What's going on in Israel? As aid arrives in Gaza, the deadly war with Hamas, explained
Fighting broke out earlier this month in Israel after Hamas launched a surprise attack, killing more than 1,200 Israelis and taking an estimated 240 people hostage. The assault signals a new bloody chapter in a decades-long battle over land and sovereignty.
Israeli Defense Forces mounted a swift response, triggering a war between the nation and Hamas, which controls the besieged Gaza Strip.
The conflict, is playing out against the backdrop of centuries-old religious tensions, an Israeli government in turmoil over judicial reform, and increased Israeli military raids within Palestinian territories.
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What is happening in Israel?
Hamas launched a multi-pronged, surprise attack on Oct. 7. Crossing the border into several towns in Southern Israel, Hamas fighters kidnapped and killed more than 1,000 Israelis. They now hold at least 240 hostages, including some U.S. citizens, and have threatened an execution each time Israeli forces attack civilians in Gaza without warning.
One of the most broad-scale attacks in recent memory, Hamas took Israel by surprise, arriving on the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah. As Hamas infiltrated the country by land, air and sea, the nation’s Iron Dome missile defense system failed to deflect some of the rocket attacks.
In response, Israeli forces have bombarded the Gaza Strip with air strikes. Palestinian authorities report more than 1,100 people have been killed thus far, with thousands more injured. The Israeli Defense Force (IDF) has positioned troops along the Gaza border, signaling preparations for a possible ground offensive. Israel has ordered over a million Gazans to evacuate their homes, a directive Stéphane Dujarric, the spokesperson for the UN secretary-general called "impossible" without "devastating humanitarian consequences."
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What is the Gaza Strip?
The Gaza Strip is one of two Palestinian territories. A narrow strip of land, totaling just over 140 square miles, it is home to some 2.3 million Palestinians.
After winning 2006 parliamentary elections in the region, Hamas seized control in 2007 from the Palestinian Authority which still governs the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Israel has since carried out an economic and physical blockade of the territory, claiming it necessary to isolate Hamas. Backed by Egypt, the Israeli government has restricted the import of goods they say could be used for weaponry and blocked many Palestinians from leaving Gaza. The result has been a starved economy, astronomically high unemployment, and a buckling hospital system.
“Israel, with Egypt’s help, has turned Gaza into an open-air prison,” Omar Shakir, the Israel and Palestine director at the non-government organization Human Rights Watch has said.
Why did Hamas attack now?
The head of Hamas’ military wing, Mohammed Deif said the attack, called “Operation Al-Aqsa Storm,” was in response to Israeli activity at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem ? the third holiest site in Islam. The mosque compound, which shares a location with Temple Mount, a holy Jewish site, has long been a lightning rod for conflict between Israelis and Palestinians.
Tensions between Hamas and Israel are hardly isolated to that incident, however. Since the group gained the seat of power in 2007, there have been four wars with Israel.
In a larger context then, Hamas' offensive is connected not only to specific Israeli military activity but to what the group views as a decades-long campaign to rob Palestinians of their land and displace them by force. For years, the group has vowed to annihilate the state of Israel and claimed responsibility for numerous deadly attacks.
To understand more about the long history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, read our full explainer.
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How has Israel responded to the Hamas attack?
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised speech “We are at war and we will win it.” Since then, Israel has carried out a full-scale assault on Gaza, launching airstrikes that hit homes, hospitals, and a mosque.
Israel has also tightened its grip on the blockade of food, fuel and water into Gaza. While the IDF regained control of the Gaza border, Military forces have not limited their attacks to the towns Hamas infiltrated, launching a targeted strike into Gaza City where Hamas' government ministries are located.
“Israel has destroyed the center of everything,” Palestinian businessman Ali al-Hiyak said from his home near Rimal. “That is the space of our public life, our community.”
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What is Hamas?
Founded in 1987 during the first Palestinian uprising against the Israeli occupation of Gaza and the West Bank, Hamas is a militant Palestinian group. The name is an acronym for Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiya, or Islamic resistance movement and its charter calls for the establishment of an Islamic Palestinian state to replace Israel as it currently stands.
The U.S., EU, and several other nations have designated Hamas as a terrorist group.
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Is Iran involved?
Nearby Iran often offers financial and logistical support to Hamas. The country claimed no involvement with recent attacks but signaled support.
"We kiss the hands of those who planned the attack on the Zionist regime," Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a televised address.
Who is Hamas’ leader?
While Mohammed Deif heads up the military wing of Hamas, the group itself is led by Yahya Sinwar and Ismail Haniyeh. Sinwar lives in Gaza, while Haniyeh lives in exile, the Associated Press reports.
Haniyeh said of the recent attack “ "Enough is enough, the cycle of intifadas and revolutions in the battle to liberate our land and our prisoners languishing in occupation (Israeli) prisons must be completed.”
Is there a country called Palestine?
The idea of Palestine has taken different forms throughout history. Today, 139 of 193 U.N. member states recognize Palestine, and it has non-member observer status.
Following the First World War, Palestine was among the Ottoman territories placed under the United Kingdom's control by the League of Nations. While other territories became independent states, the UK maintained control of Palestine, incorporating the Balfour Declaration of 1917 which called for the creation of a Jewish state within Palestinian territory. As Jewish immigration swelled, Palestinian demands for independence grew, translating to a rebellion in 1937.
In 1947, after the Second World War, the United Nations proposed a plan to partition the territory into two states: one Jewish, and one Palestinian Arab with the holy city of Jerusalem internationalized.
In 1948, after the announcement of the creation of Israel, five Arab nations invaded territory that was part of the British mandate. The fighting led Israel to push its borders, claiming 77% of the land the UN originally marked for the two states. This is land that has since been envisioned as home to a free Palestine. Violent attacks over the years coupled with increased Israeli settlement have failed to result in a solution that recognizes an independent state. It is complicated by the fact that some religious Jews claim biblical connections to the disputed land, identifying it as Judea and Samaria.
Though the UN General Assembly has recognized Palestine's right to self-determination and sovereignty, the cycle of land seizures, occupation, and violence has interrupted the state-building process. As it stands, Palestine is made up of a number of occupied and blockaded territories in Gaza and the West Bank.
What is the death toll in Israel, Palestine?
More than 1,300 Israelis were killed as a result of Hamas' original attack and the total number of deaths has risen to about 1,400, Israeli authorities say.
The Health Ministry in Gaza has reported the Palestinian death toll is at more than 8,000, and the U.N. says more than 3,450 children have died.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What's happening in Israel? The deadly war with Hamas, explained.