Israel airstrikes destroyed the Gaza city of Palestine during the Israel-Hamas war on October 25, 2023
Photo Credit: https://www.euronews.com/2023/10/26/israel-carries-out-targeted-raids-in-northern-gaza
On November 22, Akiva Tor, Israeli Ambassador provided a lecture at Mason Korea with the title of “Israel’s Struggle Against Hamas: Historical Roots of the Current Conflict.” The lecture brought up the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas, the Palestinian terrorist group controlling Gaza. It started from October 7, when Hamas launched a sudden attack on Israel with the goal of murdering and taking hostages of Israelis.
There are religious and territorial factors in terms of the relational background between Israel and Palestine. Currently, Sunni Muslim composes the vast majority of the Palestinian population, at 93% overall. Israel population is approximately 73.8 percent Jewish, 18 percent Muslim, and 1.9 percent Christian . The key argument is the "conflict of sovereignty in East Jerusalem," where the three major landmarks of Christianity, Judaism, and Islam are gathered. Jordan occupied the West Bank of Israel, and Egypt occupied the Palestinian Gaza, while Jerusalem was also divided into Israeli and Jordanian regions. But with constant criticism among the warring powers, wars and fights have continued for decades.
Differing diplomatic ideologies claimed by Israel and Palestine have led to the conflict between the two states, leaving thousands suffering. For Palestine, the bilateral relationship uniting Israel and Saudi Arabia, which was planned to be implemented in 2023 along with negotiations, needs to be prevented. Since part of Palestine’s military and economic support is from Saudi Arabia, the bilateral relationship can leave the country isolated if relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia become amicable. Therefore, Palestine has taken a hostile attitude against Israel to protect the diplomatic status of the nation.
In hopes for aid in state development, interactions between Middle Eastern countries, that support the armed struggle of Palestine, and Western nations, including the United States, have increased support, posing a major threat to Palestine. Saudi Arabia, one of these Middle Eastern countries, also threatened Palestine since Mohammed bin Salman, the prime minister of Saudi Arabia, increased economic connection with the US during the economic development policy. Such atmosphere of economic cooperation by Western-Middle Eastern allied countries threatens the international standing of Palestine.
Written by Seohyun Kim | Staff Writer