Six months after Israel was attacked by Hamas, Palestinians in Gaza are ravaged by illness, conflict, famine, and death. Israel's prime leader, who promised complete triumph, is struggling to maintain the country's profound divisions. Israel's most important friend, the United States, is no longer supporting the manner it is waging war.
The likelihood of a full-scale Middle East war is rising as a result of Iran's threats of retaliation for Israel's killing of a senior Iranian general in Syria and months of cross-border fighting with Iran's partner Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The last six months' tragedies are documented in the statistics. The health ministry reports that over 33,000 Gazans have died, the most of them civilians. Over 12,009 Palestinian children have been injured and 13,800 Palestinian children have died in Gaza, according to Save the Children. At least 1,000 children, according to Unicef, have had one or both legs amputated.
On October 7, Hamas massacred almost 1,200 Israelis, the majority of whom were civilians, and kidnapped 253 more into Gaza. According to Israel, at least 34 of the 130 captives who are still there are dead. According to a UN team's assessment from March, there was "clear and convincing information" indicating that sexual assault against hostages had occurred, including "rape, sexualized torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment."
It stated that there were "reasonable grounds" to think that hostage-taking violence was still happening.Kibbutz Nir Oz is located directly on Israel's Gaza border. It seems to be a time capsule trapped in the horrifying events of October 7, 2023. That morning, shortly after sunrise, Hamas managed to breach the security barrier. About 25% of the 400 or so Israelis living there had either been slain by Hamas or taken captive by the time the Israeli army arrived in the early afternoon.
Ron Bahat took me on a tour. He is a middle-aged man who attended Nir Oz. Ron and his family managed to live with the help of good fortune and strong enough arms to close the safe room door when Hamas entered his home.
We strolled past the tidy rows of little homes with now-overgrown gardens. Many were burned out or had gunshot holes in them and had not been touched since the deceased people's bodies were found. Ron indicated the residences of acquaintances and neighbors who were either murdered or abducted to Gaza. Somehow, a stack of well ironed children's garments had escaped the fire in one severely destroyed home. The residents' relatives did not.The fact that Nir Oz belongs to a left-wing movement whose adherents have always favored peace with the Palestinians is one somber irony. Ron is unwilling to give up to Gaza, even six months after Hamas invaded Nir Oz.
"Look, we need peace in the end, so I hope there will be a leader to bring some prosperity there. However, a supporter of Hamas is an adversary. The conflict will end the instant they put down their weapons. We will vanish the instant Israel gives up its weapons. That's the distinction.
Broken glass still crunches underfoot in Nir Oz, and the stench of charred wood and plastic permeates empty dwellings. Nobody is available to tidy it up. While some of the remaining inhabitants have made brief trips back, the majority are choosing to remain abroad and dwell in hotels in central Israel.
Yamit Avital returned for a couple of hours and gave a buddy a tour. She had been in Tel Aviv that morning in October. While her husband was at home, he fled with the kids. His sibling, who lived nearby, was murdered. Yamit's hands trembled a little when she spoke of returning to live in Nir Oz.
"I'm not sure, it's too soon. We may begin to consider it only once the hostages return. It is too soon to consider. There are too many of my pals in Gaza."
No one has been able to give me the same tour of the wreckage of Gaza City and Khan Younis, or of the 1.4 million residents who have been internally displaced in Rafah, as Ron Bahat did of Nir Oz. This is due to the fact that foreign journalists are unable to report from Gaza because Israel and Egypt, who control the borders, would not let their entry. The Israel Defense Forces' (IDF) invitation-only, closely monitored visits have been the lone exception. In early November, I went on one, to the northern part of Gaza. The region was turned to a wasteland by Israeli artillery within a month or two into the war.
There is growing evidence that Israel and Hamas may have committed war crimes.
In a lawsuit submitted by South Africa, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague is looking into Israel for "plausible" claims of genocide against the Palestinians. As an organization that is considered a terrorist group by the US, UK, and many other countries, Hamas cannot be tried by the ICJ since it is not a state.
Israel disputes the accusation that it committed genocide. It is absurd and disrespectful to many of its supporters and people to suggest that the state established after Nazi Germany killed six million Jews during the Holocaust is also carrying out acts of genocide. Tal Becker, an Israeli attorney, stated before the justices in The Hague's courtroom that "the horrific suffering of civilians, both Israeli and Palestinian, is first."
Palestinians have been under Israeli military occupation for many years, thus their perspective on the accusations is different. Many Palestinians think that Israel has already established a state akin to apartheid, depriving them even the most fundamental rights. A well-known Palestinian Christian political leader named Dimitri Diliani told me over Easter in Jerusalem that "killing children is killing children." Who the child is that is being slaughtered doesn't matter. "It makes no difference who is killing."
"I recognise the Holocaust, but that does not mean a green light for Israel to commit genocide against my people or any other people."
In order for Israel's accusers to prevail in their case, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) will need to deliberate for years. On its own, war and civilian casualties do not constitute genocide. The defense team for South Africa contends that remarks made by Israel's defense minister Yoav Gallant on October 9th demonstrate the intention to commit genocide. "The Gaza Strip is under total blockade, under my orders. Following his tour of the IDF Southern Command in Beersheba, he declared, "There will be no electricity, no food, no fuel, everything is closed." "We are fighting human animals and we are acting accordingly."
