Gaza War - Part 2
In this second article from mariopiperni.com [http://mariopiperni.com/uncategorized/gaza-war-part-2.php] we deal with the current Israeli-Palestinian conflict and its causes and ramifications.
It is hard to imagine how or when the Israeli conflict could be resolved. On one side we have the Palestinians who in 1948 had their homeland of Palestine partitioned into Arab and Jewish states. For many Palestinians, nothing would be acceptable except the destruction of Israel and a full return of their lands. This is quite understandable.
On the other side we have people of the Jewish faith who for 4000 years have yearned for their ancestral land of Israel. Once obtained, there was no possibility of they ever leaving the only Jewish state in the world, the land promised to them by their God. And this too is understandable.
From the beginning, Arab countries opposed the existence of Israel and wars with Egypt, Syria and Jordan ensued over the years. Internally, Israel faced Palestinian insurgence in the form of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO). Founded in 1964, the PLO vowed for the destruction of Israel. In later years, the PLO agreed to a two state solution but other Palestinian resistance groups evolved, of which one of them was Hamas.
The Current War
On December 27 2008, Israel began a full front assault on Gaza. Israel was responding to the thousands of rockets fired over the last 8 years into its territory from Gaza. There is no comparing the military might of the two combatants. Israel remains the mightiest, best trained, best armed military force in the Middle East while Hamas is an Islamic militia fighting a war with crude rockets and a less than professional fighting force.
Much of the rage heard from around the world has to do with the number of civilian deaths in this war. Over 1000 Palestinians have been killed since the beginning of the war while 4 Israelis have died during that period. Hamas claims that Israel has been targeting civilian centres and indiscriminately killing innocent Palestinian women and children. Israel argues that Hamas is using Palestinians as human shields in an attempt to win over world sympathy. Conventional wisdom would suggest that there is probably some truth in the claims of both sides.
In the meantime, there is no place for the Palestinian population to hide. Gaza is a barren land and the only refuge for people trying to escape the ravages of war are the cities. But it is these populated areas in which Hamas has set up their posts including schools and hospitals. Israel claims that they are doing their best to avoid civilian casualties and that it is Hamas which is looking to increase the Palestinian death toll.
And as the war of words and bullets continues in a complex web of political issues, the innocent die.
It is hard to imagine how or when the Israeli conflict could be resolved. On one side we have the Palestinians who in 1948 had their homeland of Palestine partitioned into Arab and Jewish states. For many Palestinians, nothing would be acceptable except the destruction of Israel and a full return of their lands. This is quite understandable.
On the other side we have people of the Jewish faith who for 4000 years have yearned for their ancestral land of Israel. Once obtained, there was no possibility of they ever leaving the only Jewish state in the world, the land promised to them by their God. And this too is understandable.
From the beginning, Arab countries opposed the existence of Israel and wars with Egypt, Syria and Jordan ensued over the years. Internally, Israel faced Palestinian insurgence in the form of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO). Founded in 1964, the PLO vowed for the destruction of Israel. In later years, the PLO agreed to a two state solution but other Palestinian resistance groups evolved, of which one of them was Hamas.
The Current War
On December 27 2008, Israel began a full front assault on Gaza. Israel was responding to the thousands of rockets fired over the last 8 years into its territory from Gaza. There is no comparing the military might of the two combatants. Israel remains the mightiest, best trained, best armed military force in the Middle East while Hamas is an Islamic militia fighting a war with crude rockets and a less than professional fighting force.
Much of the rage heard from around the world has to do with the number of civilian deaths in this war. Over 1000 Palestinians have been killed since the beginning of the war while 4 Israelis have died during that period. Hamas claims that Israel has been targeting civilian centres and indiscriminately killing innocent Palestinian women and children. Israel argues that Hamas is using Palestinians as human shields in an attempt to win over world sympathy. Conventional wisdom would suggest that there is probably some truth in the claims of both sides.
In the meantime, there is no place for the Palestinian population to hide. Gaza is a barren land and the only refuge for people trying to escape the ravages of war are the cities. But it is these populated areas in which Hamas has set up their posts including schools and hospitals. Israel claims that they are doing their best to avoid civilian casualties and that it is Hamas which is looking to increase the Palestinian death toll.
And as the war of words and bullets continues in a complex web of political issues, the innocent die.
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