The conflict between Israel and Palestine has persisted for decades and has been characterized by violence, war, and territorial disputes. The roots of the conflict can be traced back to the end of the nineteenth century when the United Nations adopted Resolution 181, known as the Partition Plan, which sought to divide the British Mandate of Palestine into Arab and Jewish states. On May 14, 1948, the State of Israel was created, sparking the first Arab-Israeli War. The war ended in 1949 with Israel’s victory, but 750,000 Palestinians were displaced, and the territory was divided into three parts: the State of Israel, the West Bank (of the Jordan River), and the Gaza Strip.
The conflict pits Israeli demands for security in what it has long regarded as a hostile region against Palestinian aspirations for a state of their own. The conflict has been characterized by violence, war, and territorial disputes. In early October 2023, war broke out between Israel and Hamas, the militant Islamist group that has controlled Gaza since 2006. Hamas fighters fired rockets, and an estimated 1,000 Hamas militants breached the security barrier at several positions. The IDF began to strike compounds believed to house Hamas leadership in the Gaza Strip, as well as civilian areas. Israeli fighter jets are reported to have hit over 1,000 targets, including the headquarters of a radio station, residential buildings, and mosques. Airstrikes leveled most of the town of Beit Hanoun, situated in Gaza’s northeast corner. Outside of Gaza, clashes were also reported in the West Bank. At least 11 people were killed in the fighting involving three armed clashes between Palestinian militants and Israelis, two attempted knife attacks, and shooting at unarmed Palestinians engaged in rioting.
The conflict has been fueled by a range of factors, including territorial disputes, religious differences, and political tensions. The tendency to look for someone to blame is impossible for many to resist. Israelis and their supporters want to pin all the blame on Hamas, whose direct responsibility for the horrific attack on Israeli civilians is beyond question. Those more sympathetic to the Palestinian cause see the tragedy as the inevitable result of decades of occupation and Israel’s harsh and prolonged treatment of its Palestinian subjects. Others insist there is plenty of blame to go around, and that anyone who sees one side as wholly innocent and the other as solely responsible has lost any capacity for fair-minded judgment.
