The launch of over 5,000 rockets from Gaza broke the dawn of Saturday (Oct 7), with Israelis waking up to one of the bloodiest terror attacks launched by Hamas while breaking Tel Aviv’s impregnable Iron Dome defense system and infiltrating the country by breaching its security barriers.
The terrorist organization Hamas infiltrated the country on foot, automobiles, paragliders, and boats, and Israel was caught off guard by the unexpected escalation, which was deemed a “major intelligence failure.”
Mohammed Deif, the chief of Hamas’ military branch, stated in a recorded message, “Enough is enough,” as he urged Palestinians to participate in “Operation Al-Aqsa Storm,” which is being described as Hamas’ largest military offensive in years.
Speaking about the ‘Operation Al-Aqsa Storm’ being termed as the biggest attack on Israel to WION, spokesperson for Israeli Ambassador to India Naor Gilon Guy Nir said, “It is called the biggest terror attack because of the sheer magnitude of the event. Over 600 Israelis have been murdered and many have been held hostage.”
The historical antagonism between Israel and Palestine is the root cause
After the Ottoman Empire fell during World War I, Britain took possession of Palestine, which had an Arab majority and a Jewish minority. The international world tasked Britain with establishing a Jewish homeland in Palestine, which heightened tensions between Arabs and Jews.
The desire for a Jewish homeland arose as part of the late-nineteenth-century ethno-nationalist movement known as Zionism, which sought to establish a Jewish homeland in Palestine.
Following World War II and the Nazi Holocaust of Jewish people, the demand for a Jewish nation grew, and it garnered popular support. Many Jews fled Europe to avoid persecution, and Palestine experienced a surge of Jewish immigrants in the 1920s and 1940s.
As tensions between Arabs and Jews increased, so did opposition to the British administration. In 1947, the United Nations announced a partition plan in which Palestine was to be partitioned into separate Jewish and Arab governments, with Jerusalem remaining under international rule.
The Jewish leadership approved of the proposal, but the Arabs opposed it, and it was never implemented. Immediately following the adoption of the partition plan, a conflict broke out between Arabs and Zionist settlers entering Palestine.
In 1948, Jewish leaders declared the establishment of Israel, with the assistance of British authorities and the United Nations. During the war, neighboring Arab countries intervened militarily.
The first Arab-Israeli War ended in 1949 with Israel’s triumph, and 750,000 Palestinians were reportedly displaced, which they dubbed Al Nakba, or “The Catastrophe.”
The land was divided into three sections: the Arab West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and Jewish Israel. The conflict has yet to be resolved.
Israel’s conflict with Hamas and the growing threat of a ‘third Intifada’
Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiya, popularly known as Hamas, was created in 1987 as a transnational Sunni Islamist organization by Palestinian preacher Sheikh Ahmed Yassin.
Hamas was involved in two Palestinian uprisings, often known as “intifadas,” which occurred from 1987 to 1993 and 2000 to 2005, respectively, and effectively halted the peace process between the two countries, ushering in a new chapter of conflict.
“Intifada” is an Arabic word that means “shake off.” It became famous in December 1987, when Palestinians used it to describe their rebellion against the presence of Israelis in Gaza and the West Bank.
Since Hamas’s most recent and extraordinary attacks, several experts have declared the “Third Intifada” to have begun.
As Hamas unleashed a barrage of rockets, it called on the West Bank, as well as the Arab and Islamic countries, to join the fight against Israel.
Speaking about Hamas’ aims behind the current assault against Israel, the spokeswoman for the Israeli Ambassador to India stated, “The intent is to instill fear in the minds of the people of Israel. They are launching terror attacks at civilians and kidnaping, raping, and murdering children as well as women and elderly.”
“Israel has to defend its civilians, and we will do what is needed to achieve that goal. I think the Israel Defense Forces’ response will not encourage any Hamas terrorist to act,” he added.