Conflict between Israelis and Palestinians over the land known as the “Gaza” has been on and off since the horrible persecution of the Jewish population in the early twentieth century. As a result of heavy discrimination, many Jews adopted Zionism—hoping of creating a Jewish state in the historic region of Palestine, free from discrimination and close in proximity to the holy city of Jerusalem.
Following World War II, the U.N. recognized the importance of establishing a Jewish state and decided to partition Palestinian land in two, provoking anger among nationalistic, Palestinian Arabs. Later, the Palestinians fought against this declaration but soon the riots escalated to full-scale war once Israel announced its independence. This major conflict came to be known as the Arab-Israeli War; this was just the beginning of conflict.
Since the Arab-Israeli War, Israel has been gaining land at the expense of Palestine. Nowadays, Israel controls more than 78% of the entire region, although they were originally promised 55% under the original U.N. plan of partition. Military occupations are temporary but the Israeli military has been stationed in Palestine for over 40 years. In addition, Jewish settlers in Palestinian land continue to take land occupied by Palestinians while being backed by the Israeli government.
To make matters worse, the emergence and rise of Hamas—a terrorist group with the aim of destroying Israel, and assuming power—increased civilian causalities for both parties. Hamas is known for its violent projectile attacks on Jewish settlements. With the support of the Obama administration, Israel has developed an advanced missile dome system, one that is “considered one of the most effective anti-missile systems in the world;” with this technology, the number of Israeli deaths have almost been abolished. However, without much foreign support, Palestine has no effective method of defense from Israel’s air raids. Moreover, reduced Palestinian land means dense populations and a myriad of collateral casualties.
Palestinian civilians find themselves under a dangerous cycle of control, violence, and oppression. To make matters more complex, the U.S. has been providing aid to the Israeli army, furthering the advancement of the Israel military onto Palestinian land.
“…Israelis and Palestinians have little chance to understand each other as humans, pushing the “us” and “them” mentality”
While there has been talk of peace, there is still injustice and violence occurring in Israel-Palestine, most of it affecting innocent Palestinian men, women, and children. Due to the restriction of Palestinian movement by the Israeli military, Israelis and Palestinians have little chance to understand each other as humans, pushing the “us” and “them” mentality. Non-violent protests decorate the streets as Israelis and Palestinians hope for reconciliation and peace between the two groups.
