The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict may appear as a political battle over land rights on the surface, but really the problem’s roots are much deeper. Even before Israel was pronounced a state by the United Nations in 1948, the neighboring Palestinians have sought to claim what land they believe is rightfully theirs. The situation is not specifically a political battle, but has to do with a difference in religious beliefs as well, creating one sticky situation. Personally, I have grown up learning bits and pieces about the feud, but the information reported to me has always been heavily biased in the benefit of the Israeli population. With the help of my artifacts and information presented by a former and current soldier of the Israeli Defense Force, a better understanding of the conflict and how it affects globalization can hopefully be appreciated.

The Israeli people have many factors to worry about due to the hate that they receive from surrounding countries, but the more imminent threat comes from a Palestinian faction that occupies the West Bank called HAMAS. Most of us know HAMAS to be a radical terrorist organization that has developed many ways to assault and kidnap Israeli people in order to receive ransom money, provoke the release of captured Palestinians and convicted members of HAMAS, or to simply cause disorder within their enemy; but they self-identify as a political party and militant movement. Suicide bombings and the use of an underground tunnel network to sneak undetected into Israel are examples of the most reported incidents in recent months.

The Foundation

HAMAS was founded in 1987 by the Palestinian cleric Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and mirrors the nationalist ideas of the Muslim Brotherhood that terrorized Egypt during the Arab Spring. The acronym translates to the Islamic Resistance Movement and has interwoven itself into the Palestinian government as the second major political party, the other being Fatah. HAMAS has gained access to funds, military power, and support of other terrorist organizations such as ISIS in the most recent years. They hate the idea of a Jewish state, or even an Israeli state for that matter, and will not stop until they have reached their goal of establishing a Palestinian nation on Israeli soil.

Lets take a deeper look within the Palestinian political system for a moment. There are two controlling parties who had been fighting each other for decades until 2006 when the disunity of the Palestinian people was at its peak. The Fatah Party dominated the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) for decades. Because Palestine in not officially recognized as a nation by the United Nations, the PLO is the main source of government for the occupied territory. The tug-of-war between HAMAS and Fatah became an issue in 2006 when HAMAS forcefully took over the PLO. With the help of some HAMAS propaganda and recruitment, Fatah was labeled as corrupt and HAMAS gained majority power within the PLO. As expected, the two parties broke out into small skirmishes all over Gaza in an effort to claim dominance. The fighting ended shortly after it began as HAMAS came out of the situation victorious, keeping their majority status.

Although Fatah’s influence and power had lessened, the party still had enough support to agree to terms with HAMAS on a new form of government in 2014. The proposed unity government system was adopted, giving each faction equal power within the administration. This genius idea once again unified the Palestinian people as a whole for the first time in decades, although this would halt peace talks with Israel. This presented a new threat to Israel that they had feared may happen for many years. Each HAMAS agent was now protected by the Palestinian unity government, causing their influence to spread throughout the territory and potentially to future generations. It has been a year since the agreement was reached and both Palestine and Israel have held their respective open elections. In Israel, the re-election of President Netanyahu meant progress of peace will remain halted so long as HAMAS is tolerated as part of the unity government.

The Generational Difference

As you can infer, the thoughts of Israelis regarding Palestine may have changed over the course of the conflict. My uncle Jason Shniderson served in the IDF in his early twenties, shortly after the formation of HAMAS. I asked him how the army felt about the conflict at this time and he had this to say: “Do not think about this situation from the perspective of the soldier, but as a citizen. We [people of Israel] all knew HAMAS to be a terrorist organization, but our purpose as soldiers was to stay on guard in case of an incident. As citizens, we had to be stronger than soldiers. Look at the targets of the terrorist attacks: busses, markets, pizza parlors, all soft targets, full of people. The terrorists didn’t want to scare the government, but instead looked to strike fear into the hearts and minds of the Israeli people. In their fear, Israelis would lobby for the Knesset (legislation) to concede lands to Palestine in hopes that the attacks would end, but we all knew we couldn’t allow that to begin because the only foreseeable endpoint would be the concession of the entire state. So, after an attack, the area would be marked off for a few hours or even days, but life in Israel continued. We showed HAMAS that we weren’t afraid of terror.”

