Israel Hamas War

“Indeed, He who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.”- Psalm 121:4. It appears we have been hearing about the Arab/Israeli conflict from time immemorial. However, it is important that some historical and Biblical context be interjected into the narrative in order for a better understanding of this current war. In the Bible, the phrase ‘Promised Land’ refers to a specific region of land that God promised to his chosen people of Israel. God first gave this pledge of land to Abraham saying, “I will establish your borders from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea, and from the desert to the Euphrates River.” This pledge was reiterated to Abraham’s descendants until the time came for His people to claim their inheritance. Abraham knew that he would not see God’s Promised Land with his own eyes. In fact, God made it clear to him that the land would not be given until four generations had passed, and that his descendants would face the hardship of slavery in Egypt before they would enjoy the home God had promised as referenced in the Book of Genesis chapter 15 verses 12 -16. However Abraham held on to the promise, believing that God could and would bring His descendants into their promised land and that God did. Attack by Hamas. Gaza is home to more than 2.3 million people. It is one of the most densely populated places in the world. By now the entire world is aware of the brutality the terrorist organization Hamas unleashed on the State of Israel on October 7. The surprise attack on Israel resulted in the death of more than 1,300 Israelis when their kibbutz was invaded. The Hamas militants are thought to have built hundreds of kilometres of tunnels underneath Gaza that were used in their attack on Israel. Hundreds of Israelis were butchered in the surprise land, air and sea assault. Hamas killed at least 260 Israelis at a music festival being held in a field outside of Kibbutz Re'im in southern Israel near the border with Gaza. The Israelis never stood a chance in this well planned and well executed attack on the State of Israel. A kibbutz is a community settlement usually found in Israel. A kibbutz is usually agricultural, organized under collectivist principles. Hamas’ attack on Israel also led to the kidnapping of hundreds of Israelis who were taken in Gaza. No one was spared the barbaric and heinous attack by Hamas, as grandmothers, toddlers, teenagers, Holocaust survivors were among those taken. The State of Israel. Israel is the only Jewish nation in the world. Did you know that the State of Israel did not exist until 1948? On May 14, 1948, on the day in which the British Mandate over a Palestine expired, the Jewish People's Council gathered at the Tel Aviv Museum, and approved the following proclamation, declaring the establishment of the State of Israel. The new state was recognized that night by the United States of America and three days later by the Soviet Union and many other governments. The United Nations was powerless in protecting Israel from immediate invasion by the armies of five Arab states: Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan. However, at the end of it all Israel emerged victorious. What is Hamas?. Hamas is an Islamist militant movement and one of the Palestinian territories’ two major political parties. It governs more than two million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, but the group is best known for its armed resistance to Israel. Hamas, an acronym for Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiya (“Islamic Resistance Movement”), was founded by Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, a Palestinian cleric who became an activist in local branches of the Muslim Brotherhood after dedicating his early life to Islamic scholarship in Cairo. Beginning in the late 1960s, Yassin preached and performed charitable work in the West Bank and Gaza, both of which Israel occupied following the 1967 Six-Day War. Yassin established Hamas as the Brotherhood’s political arm in Gaza in 1987, following the outbreak of the first Intifada, a Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation of the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem. Interestingly, most of Hamas leadership operates from the moderate Arab State of Qatar after falling out with their previous host, Syria, when Palestinian refugees participated in the 2011 uprising. Funding of Hamas. Iran provides a significant source of the financial resources for Hamas. It is estimated that Iran currently provides some $100 million annually. It is important to note that Iran is also a major supporter of Hezbollah, another terrorist group that does not believe Israel as a right to exist. In 1997, the United States designated Hamas a foreign terrorist organization. As a designated terrorist entity, Hamas is cut off from official assistance that the United States and European Union (EU) provide to the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in the West Bank. Historically, Palestinian expatriates and private donors in the Persian Gulf provided much of the movement’s funding. In addition, some Islamic charities in the West have channeled money to Hamas-backed social service groups, prompting asset freezes by the U.S. Treasury. It is widely believed that Hamas collects revenue by taxing goods moving through a sophisticated network of tunnels that circumvented the Egyptian crossing into Gaza; this brought staples (food), medicine, and cheap gas for electricity production into the territory, as well as construction materials, cash, and arms.

