Another conflict has broken out between Israel and Palestine. This surprise attack is the biggest in the last few decades that has been seen in the Israel-Palestine Conflict.
At 6.30 AM on the morning of 7th October, most of the Israelis were sleeping soundly in their homes. Suddenly, the air raid sirens began blaring. In a short while, thousands of rockets were fired at Israeli cities. Israeli Defence Forces estimate that 2,200 rockets were fired. However, the group Hamas claims that 5,000 rockets were fired. Israel has an Iron Dome system, it is one of the best air defence systems in the world. Whenever rockets are fired on Israel, it uses the latest military technology to intercept the rockets and destroy them midflight to keep the country protected. But here, 5000 rockets were fired within 20 minutes. This Iron Dome system failed. Thousands of people were killed and injured in Israel because of this attack.
This Israel-Palestine Conflict reminds us of the Yom Kippur War. Exactly 50 years ago in October 1973, Egypt and Syria had launched a similar surprise attack on Israel. After that, a war broke out, Known as the Yom Kippur War. And this attack is no less than a full-scale war.
In addition to the rocket strikes, Hamas launched a multi-pronged attack from the ground, sea, and air. The boundary wall on the Israel-Gaza border was broken down by a bulldozer. Many Palestinians were seen entering Israeli territory. Some on motorcycles, some using motor-powered hang-gliders to enter Israel through the air. Apart from this, Hamas also attacked Israel from the sea using speedboats. Many events took place within a day. A military base on the Israel-Gaza border was also attacked. An Israeli tank was captured. Many Israeli soldiers were captured and held hostages by the Hamas group. And the Israeli villages and cities on the border were infiltrated by armed terrorists of Hamas. Many innocent civilians have been killed here, many are being held as hostages and Israel has declared a state of war in response.
The Israeli military carried out airstrikes in Gaza, in which thousands of Palestinians were killed or injured. Please take a look at the map to understand the context of this situation. Israel and Palestine are located in the Middle East. In the North is the country of Lebanon. In the Northeast, there is Syria. In the East, there is Jordan. In the South West, there is Egypt. And in the West, is the Mediterranean Sea. If you see on both countries, the area in the middle is the country of Israel. And the territories of Palestine are divided into two parts. One is the region of the West Bank, which is in the west of Jordan and the other is the Gaza Strip which is in the south-west of Israel and borders of Egypt.
There are many Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territory of the West Bank. They are under Israel’s control. And are considered illegal by the United Nations and many other countries. The Palestinian territories in the West Bank are administered by Palestinian Authorities under the control of Fatah, a political party. On the other hand, the Gaza Strip is controlled independently by Hamas. There has been a separate conflict between Fatah and Hamas historically. Hamas is an extremist Palestinian organisation which is considered a terrorist organisation by most countries like Canada, the European Union, Israel, Japan, Australia, the USA, and the UK. On the other hand, it is not considered a terrorist organisation by Brazil, China, Egypt, Iran, Norway, Qatar, Russia, Syria, and Turkey. There are also some countries that consider only Hamas military wing as a terrorist organisation. Like New Zealand and Paraguay.
This is geopolitically relevant because you will see how differently these countries are reacting to the current situation. If we look at the map of the current conflict, we can see that the Gaza Strip is shown in red colour. And the extent to which Israeli territory has been infiltrated by the Palestinian militents is shown in blue colour. Hamas military commander Mohammad Al-Deif has named this attack Operation Al-Aqsa Flood and said that Hamas is doing this because Israel has committed atrocities on the Palestinians. And that this is specifically a response of what happened in Al Aqsa mosque.
Israel launched its own attack in response, which was named Operation Iron Swords. Israeli Defense Forces, also known as IDF in short, have deployed their Navy, Air Force, and Ground Forces. Along with that, they launched drone strikes in Gaza. Israel’s Energy Minister signed an order to cut the electricity supply in Gaza. To a large extent, electricity was supplied through Israel to Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at a television address, “Citizens of Israel, we are at war.” He said that the enemy will have to pay an unprecedented price. The defence minister stated that Hamas has made a huge mistake and Israel will win this war.
A big talking point in this conflict is how Mossad, the world-famous Israeli intelligence agency, failed to intercept this attack. It is said that Mossad is one of the most powerful intelligence agencies. They have informants even in the Palestinian military groups. They are in Lebanon, Syria, and in different parts of the world. In the past, it has been seen that Mossad agents have carried out precise timed assassinations of major military leaders. Sometimes by placing GPS trackers on vehicles, sometimes by using drone strikes, or sometimes by using mobile phones.
The question is, despite being such a powerful agency, how did they not know that thousands of rockets were being stockpiled in Gaza? The fencing on the Gaza-Israel border has cameras, and ground motion sensors, and regular army patrols are carried out there. Why did these smart barriers fail? Domestically, the Israeli government is facing a lot of criticism. The former head of the Israeli Navy told the Israeli TV channel, Channel 12 that this is a huge failure on the part of the government. The entire country is asking about the whereabouts of IDF, police, and security. He told the BBC that a major investigation has already begun regarding this intelligence failure.
According to it, Egypt’s intelligence officials had warned Israel repeatedly that something major was about to happen. And allegedly, those warnings were ignored. On the other hand, talking about international reactions, American President Joe Biden condemned this attack and said that he shows ‘rock-solid and unwavering support’ in favour of Israel. The foreign policy chief of the European Union also said that he strongly condemns this attack and says that according to international law, Israel has the right to defend itself. They said that Israeli hostages should be released immediately.
Iran, which has been one of the main supporters of Hamas, their foreign ministry said that the attack by Hamas was an act of self-defence by the Palestinians. The foreign ministry of the neighbouring country Egypt said that it is talking to Saudi Arabia and Jordan in an attempt to diffuse the Israeli-Palestinian tensions. The Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, told to the official news agency WAFA that the Palestinians have the right to protect themselves against the terror of the settlers and foreign troops.
Israel is also trying to show that, they are carrying out their counter-offensive responsibly. Recently, there was an airstrike on a 14-storey building in Palestine. But before the airstrike, Israel had issued a 10-minute warning so that the people living in the building should evacuate it before the bomb could hit it. Such warnings have been given before, like the warning given to Fatima Bashir’s family before the Israeli airstrike in May this year Or in August 2022, a 15-minute warning was given to Gazans before an Israeli airstrike.
Although Israel claims this but the truth is that in Israeli airstrikes, many Palestinian civilians have been killed.
We hope that there can be long-lasting peace between these two countries. But looking at the current situation, it seems that this war is going to continue for a long time. We would suggest that you understand the historical context of the conflict between Israel and Palestine. What is the real reason behind it?
Thank you very much!