October 23, 2023 - Dissecting Recent Developments in the Israel-Palestine Conflict

The last few weeks were among the deadliest within the Israel-Palestine conflict. The conflict was escalated by the Re'im music festival massacre orchestrated by Hamas. The attack reportedly cost the lives of more than 260 festival-goers and over 200 civilians were taken hostage. Israel’s emergency unity government were swift in their response spearheaded by Benjamin Netanyahu who declared an assault, “from the air, sea and land” to eradicate Hamas.

 

Is this Israel’s 9/11 moment? The parallels can easily be drawn. Many scholars argued that 9/11 was the catalyst that fundamentally changed key principles of American foreign policy. 9/11 launched the Global War on Terror, with the Taliban and Al-Qaeda among the first targets in the crosshairs of the United States war machine. Israel’s sentiments are not too dissimilar, the IDF and many senior members of the Knesset have now called for a complete eradication of Hamas. However, when we look back at some of the lessons of the Global War on Terror it’s evident that the most powerful military in the world were unable to unseat the Taliban from Afghanistan who currently govern the nation. Therefore, it is unwise to jump to the conclusion that Hamas’ removal from Gaza will be easily achieved.

 

The latest series of violence in the region has brought the Israel-Palestine conflict under a greater microscope than ever in recent memory. Many reports suggest the death toll in Gaza has surpassed 5000 and nearly half the deceased are children. It is clear that more pressure has to be placed on ensuring a ceasefire can be established. At present, the Gaza Strip is one of the most dangerous regions on the planet. A concerted effort must be made to safeguard and relocate children in the region. Without productive dialogue between senior leadership of Israel and Palestine alike, there is scarce hope of the violence abating soon. The next few weeks will be pivotal in understanding how the conflict will unfold. In recent days, US President Joe Biden declared his support for Israel’s assault on Hamas. On the other hand, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei voiced his support for Palestinian attacks on Israel which undoubtedly will be viewed as a provocation from the Israeli leadership. It is unlikely Iran will intervene militarily in the conflict, however if this occurs, there is a definite possibility the Israel-Palestine conflict could snowball into one of the deadliest wars the Middle East has ever seen.