Opinion: Gaza Unrest
OPINION: Unrest In Gaza
The Never Ending War
The current conflagration in Gaza is not unexpected. There has been at least 100 years of war in the region. Who knows where to start the story? Each war, no matter how long or short has added to the story. For convenience I will start in the early 20th century, during WWI.
By William Jones and D. S. Mitchell
Mandate For Palestine
The conflict has its origin back in the early 20th century. Palestine was being ruled by the Ottoman Empire. During WWI the Turks were defeated and the Empire collapsed, leading to the Mandate for Palestine, which gave Britain administrative control of Palestine and Transjordan. During this time, the majority of the inhabitants of this land were Arab, while the Jews were the minority.
A National Homeland
The tension between the two communities grew after Britain was given the task of establishing a “national home” in Palestine for the Jewish people by the League of Nations. According to the Jews, it is their ancestral land, but the Palestinian Arabs also claimed the land and opposed the move. The problem escalated following the Holocaust of World War II. The number of Jews inhabiting this region increased, with many fleeing persecutions in Europe and seeking a promised homeland.
Not A Deal
The 1947-1949 Palestine War ended the Palestine Mandate. The decision to split Palestine into Jewish and Arab states was decided by the United Nations, with Jerusalem becoming an international city. The Jewish leaders quickly implemented the plan, but it was rejected by the Arabs. In 1948, unable to solve the problem, the Brits left, and the Jewish leaders declared the independent State of Israel. Many Palestinians objected, and the war continued.
The Catastrophe
Troops from neighboring Arab countries invaded. Many Palestinians fled or were forced out of their homes in what they call Al-Nakba, or the “Catastrophe.” By the time the fighting ended in a ceasefire the following year, Israel controlled most of the territory. Jordan occupied land, which became known as the West Bank, and Egypt occupied Gaza. Jerusalem was divided between Israeli forces in the West and Jordanian forces in the East. Because there was never a peace agreement – each side blamed the other – there were more wars and fighting in the decades which followed.
Another War
In another war in 1967, Israel occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank and most of the Syrian Golan Heights, and Gaza and the Egyptian Sinai peninsula. Most Palestinian refugees and their descendants live in Gaza and the West Bank and neighboring Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon. Neither they nor their descendants have been allowed by Israel to return to their homes – Israel says this would “overwhelm the country and threaten its existence as a Jewish state.”
Disputed City
Israel still occupies the West Bank, and although it pulled out of Gaza, the UN still regards that piece of land as part of the occupied territory. Israel claims Jerusalem as its capital, while the Palestinians claim East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state. The Trump administration nearly alone in the world recognized Israel’s claim to the city’s whole. In the past 50 years, Israel has built settlements in these areas, where more than 600,000 Jews now live. Palestinians say these are illegal under international law and are obstacles to peace, but Israel denies this.
The current situation
Tensions are often high between Israel and Palestinians living in East Jerusalem, Gaza and the West Bank. Gaza is ruled by a Palestinian militant group called Hamas, which has fought Israel many times. Israel and Egypt tightly control Gaza’s borders to stop weapons from getting to Hamas. Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank say they’re suffering because of Israeli actions and restrictions. Israel says it is only acting to protect itself from Palestinian violence.
Ramadan Attacks
Things have escalated since the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in mid-April 2021, with nightly clashes between police and Palestinians. Alarming videos have surfaced showing Israeli soldiers attacking worshipers while praying at a mosque with rubber bullets and tear gas. The international community is becoming increasingly critical of the intense right leaning Netanyahu government.
It Could Be Political
Netanyahu’s desperation to form a new coalition of power has pushed him to acquiesce to the most radical, bigoted, white supremacist sections of Israeli society. The Israelis have increasingly become an authoritarian regime appealing to more and more radical supporters. Israeli settlers are burning Arab olive orchards and vigilante Jews are attacking Palestinians on the streets and in their homes.
Eviction from Sheikh Jarrah seems to signify ethnic cleansing.
The threatened eviction of the six Palestinian families in Sheikh Jarrah, East Jerusalem, has also caused rising anger. There have been massive protests over the past week in Sheikh Jarrah, a Palestinian neighborhood in East Jerusalem Israeli authorities sprayed so much skunk water, a noxious liquid used to deter demonstrators that its stench lingered for days over nearby streets. Sheikh Jarrah has become the centerpiece of spiking tensions between the Palestinians and Israeli’s in East Jerusalem and has unified Palestinians and their advocates worldwide. The recent bloodshed has gotten the attention of leaders in Ramallah and Washington, D.C.
A Real Estate Dispute
On Monday May 17th, 2021 the Israeli Supreme Court is set to decide whether to uphold the eviction of six families from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in favor of Jewish settlers. The decades-old legal battle over the fate of a few dozen Palestinians, “a real estate dispute,” has become symbolic of a broader effort to remove thousands of Palestinians from strategic areas in East Jerusalem, to force a Jewish population increase in specific areas of the city. “They don’t want Arabs here, or across East Jerusalem,” said Abdelfatah Skafi, 71, one of the Palestinians facing eviction, during a protest this week. “They want to expel the Arabs, and that way they will be able to surround the Old City,” the contested ancient core of Jerusalem that contains sites sacred to Jews, Muslims and Christians.
What Are The Issues?
There are four pressing issues on which Israel and the Palestinians cannot agree. They are: 1) what should happen to displaced Palestinian refugees, 2) should Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank be removed, or allowed to stay, 3) whether the two sides should share Jerusalem, and – perhaps most tricky of all- 4)whether a Palestinian state should be created alongside Israel. Peace talks have been taking place on and off for more than 25 years but have not solved the conflict.
Deal Of The Century
It seems the situation isn’t going to be sorted out any time soon. During the Trump administration a peace plan prepared by Jared Kushner – called “the deal of the century” by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – was dismissed by the Palestinians as one-sided and never got off the ground. Any future peace deal will need both sides to agree to resolve complex issues. Until that happens, the conflict will go on.
A New Twist
The conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians has existed since time immemorial, revolving around religion, ethnicity, and land ownership. However, there have been various aggravating factors spiking tensions recently between the two sides. With forced evictions and numerous deaths in the recent conflict, have many asking if Israeli has begun thinking their best solution is “ethnic cleansing.”
https://www.calamitypolitics.com/2019/03/11/opinion-fear-to-criticize-israel/
https://www.calamitypolitics.com/2019/03/12/benjamin-netanyahu/
