Israel has been at the center of American media the last few days, as it has been retaliating to attacks from Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Earlier this week, Hamas fired a barrage of about 200 rockets into Israel, prompting the Israel Defense Force (IDF) to launch air strikes into the Gaza Strip. A top-ranking Palestinian military leader was killed in one attack, pushing the Egyptian government to withdraw its ambassador from Israel. The rising tensions surrounding this conflict beg the question, "who's the aggressor?" Is it right for Israel to respond to the rocket strikes with air power, even if civilians are killed in the attacks? Although this may be the influence of the Western, generally pro-Israeli media, it seems to me that the Israeli counter attack is justified. The Palestinians launched a large number of missiles into their nation- if any country attacked the United States in this manner, war would be declared immediately. While the collateral damage is regrettable, Hamas intentionally places its rocket launchers nearby residencies, hospitals, and schools, which takes some of the blame off of the Israelis. The blood of the Palestinian civilians is on the hands of Hamas, not the IDF.
Fears of a full scale ground war have begun stirring, and the last hopes for the "two state solution" (creating a sovereign Palestinian state) to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are fading. This conflict, which has been raging since the creation of Israel, is ideological in nature. Therefore, diplomatic solutions are unlikely to begin with. Add the recent exchange of rockets and bombs, and war seems inevitable. But what would be the consequences of such a conflict? The world has seen the efficiency and power of the IDF before, and given the continued support of the United States, it will be as strong as ever. However, an invasion of the Gaza Strip would ignite tensions in the Middle East, isolating Israel and, by association, the United States. This would be a disaster for the future of American foreign policy. Now is the time to be building alliances with post-revolutionary governments, but instead the United States is at odds with new governments like that of Egypt because of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. If war breaks out, those relationships will sour entirely. War benefits no nation in this scenario: Israel would easily win but would face fresh hostility from an enraged and already unstable Middle East (with a possibly soon-to-be nuclear Iran), Hamas would be seriously weakened if not destroyed by the conflict, and the United States would suffer massive diplomatic losses. This is an example of a conflict without a possibility for a positive outcome, and thus it must be avoided at all costs. This will likely require serious effort and cooperation by Israel and Hamas, with the United States, Egypt, and the United Nations working between the two governments to try and achieve a ceasefire.
Tim-- insightful post. I definitely agree that a full-fledged conflict benefits no involved party. The Israeli military, better equipped than its Palestinian counterpart both numerically and technologically, would certainly "win" any conflict that comes about. But this victory would prove hollow, as the main issue still remains. Israel was founded upon land already occupied by millions of people for centuries. That is not to say that either side is more deserving of this land than the other, but merely that this conflict exists and is seemingly un-resolvable.
ReplyDeleteIt's a sad reality when the best we can hope for is a ceasefire, as opposed to a long-term solution to the problem. It's almost to the point where no particular side can be blamed above the situation as a whole. Personally, I do my best to understand both sides, having gone through an Israeli-Palestinian dialogue program myself, hearing stories from both Palestinians and Israelis. Hearing the reasons why certain actions are taken makes one realize how difficult a situation was created when the two peoples were forced into coexisting.
I've been keeping up with the Israel-Palestine conflict over the past weeks and I feel like you've brought up some insightful analysis here. I wanted to focus on what you said about Egypt. Like you said, the United States is focusing very much on its relations with Egypt...but rightfully so. Egypt has been increasingly prominent in Middle Eastern affairs. It has been working on a very significant alliance with Turkey (following the recent Syria conflict) and is now claiming itself to be the mediator between Palestine and Israel in this current conflict. If the United States wants to stay connected to Middle Eastern affairs, it is in its best interest to maintain a good relationship with Egypt (it is also, potentially, one of the more reliable Middle Eastern country to try to ally with at this time). And like you said, the likely solution to the conflict will involve the US, Egypt, Israel and Palestine working together.
ReplyDeleteHowever, Egypt and the US are not on the same page, which makes it difficult to advocate a ceasefire. Though Egypt claims to be pro-peace, they have supported Hamas and denounced Israel's actions entirely. Obama and Morsi tried to collaborate, but were essentially unable to do so because they are on opposite pages. Clearly, the two presidents need to come to some sort of conclusion so that they can move past the differences and advocate for peace. Check out this article if you want to read more about Egypt's current stance:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/20/world/middleeast/egypt-advocates-for-palestinians-while-brokering-truce-talks.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&_r=0
This is definitely a moment, I think, for President Obama to utilize his soft power to mend relations between the US and Egypt. I feel that a US-Egypt alliance could be extraordinarily helpful in creating a resolution to this conflict, but Obama and Morsi must overcome their own conflicts first. I understand the tension though-Egypt siding with Hamas here is definitely interesting, especially for the United States, so I'm very eager to see how US-Egypt relations develop because of this conflict. The outcome could definitely lead to some new alliances and some new enemies.