Stripped of Life
- Ruwayda Rahman
- Apr 11, 2024
- 9 min read
By Ruwayda Rahman
Gaza Today
Panicked and distressed cries, constant sirens, and the distant echoes of explosions all make up the sounds in Gaza today. A father presses his fingers into the plastic white bag which he says holds the charred remains of his daughter. A brother searches aimlessly in the broken shards of glass and stone with his bare hands, persistent that his sister is somewhere under the debris. A mother rendered powerless against the airstrikes that level her house to the ground and reduce brick walls to crumbles. This is what makes up Gaza today.
140 square miles along the Mediterranean Sea, the Gaza Strip is home to about 2,000,000 Palestinians.
However, it is to be noted that this population has been decreasing in significant numbers by the day. Since the Hamas attacks on Southern Israel on October 7th, 2023 which resulted in the death of roughly 1,163 Israelis, the Health Ministry affirms that over 27,000 Palestinians have been killed (a figure not including those buried under the rubble), while over 66,000 have been wounded in Gaza. Reportedly, most of the casualties were identified as women and children who were not combatants. Over 5% of Gaza’s people are reportedly killed, missing, or injured.
75-Years of conflict
The Palestine vs. Israel conflict stretches out to centuries and dates back to the late nineteenth and 20th centuries. The land had been conquered and fought over by various tribes and nations, and that is continuously demonstrated throughout its history.
In the early 1900s, Modern-day Israel-Palestine had been a part of the Ottoman Empire. It is reported that under Ottoman rule, it had been generally peaceful in the land between the three major monotheistic religious groups. (Islam, Christianity, and Judaism) The majority of the population were Muslims and Christians, with a minority of Jews.
Throughout Europe, Jewish people initiated a movement called “Zionism,” which believed that Jewish people deserved to have a nation or homeland. Due to the constant persecution of Jews over the previous centuries, many came to believe in Zionism. They believed establishing a homeland would secure their safety.
After the First World War, the Ottoman Empire collapsed and the British and French Empires took claims over different parts of the Middle East. The British Empire took control of the region of what they called the British Mandate for Palestine.
The British government had allowed Jewish immigration to the land, and as more Jewish people settled into farming communes, tensions rose between populations. This led to acts of violence between both sides, ultimately forcing the British to place limits on Jewish immigration to British Palestine by the 1930s. Upset by the restrictions, Jewish militias formed to fight the local Arabs and British rule.
In the aftermath of the Holocaust, Europe compelled Jewish people to immigrate to British Palestine. In 1947, the United Nations split the land to implement a two-state plan. It can be noted that the UN’s partition plan was disproportionate to the population sizes of both people. Israel was given more land and held the Jewish population, while Palestine was given less land and held the Arab population which was the majority. They ordained Jerusalem to be an international zone for both the Israelis and Palestinians.
The Jews had accepted this plan, however, the Arabs throughout the Middle Eastern region saw the plan as a method of more European colonialism. The Arabs had then declared war on Israel. The new state of Israel won, but in the process, they pushed farther out of the borders and took a huge chunk of the land given to the Palestinians.
As a result, in 1948, what Palestinians refer to as the “Nakba,” (catastrophe) occurred. This event expelled huge numbers of Palestinians from their homes. The population of the refugees’ descendants today amounts to around 7 million. By the end of the war, Israel took control of the majority of the territory aside from Gaza and the West Bank.
In 1967, Israel and the neighboring Arab states engaged in another war, called the “Six-day-war.” At its end, Israel took more land. It seized control and direct authority over all the Palestinian territories, (Gaza and the West Bank) along with Jerusalem which was originally agreed to be international land. This marked the beginning of the Israeli occupation. Israeli settlers had proceeded to make settlements in the West Bank illegally, and the Palestinian people lived closely monitored by the Israeli government.
Treatment of Palestinians
Before the current situation in Gaza, Israel had imposed a 16-year-long land, sea, and air blockade on the Gaza Strip, even bombing the only airport in Gaza. The blockade was fixated on monitoring the people, goods, and services that leave and enter Gaza. This prompted an economic drought in Gaza, isolating the Gaza Strip from the rest of the world and completely severing any potential connections or trade. Palestinians were also burdened with a shortage of electricity, sanitation, and health care due to this blockade.
There has also been a surge of illegal Israeli settlements in Palestinian-designated lands, specifically within the West Bank. These settlements in Palestinian communities and villages are authorized and endorsed by the Israeli government, and military forces are put in place to prohibit the Palestinian public from utilizing these places in any way.
The Israeli government has funded thousands of new housing units in Palestinian land, and they reasoned that it was a necessary action to appease the “natural growth” of the existing population. However, international humanitarian law, (Fourth Geneva Convention, article 49) forbids an occupying power to move citizens from its territory into the occupied territory despite the motive.
To push settlements and to gain control over them, Israel declares the Palestinian territories as “state land.” B’tselem narrates, “In many cases, Palestinian residents were unaware that their home was registered in the name of the state, and by the time they discovered this fact, it was too late to appeal.”
Additionally, the Israeli government also encourages the Israeli public to migrate and move into the occupied territories. With the promise of financial benefits and incentives, many citizens are convinced to live in settlements.
A mass resistance movement, referred to as “The Great March of Return” was initiated in March 2018 – December 2019. Protests were held weekly every Friday in the Gaza Strip near the Gaza-Israeli border. Born from the collective anger of Palestinians being declined their right to return to their previous lands and properties, from the brutal Israeli blockade, along with frustration toward the U.S. recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. However, the IDF shut down these demonstrations of protest, and a casualty of 223 Palestinians was inflicted.