Currently, I have several friends serving in the IDF after taking their year course in Israel, instead of a first year in college. Private First Class Gabriella Ron is a nineteen year old girl from Houston, TX whom has been a close family friend and proudly serves Israel. She is in the middle of her first year in the IDF and had this to say on the conflict: “Here [Tel Aviv], very few of us know much about what is happening in Palestine. It is not that our commanding officers do not fill us in on their movements, but that we prefer not to think about the possibilities of an outbreak in an attempt to keep our peace of mind. Most of the time, our days are very uniform. We train and workout in the morning, do our respective jobs on the base, then go out and enjoy our beautiful country. Sometimes, we go help a local kibbutz because we all must learn to trust, love, and learn each other in case of a problem arises. I love where I am and who I am with at all times; we take nothing for granted and thank God for every day we have and for His protection. Nothing can scare us.”

After analyzing both perspectives on the conflict, it seems like the attitude of Israel as a whole regarding the conflict has in fact changed minutely if at all. Both of my interviewees seem to agree that strong unity and support system of the Israeli people has powered them through the troubles of the conflict. HAMAS doesn’t necessarily attack Israel, but more so the thought that Israel as a state.

Perspectives on Globalization

Within this conflict, both nations possess different views on globalization and justify their situations with dead parallel to these beliefs. One can argue that the PLO exhibits radicalism because they are outraged that Israel has been recognized as a nation by the global force of the United Nations while Palestine still continues to fight for an identity. Because HAMAS has been interwoven into the government, a comparison between HAMAS and ISIS can be made. Each radical group makes public spectacles of death and murder with the intention of instilling fear into their opposition. The key to combating both groups’ actions is to not let them affect the traditional everyday life of the opposing people. Any concession at all means victory for HAMAS, which is not acceptable by any measure.

On the opposing side, Israel remains skeptical as their ideas of political liberalism are held true. Because this conflict, among others, has troubled Israel for many years, they are aware of the problems presented by globalization. Yes, globalization has allowed Israel to be named a state and has stimulated trade and economic prosperity for years, but at a cost of backlash from haters like Palestine. Israel cautiously globalizes the country, with the help of the  most powerful nations like the United States, whom offers protection and aid.

Significance to the Arab Spring

Like many other conflicts in the area, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict pits two nations with rivaling ideas against each other. The revolution that began in Egypt in 2011, exhibits neighbors fighting for their voices to be heard in the interest of change. The set of tactics within each respective conflict are totally different, as are the conceivable outcomes, but each shows two sides competing for a globalized identity. In Egypt, the division within the people led to months of protest and rioting, but in Israel, the division has resulted in terrorism and menace. In a perfect world, the Israelis and Palestinians would live collectively without turmoil, but much like in Egypt, a history of political and religious difference has left people rigid in their thinking as each group wants to protect itself from modification.

The conflicts of the Arab Spring all seem to have a common theme: the unwillingness of parties to change. Neither side of any conflict that I can think of would willingly relinquish any fraction of its perceived identity, even if peace might be a result. When I think of each of these struggles, I picture two middle aged politicians whom each have their opposing ideas on policy. They have both respectively grown and developed their ideas, while receiving praise from those that agree with them. This applause and provocativeness from supporters prevent their ideals from changing, even if a small change will benefit a much larger portion of the population. In the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the rigidity of the two sides is a direct result of preachings taught from the generations before, further preventing an agreement.

Personal Reflection

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has evolved over the course of time, but each party’s perspectives on globalization have remained true. While Israel hopes for a provisional peace, Palestine continues to make moves that prevent the possibility. The future of the conflict remains unclear, but given the events of the past year, it seems a temporary stalemate has been reached. Neither side seems like they’ll capitulate on any provisions of a treaty because both parties have fought for so long to achieve their goals as the Arab Spring continues to lengthen. Personally, I do not see a quick solution to the problem and can only suggest that the people of both nationalities try to persevere through what has already happened, and more importantly what is still to come.