Tension between Palestinian and Israeli government control reached a breaking point when Hamas, a Palestinian militant group, fired over 5,000 rockets at southern and central Israel on October 7th. Hamas gunmen continued on to break through Gaza’s border fence, shooting and killing over 1,400 people. The death toll is now over 4,000. They took roughly 200 people hostage, up to 13 possibly being Americans.
In response, Israel has declared war.
Hamas (acronym for Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiya, which translates to the Islamic Resistance Movement) was formed in 1987 at the beginning of the first Palestinian Intifada. They gained political control over the Gaza Strip in 2006 when they beat their political rival, the Fatah party, in parliamentary elections; Fatah still has control over the West Bank.
10 days after the Hamas attack, the parking lot of the Al-Ahli Arab hospital in Gaza was bombed. Hamas held Israel responsible straight away, claiming it was an intentional air strike, but the Israel Defense Forces deny any involvement and say it was a rocket misfire by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad militant group that caused the explosion. The PIJ also denied involvement. The Ministry of Health in Gaza says at least 471 people were killed, while Israeli officials say that number is larger than the actual death toll.
“I just finished one surgery and suddenly we heard a big explosion, we thought it’s outside the hospital because we never thought that they would bomb the hospital,” Dr. Fadel Na’eem, head of the orthopedic department at the Al-Ahli hospital, said.
On October 18th, President Biden made a 7 1/2-hour wartime visit to Tel Aviv, Israel. Biden showed public support for Israel and comforted family members of victims killed by Hamas.
“Israel, you’re not alone. The United States stands with you. I know the recent terrorist assault on the people of this nation has left a deep, deep wound. We must keep pursuing a path so that Israel and the Palestinian people can both live safely. Today I am also announcing $100 million in new U.S. funding for humanitarian assistance in both Gaza and the West Bank,” Biden said.
Continuously, the United States has shown support for Israel. This goes back all the way to when it was first recognized as a country in 1948, when President Harry Truman acknowledged it. In 2022, the U.S. gave over $3.3 billion to Israel in foreign assistance, and since 1946, has given a total of more than $124 billion. Biden is currently asking Congress to approve additional funding for financial aid and military assistance for both Israel and Ukraine, and it could cost a total of $100 billion.
“The U.S. has always been a staunch supporter of Israel, both financially and militarily, and will continue to play that role while having the difficult task of attempting to be the arbiter of peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors. Brokering a peaceful settlement would be extremely difficult given the nature of the attacks and the long-standing history of conflict and mistrust between these nations,” NHS Social Studies teacher David Foss said.
The conflict between Israelis and Palestinians is nothing new. In fact, this rivalry has been going on for 75 years. The first Arab-Israeli War began in 1948 when the State of Israel was created, caused by the United Nations’s proposal of Resolution 181—otherwise known as the Partition Plan. Resolution 181 was the idea of partitioning Palestine into two states, one for Arabs and one for Jewish people.
Jewish people accepted this idea, but the Arab population and states rejected it, openly declaring that they would not support the resolution and would try to prevent the creation of the Jewish state. All of this has its origins in the Zionism movement, which was founded in 1897 by Theodor Herzl. Zionism, at its core, is Jewish people advocating for the re-establishment of a state for them in their ancient homeland. After World War II, the world was in favor of Zionism, and that’s when the Partition Plan came into effect.
“Tensions and violence have been present since the 1940s, when Israel was first recognized as a country. There have been periods that were more restful and peaceful in the region, but there has always been an undercurrent of resentment from both sides who felt that too many concessions were given to the other when the land was divided. Both sides have deep ties to the land for both historical and religious purposes, and any countermeasures that the other side takes are seen as equal or worse aggression, which makes the situation incredibly complex and difficult for peace,” NHS Social Studies teacher Ryan Eberts said.
The information contained in this article includes information as of October 20th, 2023.
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