Two-State Solution. This proposed framework for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict calls for the establishing of two states for two peoples: Israel for the Jewish people and Palestine for the Palestinian people. In 1993 the Israeli government and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) agreed on a plan to implement a two-state solution as part of the Oslo Accords, leading to the establishment of the Palestinian Authority (PA). After the fall of the Ottoman Empire in 1922, Jews and Arabs both claimed the right to self-determination in historical Palestine. A first attempt at partitioning the land in 1948 resulted in an Israeli state but no Palestinian state, and the West Bank and Gaza Strip fell under Jordanian and Egyptian rule, respectively. In the Six-Day War of 1967, Israel captured and occupied the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and other Arab territories, which in the aftermath led to the idea that Israel would exchange land it had captured for peace with its Arab neighbours, including, eventually, the Palestinians. Some Israelis and Palestinians sought to disrupt a two-state solution. Religious nationalists on both sides believed their respective governments did not have the right to cede any part of the land. Hamas has also rejected this Two-State solution. In fact Hamas does not recognize Israel’s right to exist and this is problematic not only for any peace accord but also for supporters of Israel namely the United States of America. Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7 only serves to muddle the political and religious waters in the region. Israel will be forced to extract revenge for this unprovoked attack. In fact, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu known as Mr. Security has his hands full as he tries to strip the Supreme Court of some its power while at the same time guarantee peace and security of the Jewish State. Forging Relationships . In a region known for wars and political unrests it must be highlighted that Israel has diplomatic relationships with a number of Arab States. Under the Abraham Accord signed on September 15, 2020 normalized ties with Israel and a few Arab States. This landmark agreement normalized diplomatic relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, then later a renewal in ties with Morocco. The UAE became only the third Arab nation, after Egypt (1979) and Jordan (1994), to establish diplomatic relations with Israel. It is being reported that the United States is making progress toward a landmark agreement that would see Saudi Arabia normalize relations with Israel in exchange for a U.S. defense pact and help developing its own civilian nuclear programme. However, all bets are off after the attack by Hamas. Jews in Jamaica. Jamaica has had a rich history of being a safe haven for those fleeing prosecution. This forgotten history of the relationship between Jews and Jamaicans is underreported and undervalued. It is thought that the earliest Jewish presence in Jamaica was from 1530 when Jews travelled there to escape the Spanish Inquisition. Once Britain took power of the island from Spain in 1655, Jewish immigration was welcomed, and by 1720, 18% of the Jamaican population was Jewish. Jews flourished in Jamaica, becoming gold traders, sugar and vanilla merchants. Under the British it became legal to practice Judaism, which led to the establishment of Jamaica’s first synagogue in Port Royal. The city of Port Royal had a devastating earthquake and tsunami in 1692 that destroyed much of the city including the first Jewish synagogue. Interestingly, the Hunt’s Bay Cemetery in Port Royal is the oldest Jewish burial ground in Jamaica. At the peak of Jamaican Jews in 1881 approximately 22, 000 Jews lived on the island. Today, there are an estimated 200-450 Jews in Jamaica; a mix between Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews. In 1969, the Jewish community established an international school called Hillel Academy in St. Andrew. The school is considered among the best private institutions and has over 700 students from over 40 countries. Many Jamaican Jews are able to trace their origins to Portugal, where their ancestors were forcibly converted to Catholicism by King Manuel 1 in 1497. There is only one synagogue in Jamaica called Shaare Shalom which hosts the United Congregation of Israelites in downtown Kingston. Give Peace a Chance . Each administration of the US presidency has proposed a version of peace to solve the conflict between the Jews and Arabs. Instead of Statehood, Palestinians are divided into four Israeli-controlled enclaves, each with various causes of tension between Israel and the Palestinians. On one side of the conflict are those who are in support of a Two State solution to the Israeli/Arab variance. While on the opposing side are those who argue that this proposed solution is no longer viable especially after the October 7 massacre by Hamas. This dilemma then leaves the parties involved with diplomacy as a tool to resolving this age old disagreement. Diplomatic relations between two nations involve the mutual recognition of each other’s sovereignty and government. This typically involves the exchange of ambassadors, bilateral agreements, economic ties and mutual cooperation. The current war between Israel and Hamas has all the trappings for a full scale and long drawn out war that has the potential to draw in other actors on the world stage. It is imperative that diplomacy must be given a chance to work. The international community cannot handle another major war given that Russia and Ukraine are engaged in a war. The United States of America and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) have been backing Zelenskyy against Putin who is seen as the aggressor in this conflict. It can be argued that silently many moderate Arab States would love to see the end of Hamas. Of course they would not risk more political upheaval to open state this. Israel has retaliated and has been attacking Gaza consistently and forcefully. The death toll has been high on both sides. More than 1400 Israelis have been murdered. In Gaza, officials said the Palestinian death toll is at 2,750. In fact, Israel has signaled her intention to begin a ground invasion of Gaza. This will create a humanitarian crisis and might draw other Arab states into the conflict as Gazans try to enter other countries such as Egypt. To a lesser extent Egypt is already part of this war given that the Rafah Crossing leads from Gaza into the land of the Pharaohs. The border to Egypt will be the source of contention as concerns mount of mass exodus from Gaza by desperate refugees. Lebanon is also in the war given that Hezbollah has fired missiles from there into Israel. Syria is also part of the Israel Hamas War too. Good sense needs to prevail to prevent a major international crisis that will have implications for all of us. Yes, Israel has violated the dignity of the Palestinians over the years; however, Hamas had no right to have massacred hundreds of Israelis. The Jews have nowhere to go; nor the Palestinians. As a result a solution of peaceful co-existence must be found. The international community is now in a wait and see mode regarding what will come next. However, during the interim Anti-Semitism is on the rise all across Europe and the United States of America. In an effort to calm tensions in the Middle East US President Joe Biden visited Israel on Wednesday, October 18th. Israel's pending ground invasion will likely be a door to door combat and quite costly in terms of human lives. Unfortunately, it is unlikely to guarantee peace to a region that has only known war and rumours of wars. In the words of Elie Wiesel, neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Wayne Campbell is an educator and social commentator with an interest in development policies as they affect culture and or gender issues. waykam@yahoo.com @WayneCamo © #IsraelHamasWar #Judaism #MiddleEast