Human Rights Watch describes Gaza as an “open-air prison.” Omar Shakir, the Israel and Palestine director at Human Rights Watch goes on to detail, “As many people around the world are once again traveling two years after the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, Gaza’s more than two million Palestinians remain under what amounts to a 15-year-old lockdown.”
Israel is also notably one of the only countries to prosecute children. Israeli military law considers individuals criminally responsible from the age of 12. From January 1, 2016, to December 31, 2022, DCIP (Defense for Children in Palestine) states that 766 child detainees were held by the IDF in the West Bank and then prosecuted in Israeli courts. None of the 766 children were given an arrest warrant. Reportedly, only 111 of the 766 child detainees were told about the reasons for their arrest after.
The DCIP details how three-quarters of the children experienced some form of physical violence after their arrest. In 97 percent of cases, no guardian was present during the interrogation. 42 percent of children were denied a sustainable amount of food and water, and 31 percent were withheld from using the toilet.
Gaza's current humanitarian plight
According to the IRC, the healthcare system in Gaza has completely collapsed. Both due to the airstrikes aimed at hospitals and shelters, along with a deficiency of supplies. The IRC states, “Insecurity Insight recorded 345 incidents of violence against health care facilities and professionals across Gaza and the West Bank during the first seven weeks of conflict.”
An immense absence of supplies can be linked to the current newly imposed Israeli blockade of water, food, fuel, and medical supplies to Gazans. Due to this blockade, hospitals have been deprived of electricity and utilities, leaving doctors completely powerless, only as witnesses to the suffering of their patients. Another issue that plagues the Gazans is a lack of feminine hygiene, many of the women and girls in Gaza have to use tent scraps in place of sanitary napkins.
Dr Hammam Alloh, a nephrologist who used to work at the Al-Shifa hospital, had attended his last interview before Israeli airstrikes killed both him and his father. When asked why he hadn’t moved south, he responded, “And if I go, who treats my patients? We are not animals. We have the right to receive proper health care… Do you think this is the reason I went to med school? To think only about my life?”
A recent story that has caught much attention and outrage is of two young Palestinian girls, 15-year-old Layan and 5-year-old Hind. On January 29, 2024, they had been confined in a car with four of their deceased family members. “They are shooting at us,” Layan said as a plea for help to the Palestinian Red Crescent. “The tank is next to me.” The audio then contained a gunshot and Layan’s scream followed by silence. The Palestinian Red Crescent sent medics as a desperate resort to save the children, however, they lost contact. On February 10, 2024, the vehicle and ambulance were discovered. The medics were dead along with Hind and Layan. The Palestinian Red Crescent accused the IDF of being responsible for their deaths, stating that they had already coordinated with the IDF to send volunteers prior, therefore these deaths being inexcusable.
Among the countless images spurring global outrage is an image of a girl in Rafah, with half of her body dangling from a building after it was bombed. Additionally, out of the over 27,000 killed, over 11,500 are children. Many children are amputated daily but are unable to receive the correct treatment needed for recovery. According to doctor Ghassan Abu Sittah, as of October 31st, 2023, one child in Gaza dies every 10 minutes as a result of the bombardment. Gaza is one of the most densely populated places on the globe, with Rafah becoming the world’s most densely populated place.
Influence of the media
There is much confusion and uncertainty when it comes to understanding the Gaza-Israel conflict, especially due to bias and deceit within Western media coverage. U.S. newspapers were often neglectful of the events in Gaza, and instead emphasized events in Israel, leaving a very disproportionate perspective of the situation.
In early October, President Biden had made false statements concerning the October 7th attacks. His source was said to be a news reporter, the claim being of 40 beheaded babies. It was later proven false by the reporter, however, the damage had already been done.
Wall Street Journal opinion articles described the politics of the Arab world as a parallel to the animal kingdom. They described the Muslim/Arab population of Dearborn, Michigan, as terrorist sympathizers.
Many journalists and photographers who abide in the Gaza Strip have gone viral due to their authentic and unfiltered reportings of the day-to-day happenings. Journalist and Photographer Motaz Azaiza went from 25,000 followers to over 18 million for his raw reports and photos of what happens in the Gaza Strip. Many journalists and people who speak up for Gaza have reported being shadowbanned or even having their accounts suspended.
Journalists also report that they feel that their lives are in constant danger. Motaz Azaiza had once posted a recording of him receiving mysterious calls threatening his life. The IDF has also placed him, Bisan, and Plestia Alaqad (other journalists) on their terror list, adding another threat to their exponentially growing list.
Eventually, through the impact of social media and vocal opposition to the extreme violence conducted by the IDF, there was a significant rise in pro-Palestine supporters. Protests sparked, boycotts initiated, and ceasefires were demanded. There have been Pro-Palestine rallies and protests globally, with the largest one in the U.S. (Washington D.C) historically accumulating up to 300,000 protesters on November 4, 2024.
Many are negligent when it comes to differentiating between the Israeli government, the Israeli public, and the Jewish population. However, contrary to prominent belief, many individuals who are Israeli and or Jewish are aware and sympathetic toward the crisis in Gaza.
The current situation in Gaza reflects the deep-rooted historical complexities of the Israel-Palestine conflict. The ongoing violence has resulted in a significant humanitarian crisis, along with a devastating toll of innocent lives caught in the crossfire. It is crucial to implement understanding, support humanitarian efforts, and advocate for a peaceful resolution to this issue.
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