Unless you have been living under a rock, or went full “ostrich mode” and buried your head in the sand, you are aware that the age-old conflict between Israel and Palestine has escalated once again.
On October 7, the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched an unprecedented assault on Israel, with hundreds of gunmen infiltrating communities near the Gaza Strip. At least 1,400 Israelis have been killed, and the Israeli government says that approximately 200 soldiers and civilians, including women, children, and some American citizens, are being held in Gaza as hostages.
In retaliation, Israel has delivered numerous air strikes against Gaza, killing approximately 2,700 Palestinians, who were most assuredly all not responsible for the actions of Hamas. Israel has imposed a complete and total blockade on the Gaza Strip, denying food, fuel, and other essentials to enter the area.
Many innocent lives have been lost on both the Israeli and Palestinian sides. Israel was fully justified in defending its citizens, and its territory. This is a battle that dates back to biblical times, as the Children of Israel have long been the targets of terror attacks and threats. If you disagree, need I remind you of a little thing called the Holocaust? In times more recent than the bible, this conflict has centered around who has a claim to the land in which Israel, the Gaza Strip, and more importantly Jerusalem lie.
The Israeli people claim that this is the promised land, the land that God promised to the Israelites when he promised Abraham that he would preserve the nation. Jerusalem is where the first temple was built. The Palestinians built the Dome on the Rock in 685 AD, after they conquered the area. They, much like the Israelites, deem this to be the most holy of locations. To make the situation even more tense, this is also the holy city for the Christian faith, as Jerusalem is the place where Jesus’ life and death unfolded, this is the land where Jesus preached to many people, and it is also the location of his crucifixion and resurrection.
With the Israelis and Palestinians constantly in disagreement over who has a claim to the land, will we ever truly see peace in the region? Will there be a time when the citizens of the Palestinian region and the Israeli people just agree to coexist? No one can say for sure. I do know the current conflict could have implications that reach much further than the Middle East. There have been anti-Israeli protests all across the world, even in Little Rock, since Israel retaliated against Gaza earlier this month. Khaled Meshaal, former chief of Hamas, called for a formal day of protest and called for all people in the Muslim world to support Palestine in its fight against Israel. This call for “Jihad” clearly indicates that Hamas, more so than the Palestinian people as a whole, is not in the mood for peace talks.
So what happens next? What implications will this have in the Israel/Palestine region? What impact will this have globally? I do not know, but I am watching, and hoping that some sort of resolution can come before it’s too late to fix this situation.
