War in Israel-Palestine (2023-24)

DISCLAIMER: This article is made with the purpose of being a general resource on the history of the conflict in Israel-Palestine. It was made for the author to better understand the history of the conflict, and to provide a summary to any who may want to know more about it. This article is not for academic use, nor is it written by an expert. Additional reputable sources are included at the bottom of this page for further reading.

Context

As the world looks to the unfolding war in Palestine, it is important to recall the many key events that led to this conflict. These incidents form the foundation of this devastating situation, and show why peace negotiations have been so difficult to come by.

For a more comprehensive display, the following resources provide an excellent summary:

OR: A brief history of the Israel-Palestine conflict in maps and charts

In some ways, this conflict goes back to the story of the Jewish Exodus from Egypt, wherein God led the Hebrew people out of slavery and into the ‘Promised Land’ (See Exodus Chapters 5-14 in Bible NIV).

Yet, religion may not play as large a part in Israeli ideology as Zionism does.

As many as “57 percent of Jewish citizens do not affiliate with any religious group” a US report found. The different groups of Jews struggle to agree on issues around the governance of the state and what rules should be allowed or not.

Meanwhile, 79% of Israeli Jews agree that “Israel should give preferential treatment to Jews” and believe that anti-Semitism is both common and increasing around the world. (http://pewrsr.ch/1M4ecOf)

Mostly however, the modern-day attitude of the Israelis towards Palestinians is as follows:

“Israel hates the Palestinians for being the living proof that the foundations of Zionism – a people without a land settling in a land without a people – is mythical at best and violent and colonialist in reality. Israel hates them for impeding the realisation of the Zionist dream over all historical Palestine. And it especially hates those living in Gaza, for turning the dream into a nightmare.” (Al Jazeera, 2022)

As such, this blog post will summarise many of the key events in the history of the formation of the Israeli state, and their war with Palestine.

Ancient History

Known as ‘Canaan’, the Kingdoms of Judah and Israel once resided on this stretch of land beside the Mediterranean Sea and between Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria.

‘Palestine’ used to be a small portion of land in the south wherein the Philistines resided. They were believed to have established themselves in the land long before the Israelites, arriving around the end of the Bronze Age, around 1200BCE. The area came to be known as Philistia, until Herodotus wrote of it in his book The Histories and then the word ‘Palestine’ was used to describe the land.

Middle Ages

The crusades occurred in the Middle Ages, as armies of soldiers from Christian Europe went to reclaim the ‘Holy Land’ from the Muslim occupants.

The first of many expeditions was launched in 1096, though little was ever accomplished for the Europeans. The bitter wars lasted until 1272, when the Europeans withdrew from their failed campaigns.

Then, when the Byzantine Empire fell in 1453 CE, the Christian influence in the region was greatly reduced, and Palestine was then held by the Ottoman Turks.

Later, the rising Zionism of the 1800s resulted in a wave of Jewish immigrants arriving in Palestine from Eastern Europe and nearby Middle Eastern countries up until 1914 and the outbreak of World War One.

British Colony 1915-1947

The region remained contested until the British involved themselves during World War One, where the western powers created the Sykes-Picot agreement (1916), that stipulated how if they were successful in toppling the Ottoman Empire, they would partition the land between them.

Then, after the region was seized by the British forces during the war, the Balfour Declaration was issued by British foreign minister Arthur Balfour, promising to establish a national Jewish home in Palestine.

Palestine remained a remnant Ottoman territory under the British administration until the conclusion of the Second World War and the devastating Holocaust. The newly formed United Nations decided that there needed to be a dedicated home established for Jews. Thus, on the 14th of May, 1948, the state of Israel was established.

Formation of Israel & the Palestinian struggle

Nakba 1948

Almost immediately an Arab-Israeli war followed, resulting in around 750,000 Palestinians being displaced in an event called the Nakba, meaning ‘catastrophe’.

Numerous massacres targeted Arabs, towns were destroyed or repopulated by Jewish immigrants, and approximately 80% of the Palestinan population were driven out of the territory Israel conquered. Dozens of rapes were recorded as well, though it is likely that many more occurred without documentation.

The country was divided into three main parts with the majority going to the State of Israel. Palestinians were forced into the ‘West Bank’ named for its position beside the Jordan River, or the Gaza strip.

Other Conflicts

Suez Crisis, 1956 = Israel invading Sinai Peninsula of Egypt, which led to a defence pact between Egypt, Jordan and Syria.
Six-Day War, June 1967 = military manouevres by Egyptian President Abdel Gamal Nasser prompted Israel to attack Egypt and Syria, beginning the Six-Day War.
- It resulted in Israel seizing control of Sinai and Gaza from Egypt, then the West Bank and Jerusalem from Jordan, and the Golan Heights from Syria.
- UN – “Security Council Resolution 242 (1967) formulated the principles of a just and lasting peace, including an Israeli withdrawal from territories occupied in the conflict, a just settlement of the refugee problem, and the termination of all claims or states of belligerency.” It formed the basis for negotiations between the parities
Yom Kippur War / October War 1973 = war with Egypt & Syria to regain lost territory.
- There were no significant gains but the attack was declared a victory by Egyptian President Anwar al-Sadat who negotiated for territory.
- UN – “The 1973 hostilities were followed by Security Council Resolution 338, which inter alia called for peace negotiations between the parties concerned. In 1974 the General Assembly reaffirmed the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people to self-determination, national independence, sovereignty, and to return. The following year, the General Assembly established the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People and conferred on the PLO the status of observer in the Assembly and in UN conferences.”
Camp David 1979 = allowed for representatives from Egypt and Israel to sign the Camp David accords, ending the thirty year conflict.
- This accord improved international relations in the region, but left Palestinians unprotected and their issues unresolved.

