Current Events in The Middle East After Hours

[Bandit]

We've all seen the terrible scenes in Gaza over the past month or so, I know this is a very delicate subject but that doesn't mean we can't discuss it.

The Palestinian militant group Hamas launched an unprecedented assault on Israel on 7 October, with hundreds of gunmen infiltrating communities near the Gaza Strip.

More than 1,400 Israelis were killed, while the Israeli military says 230 soldiers and civilians, including women and children, were taken to Gaza as hostages.

More than 9,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed in air and artillery strikes carried out by the Israeli military in response, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza.

What are the main problems between Israelis and Palestinians?​

There are a number of issues which the two sides cannot agree on.
These include:

• What should happen to Palestinian refugees
• Whether Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank should stay or be removed
• Whether the two sides should share Jerusalem
• And - perhaps most tricky of all - whether a Palestinian state should be created alongside Israel

Why are Israel and Gaza at war now?​

Gaza is ruled by Hamas, an Islamist group which is committed to the destruction of Israel and is designated as a terrorist group by the UK and many other countries.

Hamas won the Palestinians' last elections in 2006, and seized control of Gaza the following year by ousting the rival Fatah movement of West Bank-based President Mahmoud Abbas.

Since then, militants in Gaza have fought several wars with Israel, which along with Egypt has maintained a partial blockade on the strip to isolate Hamas and try to stop attacks, particularly the indiscriminate firing of rockets towards Israeli cities.

Palestinians in Gaza say Israel's restrictions and its air strikes on heavily populated areas amount to collective punishment.

This year has been the deadliest year on record for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. They also complain of the restrictions and military actions being carried out there in response to deadly attacks on Israelis.

These tensions could have been one of the reasons for Hamas's latest attack.

But the militants may also have been seeking to boost their popularity among ordinary Palestinians, including by using hostages to pressure Israel to free some of the estimated 4,500 Palestinians held in its prisons.

 

[Black Sheep]

I am increasingly more and more appalled that the West is not coming out and saying "stop all of this killing, right now".

There can be no justification for what Israel are inflicting on Palestine, NONE. They have gone far too far already and it must stop right now.

It is in any event a senseless waste of time that, of course, will fail to eradicate future terrorist attacks upon them. In fact they are just making it worse, and killing a load of innocent people without giving a shit.

 

[Tom]

I don't have a lot of understanding of this conflict if I'm honest.

The region has been in perma-conflict for decades with atrocities from both sides (but many more by Israel against Palestinians in my view).

It's a messy war and we need the fastest route to a peace which is permanent and both sides are happy with.

 

[Birdman]

It's not a war, it's just revenge, it's genocide. When Israel are done slaughtering civilians just like Hamas did, they will have given birth to a whole new generation of monsters like Hamas.

 

[Ginger Ted]

Just caught some of this on the news today. The footage out of Al-Fakhoura School is appalling. Rooms full of dead people. All ages.

 

[Franco Pinion]

Israel and Hamas have "paused" the fighting for the first time since the outbreak of war with hostages due to be released later today

 

[Ginger Ted]

Regardless on how you feel about them, Qatar seem to be doing the heavy lifting in terms of quelling the violence and ensuring hostages on both sides go home.

Certainly a lot more of a humanitarian effort than the US and UK (both major political parties) cheerleading the onslaught while the EU dithers.

 

[Legion]

Benjamin Netanyahu has doubled down on opposition to Palestinian statehood, deepening the divide with Israel's closest international allies, as cracks in his wartime "unity" government became increasingly evident.

Anger with Netanyahu is also increasingly visible on the streets, even though there is broad public support for the war. On Saturday, protesters gathered in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Caesarea and Kfar Saba, some calling for bolder action to secure the release of hostages, and others demanding the prime minister step down.

Over the weekend, Netanyahu sparred publicly – if indirectly – with US President Joe Biden, who for months has offered Israel almost unconditional support for its war in Gaza, at considerable political cost to his own administration, both in America and beyond.

Netanyahu's spokesman claimed that in a phone call with Biden, the Israeli leader told the US president that his country's security needs left no space for a sovereign Palestinian state.

"In his conversation with President Biden, prime minister Netanyahu reiterated his policy that, after Hamas is destroyed, Israel must retain security control over Gaza to ensure that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel, a requirement that contradicts the demand for Palestinian sovereignty," a statement from the Israeli prime minister's office said.

 

[Ginger Ted]

Iran are expected to attack Israel and it sounds like it's gonna happen anytime now, and I'm not talking days, more like hours.

It's expected to escalate from Lebanon and Palestine to include Iran this weekend.

The US have moved equipment closer to assist Israel.

The IDF pulled out of Gaza Strip and it's thought that they done so to help defend themselves.

 

[Dylan]

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has confirmed in a statement that drones have been launched from Iran towards Israel.

A short while ago, Iran launched UAVs from within its territory toward Israel. The IDF is on high alert and is constantly monitoring the operational situation.

The IDF Aerial Defense Array is on high alert, along with IAF fighter jets and Israeli Navy vessels that are on a defense mission in Israeli air and naval space. The IDF is monitoring all targets.

We ask the public to adhere to and follow the instructions of the Home Front Command and the official IDF announcements regarding the matter.

What an absolute mess the world is in right now.