The War Between Israel And Palestinian Militant Group Hamas, Explained
Here’s what you need to know about the war between Israel and Hamas.
War has erupted between Israel and the Palestinian militant group, Hamas.
Here is what’s happening.
The fighting erupted on Saturday Oct. 7 when Hamas fired thousands of rockets and invaded southern Israel in a surprise attack.
Founded in 1987, Hamas is a Islamist militant group that has ruled the Gaza Strip since 2007, separate from the Palestinian government.
Hamas seeks to establish a Palestinian state and does not recognize Israel as a state, whereas the Palestinian Liberation Organization – the internationally recognized representative of the Palestinian people – does.
Hamas has been been attacking Israel through suicide bombings and rocket attacks for years to reach its goal
Israel, meanwhile, has continuously launched assaults on Palestinians.
Israeli forces attacked the Al-Aqsa Mosque, one of Islam’s holiest sites, in 2023, as well as in 2022.
Israeli forces also killed Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh in 2022.
Experts say Hamas carried out the unprecedented attack in order to liberate Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, Vox reported.
Hamas military leaders said other reasons included Israel’s 16-year occupation of the West Bank, Israeli raids inside West Bank cities over the past year, and recent Israeli police raids on the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
The attack from Hamas is one of the largest assaults in Israel in decades and caught Israel off guard.
Hamas fighters have killed about 700 Israelis and are holding another 150 people hostage as of Sunday, according to the New York Times.
In response, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared war on Hamas and mobilized Israeli military forces
Israel launched massive airstrikes into Gaza, destroying residential buildings.
Gaza officials said that at least 413 people, including 78 children and 41 women, have been killed, according to AP.
On Monday Oct. 9, Israel ordered “a complete siege” of the Gaza Strip, saying authorities would cut electricity and block food, water and fuel from entering.
Gaza is home to more than two million Palestinians, and 123,000 Palestinians have already been displaced by Israel’s air strikes, according to the UN.
