 14,854 Palestinians in Gaza were killed by Israeli forces and more than 36,000 were injured, according to AlJazeera.
A four-day truce between Israel and Hamas allowed temporary relief for the struggling Palestinians. However, even after attempts made by Israel’s Security Cabinet to extend the cease-fire, Hamas rejected all offers, instead choosing to withstand the terror imposed on Gaza.
