On October 7, 2023, the Gaza Strip began a massive onslaught and invasion against Israel. Hamas-led Palestinian Militant organization initiated the Israel vs. Palestine Conflict in 2023. This Israel-Palestine Conflict is the first direct Israel-Gaza Conflict that is taking place within Israeli territory since the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. The extremist group breached the Gaza-Israel border barrier and forcibly penetrated Israeli military and settlement outposts through the Gaza border crossing. The opposition started early in the morning with an excursion into Israeli territory by vehicle and a rocket bombardment against Israel. Multiple strikes were carried out near Israeli civilian communities and military installations. This dispute has been mentioned
The 87-year old Abbas has been the president of the State of Palestine (West Bank) since 2005. The moderate pro-Palestinian voice and critic of Hamas, Abbas has condemned the killing of civilians during the ongoing violence.
Al Aqsa refers to the compound of Islamic religious buildings, including the Dome of Rock and Al Aqsa Mosque, in Jerusalem’s Old City. Located adjacent to Christian and Jewish religious sites, it has been a flashpoint in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. ‘Operation Al Aqsa Storm’ is the name of the recent Hamas operation.
The Israel and Palestine conflict is complex. It's rooted in national, political, territorial, cultural and religious factors. Israelis and Palestinians both want the same thing: land.
"One side has a state, the other one does not,” said Dr. Serpil Atamaz, professor in the Department of History and Director of the Middle East and Islamic Studies Program at California State University, Sacramento. “It's not just about land, but it's about having the right to self-determination. This is not a conflict between Jews and Muslims or Jews or Arabs. It doesn't go back to the biblical times or the Old Testament at all. This is relatively a modern conflict.”
The origins of the Israel and Palestine conflict can be traced back to the late 19th century. The Ottoman Turkish Empire ruled a large portion of the Middle East from 1516 to 1917, including the land along the eastern Mediterranean. The region was religiously diverse, including Jews, Muslims, and Christians.
"Judaism emerged in the Middle East, Islam emerged in the Middle East, and Christianity emerged in the Middle East, Atamaz said. "They shared the same place for hundreds of years under the Ottoman Empire and there was no war. What changed in the late 19th and early 20th century? We have a Jewish nation. We have British colonialism. That kind of changed the dynamics in the region."