2000-Now

‘Intifada’

The first ‘Intifada’ occurred in 1987, wherein the Palestinian citizens rose up against the Israeli government. Although the Israeli forces retaliated with force, resulting in heavy loss of life, the State of Palestine was established in 1988 during a meeting in Algiers.

The second ‘Intifada’ was launched in 2000, and it lasted until 2005 when a summit occurred between President of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister or Israel Ariel Sharon and they agreed to de-escalate the hostilities.

HAMAS

In 2006, Hamas won the majority of seats in the Palestinian Authority’s parliamentary elections for its emphasis on social services and to depose the longtime majority party Fatah which was failing to provide for the Palestinian people.

However, as the Council on Foreign Relations reports, Hamas “represses the Gazan media, civilian activism on social media, the political opposition, and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), leaving it without mechanisms for account.

The United States and European Union, among others, did not acknowledge Hamas’ electoral victory in 2006, as the group has been considered a terrorist organization by western governments since the late 1990s.

War

Escalating rocket fire and air strikes in late 2008 culminated in Israeli ground operation “Cast Lead” in Gaza
UN Security Council adopted resolution 1860. Violations of international law during the Gaza conflict were investigated by the UN.
In 2011 President Mahmoud Abbas applied for Palestinian membership in the UN. UNESCO admitted Palestine as a Member, and on the 29th November 2012, Palestine was granted non-member observer State status in the UN.
November 2012 = more violence between Israel and Gaza concluded with an Egyptian-brokered cease-fire.
2017 = Donald J. Trump administration reversed longstanding U.S. policy by reducing funding for the UN Relief and Works Agency, which provided aid to Palestinian refugees. Additionally, he relocated the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, declaring in his statement on Jerusalem that, ‘it is time to officially recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.’ (2017)
May 2021 – a Jerusalem Court ruled in favor of the eviction of several Palestinian families from East Jerusalem properties, protests erupted, with Israeli police using force against demonstrators.
Violence erupted, and Hamas launched rockets into Israeli territory.
- Israel responded with artillery bombardments and air strikes before a ceasefire was declared 11 days later.
  - This conflict killed 250 Palestinians and 13 Israelis. It wounded 2,000, and displaced 72,000 Palestinians. Further, it destroyed residential buildings, media headquarters, refugee and healthcare facilities.
Dec 2022 – Benjamin Netanyahu and his Israeli Likud party was inaugurated, comprising two ultra-Orthodox parties and three far-right parties.

OUTBREAK OF WAR – OCT 7, 2023

The war as we know it today then broke out on the 7th of October, 2023 after Hamas launched a complete assault on Israel from the Gaza strip, comprising land, air, and sea attacks. IT resulted in 1,200 deaths, mostly in Israel, and resulted in 240 hostages captured.

Since then, the collapse of infrastructure has made it near impossible to get accurate statistics of the casualties in Palestine but UNICEF reports that over 20,000 Palestinians have been killed. Over 5,000 of which were children.

The unlawful killings have occurred through the launching of drone missiles, and many of which have hit civilians in direct or indiscriminate attacks.

Israel has consistently defended their position, arguing that they are fighting for a “total victory” over Hamas. Many on social media continue to support the war, believing that Israel is right to fight the ‘terrorists’ and that they are simply defending their land after the attacks of October 7, without recognising how much the Palestinian’s have suffered at Israel’s hands.

As Israeli forces sweep through Gaza, one must wonder how much longer the world will sit by as the Israeli’s kill Palestinian civilians. Because the civilians are the ones suffering the most, from those who are directly killed by missiles and weapons of war, to those who are being indirectly killed through starvation, displacement, and a lack of access to basic necessities like medical aid.

It is a shocking genocide to watch play out in the world right before our eyes, and it is devastating to know how little individual people, like myself, can do to stop it.

Action steps

So how can we help Palestine now? Even in small ways:

Stay educated and up-to-date. Reading this summary is a good starting point to get some of the key information that led up to the war, but this is not enough.

To continue keeping up with the war, follow Al-Jazeera’s live updates https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/israel-war-on-gaza/

Talk about it! Talk with colleagues, friends, and family to keep the conversation going. Many people are not aware of the sheer amount of propaganda being pushed into our media each day and they do not know about the reality of the situation in Palestine and especially Gaza.
1. Additionally, censoring is at an all time high online right now, so be mindful and boost information when you can. Every bit helps.
Listen to what people are asking you to do – and do it! If they call for strikes, for boycotts, for a simple share of a video, do what you can.
1. https://palestinecampaign.org/campaigns/
2. Talk to representatives – call them, email them, and contact them endlessly so they are forced to listen to our voices (there are templates out there!)
3. https://afsc.org/news/6-ways-you-can-support-palestinians-gaza
Exercise empathy – I cannot believe anyone would wish to suffer in the way the Palestinians are suffering now, so remember that and do what you can. Imagine yourself in their place, without shelter, healthcare, safety, food, water, sanitation – the most basic human rights and necessities.
Donate if you have the means to do so. There are numerous charities working to help the people of Gaza right now, so if you have the ability to assist them financially, please consider doing so. (I do recommend that you complete thorough research into the organisations first however)
1. Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund: https://www.pcrf.net/
2. United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian refugess: https://www.unrwa.org/

Devin's World