The Biden administration has approved a weapons package for Israel, including over 1,800 MK84 2,000-pound bombs and 500 MK82 500-pound bombs, amidst concerns over a potential military operation in southern Gaza. Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. stated that Israel has not received all requested military arms. The decision has sparked criticism and calls for aid conditions. President Biden faces protests over U.S. support for Israel despite acknowledging Arab Americans' pain. The U.S. authorized billions worth of arms transfers to Israel, prompting backlash and an internal rift on U.S.-Israeli relations.
The Biden administration authorized the transfer of billions of dollars in bombs and fighter jets to Israel, including 1,800 MK84 2,000-pound bombs and 500 MK82 500-pound bombs, despite concerns about civilian casualties in Gaza. The US views weapons transfers to Israel as necessary, even amid rifts over military actions. Some Democrats urge withholding weapons unless Israel commits to limiting civilian casualties. Israel has not commented on the authorizations, while Hamas remains in Rafah as tensions escalate.
Following the eruption of the Israel–Hamas war, the United States began to send warships and military aircraft into the Eastern Mediterranean and supplying Israel with ammunition and military equipment. The US stated that Israel would receive "whatever it needs" to support a counteroffensive against the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. It also promised more military aid to Israel. On 20 October, President Biden announced that he had asked Congress for $14 billion in additional aid.Israel and the United States were becoming increasingly isolated amid growing global calls for a ceasefire, with the latter vetoing multiple United Nation Security Council resolutions calling for a ceasefire and increased humanitarian aid to be allowed into Gaza. International rights groups have condemned the U.S. for providing military and diplomatic support that risks complicity in war crimes. Biden has faced increasing opposition to US support for Israel, including from within his own administration.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu canceled a delegation visit to Washington after the U.S. abstained from vetoing a U.N. resolution calling for a Gaza cease-fire. The resolution did not make the release of hostages a condition for the cease-fire. Netanyahu's government plans to move forward with an invasion of Rafah even without U.S. support, as diplomatic relations between the two countries deteriorate amidst the Gaza conflict. The U.S. decision to abstain was due to the resolution's lack of condemnation of Hamas. President Biden's close relationship with Netanyahu has faced strain as the conflict escalates.
Since the 1960s, the United States has been a very strong supporter of Israel. It has played a key role in the promotion of good relations between Israel and its neighbouring Arab states—namely Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, along with several others in the 2020 Abraham Accords—while also holding off hostility from other Middle Eastern countries such as Syria and Iran. Relations with Israel are a very important factor in the U.S. government's overall foreign policy in the Middle East, and the U.S. Congress has likewise placed considerable importance on the maintenance of a close and supportive relationship.Israel is the largest cumulative recipient of U.S. foreign aid: until February 2022, the United States had provided Israel US$150 billion (non-inflation-adjusted) in bilateral assistance. In 1999, the US government signed a Memorandum of Understanding through which it committed to providing Israel with at least US$2.67 billion in military aid annually, for the following ten years; in 2009, the annual amount was raised to US$3 billion; and in 2019, the amount was raised again, now standing at a minimum of US$3.8 billion that the US is committed to providing Israel each year.Since 1972, the United States has also extended loan guarantees – a form of indirect U.S. assistance to Israel, as they enable Israel to borrow from commercial US banks at lower rates – to Israel to assist with housing shortages, Israel's absorption of new Jewish immigrants and its economic recovery following the 2000–2003 recession, caused in part by the Second Intifada. Moreover, the United States is Israel's largest trading partner, and Israel is the United States' 25th-largest trading partner; two-way trade totaled some $36 billion in 2013. Bilateral trade increased to nearly $50 billion by 2023.In addition to financial and military aid, the United States also provides large-scale political support to Israel, having used its United Nations Security Council veto power 42 times against resolutions condemning Israel, out of a total 83 times in which its veto has ever been used. Between 1991 and 2011, out of the 24 vetoes invoked by the United States, 15 were used to protect Israel.The United States' readiness to stand on behalf of Israel has, among other factors, been linked to the influence of Zionist lobbies