Catastrophic loss

As Palestinians prepared to mark al-Nakba Day on May 15, the catastrophic loss of their homeland in 1948, the Israeli military launched against Gaza a surprise air campaign, which it called “Shield and Arrow.” Once again Gaza, besieged and blockaded by Israel, has become a target in the the most punitive bout of Israeli aerial bombing since May 2021. An Egyptian ceasefire put an end to the exchanges on Saturday night. There was no fighting, as mass media claim.

Thirty-three Palestinians, including 13 civilians, were killed and 151 wounded, many homes destroyed, and many lives put at risk by Israeli closure of the narrow coastal strip for those needing routine and emergency medical treatment. Closure halted the entry of relief, food and medical supplies.

Israel’s alleged casus belli was a barrage of Islamic State rockets on Israel in retaliation for the death of the movement’s West Bank spokesman Khader Adnan who was on hunger strike to protest Israeli detention without charge and trial. However, Israel had been planning this operation for months and simply required a pretext to launch the onslaught.

The focus was on the leadership of Islamic Jihad which fired 1,100 homemade rockets into Israel, 373 of which were intercepted by its Iron Dome system. Most of the others fell on open ground. One Israeli woman and one Palestinian from Gaza working in Israel were killed and 69 Israelis were wounded.

This short, sharp bout of violence has taken its disproportionate toll on Gaza and its 2.2 million Palestinians and has given Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu a boost among Israeli right-wingers but is not likely to be the last. Gaza’s multi-millennial history explains why Gazans from the city and resident refugees from Israel’s 1948 war in the Gaza district have opted for resistance to Israeli domination.

As the narrow Mediterranean coastal strip forms a bridge between North Africa and the Gaza strip was a strategic piece of real estate and asset until the foundation of Israel made Gaza a dead end. From 1948 until 1967, the space taken up by Israel was empty; the Arabs condemned and shunned the Jewish state. Today, Israel has gained partial recognition in the Arab world through peace treaties and normalisation deals, but Gaza remains a dead end, locked in by Israel. Gaza has had a turbulent history but has never before been a dead end subjected to such treatment.

The earliest human settlements in Gaza are dated to 3,300 to 1,200 BC. Gaza City has been inhabited for 5,000 years, making it one of the oldest cities in world civilisations. Gazans not only lived in an urban environment but also forged bronze implements and wrote on paper. Gaza became an important port and a key resting place for caravans travelling along the spice route. In the mid-13th century BC, Gaza and southern Palestine were invaded by seafarers from the Aegean who were called Paleset (the origin of Palestinian) and who overtime fought, were defeated and were absorbed by the local population. Palestinian warfare with Jewish tribes was described in the Jewish holy books and the Old Testament of the Christian Bible.

The name given to the land, Philistia,” or “Palestine,” dates to the 12th century BC and consisted of five city states: Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Ekron, and Gath. These entities were captured, razed, and ruled by the successive empires which rose in the Eastern Mediterranean. Gaza was a frequent battleground as its inhabitants resisted the succession of conquerors but was incorporated into the Roman Empire in 63 BC. Following the Jewish revolt of 66-70 AD, the Romans destroyed the Jewish temple and Jerusalem and exiled the Jews. Gaza gained importance as a administrative and trade centre during the absence of Jerusalem.

Following the collapse of the Roman Empire, Gaza came under the Byzantine Empire which converted many Gazans to Christianity. The Muslim Arab empire and conversion to Islam was succeeded by the Christian Crusaders who were driven from Gaza in 1187 by Salaheddin. Gaza was destroyed by the invading Mongols led by Hulagu Khan in 1260. The district was administered by the Muslim slaves known as Mamlukes who served Egypt and Syria, the Ottomans and Britons.

During 1956-1957, Gaza had its first dose of Israeli rule and, since Israel’s 1967 conquest of East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza, they were colonised by Israelis. The First Intifada began in Gaza in December 1987 in the Jabalia refugee camp after an Israeli army lorry collided with a civilian car, killing four Palestinian workers. Palestinians claimed that incident was vengeance for the killing of an Israeli in Gaza earlier.

The signing of the Oslo Accord in 1993 and successor agreements appeared to be a turning point for Gaza and Jericho which were to be the first Palestinian districts to enjoy autonomy. Palestinian Liberation Organisation chairman Yasser Arafat’s return to Gaza in 1994 and the establishment of limited self-rule gave Gazans hope that their lives would change for the better although at that time eight Israeli colonies and their military protectors remained in the strip. An administration was established, Gazans opened businesses, hotels, and restaurants to welcome tourists and in 1996 the Palestinians held their first ever election. Arafat and Fatah won but their victory was short-lived. Israel did not deliver on its commitments, the occupation continued and corruption reigned under the Palestinian Authority. Arafat died in 2004 and Mahmoud Abbas was elected president in early 2005. Israel withdrew from Gaza in August 2005 but imposed control from air, sea, and land.

Hamas won the Palestinian legislative election in 2006 and kicked Fateh’s security forces out of Gaza in 2007. Since then, Israel has mounted four major military assaults on Gaza in 2008-2009, 2012, 2014, 2021. Last week’s operation was short and took place during more than a year of non-stop Israeli raids in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Last year the Israeli army killed 204 Palestinians, including 37 in Gaza, while this year 95 Palestinians in the occupied territories have been slain so far. All occupied Palestine has become Gaza.

Photo: Reuters