IDP's

___________________________________________________________________________________

The Israel-Palestinian conflict dates to 1947 when the United Nations adopted the Partition Plan also known as the Resolution of 181. The Partition Plan divided the British Mandate of Palestine into Arab and Jewish States. The first spark of the Arab-Israeli war began on May 14^th, 1948 when the State of Israel was created, the war ended in 1949 with Israel’s victory. As Israelis celebrated their victory 750,000 Palestinians were displaced.

On media coverage, Israel emphasizes the consideration it takes for civilian protection but dropped 6,000 bombs in the first six days when the "war" had began. I place quotations around the word war as there has been controversy in what to name this disastrous event taking place currently. For a conflict to be considered a war there are three prominent features it must have:

1. Organized violence by a identifiable political authority

2. Lethal count of deaths, more than 1,000 deaths a year

3. Both sides should have the capacity to harm each other. 

I am going to momentarily focus on the third feature and compare both sides. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have nearly 170,000 active military personnel, a budget of $20.5 billion, and is ranked 15th in military expenditure globally.  Hamas has an estimated amount of 10,000-20,000 fighters. Does that seem fair? The imbalance of power is absolutely noticeable. 

Israel’s invasion against Hamas has resulted in over a tenth of Gaza’s housing being destroyed. Since the beginning civilians were told to flee the country north but a third of Palestinians refused to leave their homes. Those in the south who wish to escape to Egypt can't, as Egypt has refused to open borders for refugees.  Even if those in the south wished to flee they wouldn't be able to as Gaza has been under Israeli control. People are stuck and can't move. Gaza's healthcare has a capacity of 3,500 beds far less than needed to aid victims from the bombardment of Israel's airstrikes.