The World woke up to the news of Hamas attacking Israel territory on Saturday Morning, October 7, 2023, where they murdered civilians including children and the elderly.
Hamas is a Palestinian Islamic organization that has been fighting with Israel in the Gaza strip for a long period of time.
The Hama’s charter calls for the establishment of an Islamic Palestinian state in place of Israel. Hamas strength is concentrated in the Gaza strip and areas of West Bank.
The spark of the recent attack on Israel, many believe was the long simmering tensions including a dispute over the Al-Aqsa Mosque sacred to both Muslims and Jews.
Competing claims over the site, known to Jews as the Temple Mount brought tensions before including a bloody 11 day war between Israel and Hamas in 2021.
The Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu in his address to the nation and the world after the Hamas attacks, promised to avenge those who had died.
“We will destroy Hamas and avenge this black day that they have forced on the State of Israel and its citizens. All of the places which Hamas is deployed, hiding and operating in, that wicked city, we will turn them into rubble.” The Prime Minister said.
By Monday Morning, more than 700 Israelis had been killed, more then 2150 injured, 653 Hamas targets struck by Israel and 3,284 rockets fired from Gaza.
“The Palestinian death toll from Israeli air strikes has jumped to 436, including 91 children, and at least 2,300 more people have been wounded,” the Palestinian Health Ministry said on Monday Morning.
The United Nations humanitarian agency said that, 123,538 Palestinians in Gaza have been displaced by fighting. The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees estimates that, 73,538 people are sheltering across 64 schools in Gaza, some of which are designated emergency shelters.
It should be noted that, the relationship between Israel and the Arab countries has been on tension since the Arab-Israel war of 1948.
The Arab-Israeli War of 1948, broke out when five Arab nations invaded the territory in the former Palestinian mandate immediately following the announcement of the independence of the state of Israel on May 14, 1948.
On November 29, 1947, the United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 181 (also known as the Partition Resolution) that would divide Great Britain’s former Palestinian mandate into Jewish and Arab states in May 1948. Under the resolution, the area of religious significance surrounding Jerusalem would remain under international control administered by the United Nations.
The Palestinian Arabs refused to recognize this arrangement, which they regarded as favorable to the Jews and unfair to the Arab population that would remain in Jewish territory under the partition.
The United Nations resolution sparked conflict between Jewish and Arab groups within Palestine. Fighting began with attacks by irregular bands of Palestinian Arabs attached to local units of the Arab Liberation Army, composed of volunteers from Palestine and neighboring Arab countries. These groups launched their attacks against Jewish cities, settlements, and armed forces.
The goal of the Arabs was initially to block the Partition Resolution and to prevent the establishment of the Jewish state. The Jews, on the other hand, hoped to gain control over the territory allotted to them under the Partition Plan.
After Israel declared its independence on May 14, 1948, the fighting intensified with other Arab forces joining the Palestinian Arabs in attacking the territory in the former Palestinian mandate.
On the eve of May 14th, the Arabs launched an air attack on Tel Aviv, which the Israelis resisted. This action was followed by the invasion of the former Palestinian mandate by Arab armies from Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Egypt. After tense early fighting, Israeli forces were able to gain the offensive and defeated the Arabs.
Since then, the Arab countries have been against the existence of the State of Israel.
Several Arab countries have warned Israel against invading them in a defensive measure. Iranian officials on Monday, October 9, 2023, warned that if their country is attacked, there will be strikes on Israel from Lebanon, Yemen and Iraq as well as the sending of fighters from Syria.
Wars based on religion and ethnicity are very dangerous because they erode development, Cooperation and human life from communities they occur.
The Israel Defence Minister on Monday, October 9, 2023, ordered a complete siege on Gaza strip.
“There will be no electricity, no food, no fuel, everything is closed. We are fighting human animals and we will act accordingly,” the Defence Minister said.
This is a testament to lack of ideology and the nature of the ideological bankruptcy in the Israel-Arab wars. Wars of who and who will take what. Wars based on religion and ethnicity are dangerous to the human race anywhere in the world and should not be entertained, and facilitated for selfish and personal reasons.
Many innocent people have lost their lives, displaced from their homes and loved ones on the expense of these wars.
As the world prays for Israel and Palestine, the Leaders of these nations should embrace peace and find a lasting solution to a war that has lasted for decades.
