Festered Wounds
What You Should Know About The Israeli-Hamas Conflict
D. H. Kang
HISTORY’S FESTERING WOUNDS ALWAYS COME BACK TO HAUNT US. Unresolved tensions between neighbouring states have almost always found ways to be the cause of armed conflicts, in its maelstrom taking the lives of innumerable civilians. Thus, the homeostatic hostility between the Hamas in Gaza and Israel was bound to be disrupted in the fashion of a large-sale conflict given unresolved decade-long tensions and conflicts.
To adequately comprehend the events of the status quo it is necessary to first understand the history of the origins of the Gaza Strip. Gaza is a piece of land bordered by Israel to its east and north, and Egypt to its south. Originally a territory administrated by Egypt, Israel later occupied Hamas following the 1967 war fought between Israel and a number of Arab states. During the 1990s Gaza was handed over to the Palestinian National Authorities, as per the Oslo accords agreed upon between the PLO (Palestine Liberation Organisation and Israel). A de facto state since 2006, Gaza has been administered by Hamas, a militant Islamic group. Hamas was “instated” after winning the last-held Palestinian election and exercised full authority the following year.
Given its history and incompatible religious demographic with neighbouring Israel, it comes about as no surprise that Gaza, which has been dominated by Sunni Muslims compared to the 73.8% Jewish Israel, has a heavy undercurrent of spite existing with Israel.
The cause of the war justified to the residents of Gaza’s side is as so; due to Israel and Egypt’s prevention of free movement and trade, Gaza has a nearly 50% poverty rate with a devastated economy and record high unemployment rates. The nine metre high concrete wall built between Gaza and Israel, has caused Gaza to suffer from shortages of basic necessities such as water, electricity and medicines, with such problems amplified given the state’s rapid population growth of 2.91%, the 13th highest in the world. As a result, before the current war, the United Nations and 19 other human rights organisations encouraged Israel to cease its “siege on Gaza”.
As a caveat, I haven’t given such context to justify the gravity of Hamas’ war crimes, but to present a plausible catalyst for the conflict we are witnessing. On the 7th of October, Hamas terrorists used bulldozers to break through the walls, and many assailants on motorbikes drove through (with paragliders above), killing more than 1,200 Israelis, the majority of whom were civilians, murdered in kibbutzim, music festivals, in their home or on the streets. A further 150 have been estimated to have been taken as hostages. In the words of Muhammad Deif, the leader of Hamas’ military wing “O, our people in all Arab and Islamic countries… The day has come when anyone who has a gun should take it out. Now is the time. If you do not have a gun, take up your cleaver, hatchet, axe, Molotov cocktail, truck, bulldozer or car.” In short, a full declaration of war.
In turn, Israel returned fire by killing 1,900 Palestinians, many of which were also civilians uninvolved in conflict. However, Israel will have to tread upon a thorny road. To garner and maintain support of other nations, Israel has an incentive to abide by international humanitarian law in war compared to Hamas. This means avoiding killing civilians beyond a response justified by international laws regarding acts of self-defence. It is likely Hamas is also aware of this fact; thousands of legal military targets reside in the neighbourhoods of Gaza, who intermingle with civilians makes it almost impossible for Israel to solely target the necessary individuals correctly without harming ordinary civilians around them. Hence the reason why Hamas has acted in such a brazen fashion.
As the war is still in its early stages, the outcome is still unclear. We can only hope that as little lives are lost as possible and it doesn’t become the long-term bloodbath that still rages on between Ukraine and Russia. Without a doubt, the path to peace is long and arduous.