International pressure, particularly from Washington, compelled Israel to relax some of the components of the embargo that the minister had in mind.
The quantities that were getting to Gaza were woefully insufficient. According to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), a body supported by countries, the UN, and relief organizations to offer rigorous and apolitical information and analysis amid a food emergency, six months later, Gaza is facing impending famine. According to Oxfam, 300,000 individuals who are stranded in the north have survived since January on an average of 245 calories per day, or roughly the same amount as a tin of beans.
Additionally, Palestinian journalists, ordinary people sharing updates on social media, and the foreign organizations overseeing the relief effort—whose personnel are permitted entry into the region—have all meticulously documented Gaza's humanitarian crisis. The World Central Kitchen (WCK), which had been supplying millions of meals, has seven employees.
President Biden and other Western leaders who are ardent supporters of Israel were incensed by their killings. Their denunciation of the murders further distanced Israel from the world. Most of the world does not expect Israel to feel sorry for them. However, it now expects sympathy and understanding from strong friends in the West. Rather, they have denied Israel's assertion that it doesn't obstruct the delivery of aid goods.
Israel granted President Biden unprecedentedly quick concessions, promising increased humanitarian access to Gaza in a statement hastily released in the middle of the night here in Jerusalem. Maybe he was threatening to impose restrictions on the use of US weaponry in Gaza.
After hundreds of Gazans were slain, Palestinians question, somewhat indignant and frustrated, why it took the murder of seven charity workers, six of whom were Westerners, to change anything. The attack on the relief workers, according to assistance organizations working in Gaza, was the product of a systemic contempt for the lives of Palestinian residents rather than a singular act.
Although President Biden's fury took a while to manifest, it has the potential to change the course of the war. One approach to gauge progress over the next month or two is to tally the number of Palestinian civilians killed by Israel.
or if more food and medical assistance can prevent hunger in Gaza. Another litmus test will be if Mr. Netanyahu follows through on his threat to kill the last organized Hamas elements in Rafah, despite resistance from the United States. According to the US, that cannot happen unless Israel is able to safeguard the lives of the almost 1.5 million Palestinians who have sought sanctuary there.
The "mighty vengeance" that Benjamin Netanyahu promised the Israelis on October 7th has now been carried out. His other pledges of complete triumph, the demolishment of Hamas, and the release of the captives have all fallen short of expectations. He is under intense political pressure in Israel. Opinion surveys showing him as approved have drastically decreased.
Thousands of demonstrators in Jerusalem have blocked streets surrounding the parliament this past week with Israeli flags, calling for the prime minister's resignation and fresh elections.
One of the leaders of the anti-Netanyahu movement, Nava Rosalio, stated that "Netanyahu has an interest to lengthen the war as much as he can, because as long as the war is still going on, he can say that now is not the time for new elections." In Hebrew, her group is named Busha, which means Shame.
"It is not the time to search for the person who is at fault, which is him," he argues. Thus, he would rather prolong the conflict and retain the captives in Gaza."
Israel was sharply split during the Hamas invasion because to the right-wing policies of his administration and the conflicts between secular and religious Israelis. Reservists who had halted their military duty as part of the demonstrations hurried back into uniform in the shock that followed. In order to preserve national unity, protests were put on hold.
After six months, protesting over the inability to bring the war to a conclusion and release the captives is no longer seen as disloyal. Once again, Israel's divides are wide open.
Mr. Netanyahu is being accused of prioritizing his own political survival, which is a very serious charge. He has to maintain his coalition, which is based on the backing of ultranationalist Jewish groups, in order to remain in power. They reject more than only the mass release of Palestinian security detainees in exchange for the release of Israeli hostages, which is a must for a ceasefire. Bezalel Smotrich, the finance minister, and Itamar Ben-Gvir, the minister of national security, are Mr. Netanyahu's two principal ultranationalist friends. In order for Jews to settle in Gaza, they both want the Palestinians to depart.
Renowned for his prowess in the murky world of politics, the prime minister is trying to please both parties while maintaining that Mr. Smotrich and Mr. Ben-Gvir's opinions do not represent official government policy.
Israel's splits must have given the impression that it was open to Hamas before October. It is becoming more difficult to win the war six months later due to the same divisions inside Israel over the present and the future.
Israel would be able to claim victory if they were able to apprehend or eliminate Yahya Sinwar, the head of Hamas in Gaza and the brains behind the October 7 strikes. However, he is still alive and continues to respond to offers made in the rounds of ceasefire negotiations from his hiding place. He is believed to be somewhere within the Hamas tunnel network, shielded from detection by Israeli hostages acting as human shields and bodyguards.
The fact that Palestinians throughout the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, have not come out in favor of Gaza must dismay Yahya Sinwar. It seems that some people are waiting to watch how things play out in Gaza and the larger Middle East. Since thousands of Palestinians are no longer permitted to work in Israel, others are finding it difficult to provide for their families. A few people are afraid.
Israel has carried out several lethal incursions against armed factions in the West Bank, resulting in the deaths of innocent bystanders and the apprehension of thousands of people who are awaiting trial. Extremist Jewish settlers have intimidated some Palestinian farmers into leaving their land, sometimes using violence and sometimes resulting in deaths.
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