The conflict
Over twenty years ago, as a young political sciences student, I went to a conference that was organized at my school with the Israeli ambassador to France and a representative of the Palestinian authority. As was already the case then, the situation in the region felt incredibly complicated and I wanted to find out more about the ins and outs of the most notorious geopolitical conflict on earth.
By the end of it, and for the first time in my life, I graffitied the college bathroom wall, writing the following thoughts: “I know two things for certain: 1) the Palestinians are wrong, and so are the Israelis, 2) the Israelis are wrong, and so are the Palestinians”. The reason I flipped the sentence was because I felt no one should have priority on blame.
My uncharacteristically unruly behavior was brought about by the utter disarray I felt having sat down for an hour of what was essentially a massive argument: both the Israeli and Palestinian representative spent the majority of the time accusing the other of all the evils of this world, largely without listening to the other. When faced with such radical positions on both sides of an argument, one thing is always true: both parties went too far.
Over the years, my understanding of the conflict admittedly improved, although I definitely won’t claim to be an expert in this incredibly complex situation. Still, I never quite changed my mind from that day: both camps are alternatively very right and very wrong, and no one is safe from blame — or grief.
The context
I will attempt to draw a quick historical bit of context, no matter how risky that is, because I believe it is important to get a fuller picture of the situation:
The Jewish people have been persecuted for centuries, some might say forever, as they settled in various parts of the globe, most notably in Europe, where France or Italy (to name but a few) made the life of this particular community demonstrably arduous, banning them from a variety of occupations (and owning land), which drove its members to opt for whatever was left, including financial services, which happened to be derided by the Catholic faith. In other words, the myth of the Jewish banker was effectively created by Christians.
Persecution of the Jewish people culminated in the 20th century, as we all know, when millions of European Jews were slaughtered by the Nazi regime in spectacularly inhumane circumstances. This tragedy of incredible proportions saw the Western world — and beyond — finally forced to acknowledge the extent of the bias against the Jewish community: the Holocaust was simply too monumentally despicable to be ignored.
In the wake of such an atrocity, the country of Israel was created to provide a safe space for all Jews to congregate, with the support of rightfully shameful Western countries. This involved moving local Palestinian populations away to make room for these newcomers: there were Jewish communities in the region before, but many more came over from 1948 onwards. Put simply, had there not be a tragedy the size of the Holocaust, Israel would likely have not existed.
Tensions between Israeli Jews and Palestinian communities have been ongoing ever since, as would logically be the case given the circumstances, with particular peaks when other geopolitical events bled into the region, when Israel launched colonization operations in Palestinian territories and/or when leaders made attempts to move the needle one way or another. In doing so, both sides enacted all sorts of questionable decisions, from Israelis limiting the rights and liberties of the Palestinian people — ironically replicating what their own communities had suffered in previous centuries — to Palestinian groups launching terror-based operations in protest.
The policies of the current Israeli government, led by right wing to extreme right wing movements, have been questionable for years, as they visibly aim to restrict opportunities for Palestinians to organize and grow rather than help them do so in any significant way.
Put simply, there are legitimate reasons for tensions on both sides, with everybody at this point having valid arguments for and against their respective claims. Making it one of the most difficult geopolitical landscapes the world has ever seen.
The conflict
Then came today’s conflict, taking place months after a cease-fire had been agreed upon by all parties and while “normalization” negotiations were ongoing with Saudi Arabia. Last week, in the middle of a major Jewish celebration, Hamas-led military groups attacked various locations in Israel, breaching the defense systems the country had setup around the Gaza strip. Many civilians were killed in the process, others were kidnapped (likely for ransom) and many more were left traumatized by willful displays of violence. There is no doubt that such actions are to be condemned for what they are: groups using terror tactics against innocent civilians to instill fear in the general population.
In response, the Israeli government fought back on the ground, killing more Palestinians in the process, including civilians. Beyond that, the government announced a complete blockade of the Gaza strip, which includes no water or electricity for the entire piece of land*. While this is meant to weaken Palestinian terrorist groups, it also naturally impacts the general population, the same way Hamas attacks threaten Israeli civilians.
In summary, this conflict was clearly started by Palestinian militarized groups using terror tactics against the Israeli population, although the response of the Israeli government is itself questionable as it also threatens civilians’ well-being.
The big picture
In truth and while this conflict was caused by Palestinian groups, one cannot fully condemn one camp without at least questioning the other. It would be wrong to look at this most recent event outside of its context, which includes years if not decades of tensions between the two camps, and refutable decisions on both sides, with Yasser Arafat tanking peace negotiations or with Israel’s overall treatment of the Palestinian question. With the backing of Western countries and an otherwise strong economy, the country is naturally stronger than its counterpart, disparate Palestinian groups with limited opportunities.
This is why it is so complicated, or rather deceitful, to place the blame on any camp definitively. While this Hamas-led attack must be condemned in no uncertain terms and raids against civilian communities must stop, the policies of the Israeli government that led to it as well as those now being triggered by it must also be put into question. Naturally, this is not the way things are currently going: we are witnessing a clear escalation in violence on both sides, as is to be expected given the tragedies that have already unfolded. Everybody has people to mourn and/or avenge.
The likely short term development of this conflict will therefore involve more violence, more killings, more tragedies. Until a certain threshold is reached and/or tensions slowly wither away as perhaps other incidents start in other parts of the world, one tragedy eclipsing the other. Until next time.
In the long run, however, peace is still very much a goal — as it always is and should be. One thing is clear: there can be no real evolution in this situation without some sort of balance being achieved in the way we treat both sides of this ever so delicate matter. That is the task of current and future leaders, bringing all parties together in the realization that only peace stands as a favorable conclusion.
* The latest news is that Israeli forces are now working to evacuate the Northern part of the Gaza strip, which would entail massive population relocation in obviously hazardous conditions.