in U.S. politics, most notably AIPAC.Bilateral relations have evolved from an initial American policy of sympathy and support for the creation of a Jewish homeland in 1948, to a partnership that links a small but powerful Israeli state with an American superpower attempting to balance influence against other competing interests in the region, namely those of Russia and its allies. Some analysts maintain that Israel is a strategic ally for the United States, and that relations with the former will strengthen the latter's influence in the Middle East. Israel is designated by the United States as a major non-NATO ally, and was the first country to be granted this status alongside Egypt in 1987; Israel and Egypt remain the only countries in the Middle East to have this designation. Then senator Jesse Helms, argued that the military foothold offered by Israel in the region alone justified the expense of American military aid; referring to Israel as "America's aircraft carrier in the Middle East". As of 2021, the United States remains the only permanent member of the United Nations Security Council to have recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and moved its embassy to the disputed city from Tel Aviv in 2018. The United States is also the only country to have recognized the Golan Heights (internationally recognized as Israeli-occupied Syrian territory) as non-occupied Israeli sovereign territory, doing so via a presidential proclamation under the Trump administration in 2019. However, under the subsequent Biden administration, the U.S. State Department’s annual report on human rights violations around the world once more refers to the West Bank, Gaza Strip, East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights as territories that are occupied by Israel. Nevertheless, in June 2021, in response to a claim by The Washington Free Beacon that it had "walked back" its recognition, the Near Eastern Affairs account of the U.S. State Department tweeted that "U.S. policy regarding the Golan has not changed, and reports to the contrary are false."
State Department staffer Annelle Sheline resigned publicly over President Biden's Israel policy, stating colleagues feel betrayed by the administration's extreme support for Israel amid the Gaza offensive. Criticism includes violations of humanitarian laws and failure to uphold U.S. laws, prompting Biden's administration to face increased backlash. Polls show dwindling American support for Israel's actions in Gaza. Sheline's resignation follows another official's public protest in October. The staffer accused the administration of enabling a potential genocide in Gaza, leading to discussions on resigning in protest.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announces Israel's return to cease-fire negotiations with Hamas after previous failed attempts. The United States, Qatar, and Egypt have been involved in mediation efforts, but no agreement has been reached. Netanyahu rejects Hamas' demands for a hostage release and vows to continue military operations until the militant group is destroyed. The conflict in Gaza escalates with Israeli airstrikes and casualties, leading to concerns about humanitarian crises and international calls for aid access. Tensions in the West Bank rise, and discussions about potential military operations in Gaza intensify between Israel and the United States.
A recent UN-backed report highlights the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza turning into a man-made famine, increasing pressure on Israel to fulfill its legal responsibilities. The UN's high commissioner for human rights suggested Israel may be using starvation as a weapon of war, potentially constituting a war crime. Despite Israel's denial of culpability, a backlog of aid trucks at the Egyptian border underscores the struggle to get supplies into Gaza. Jordan, the US, and the UK have resorted to air drops due to barriers. Tragic incidents, like drownings and injuries, have occurred in the chaotic distribution process. The US Navy is mobilizing resources to deliver aid by sea.
Military relations between Israel and the United States have been consistently close, reflecting shared security interests in the Middle East. Israel is designated as a major non-NATO ally by the U.S. government. A major purchaser and user of U.S. military equipment, Israel is also involved in the joint development of military technology and regularly engages in joint military exercises involving United States and other forces. The relationship has deepened gradually over time, though, as Alan Dowty puts it, it was "not a simple linear process of growing cooperation, but rather a series of tendentious bargaining situations with different strategic and political components in each."Israel is the largest cumulative recipient of U.S. foreign aid: until February 2022, the United States had provided Israel US$ 150 billion (non-inflation-adjusted) in bilateral assistance. In 1999, the US government signed a Memorandum of Understanding through which it committed to providing Israel with at least US$2.67 billion in military aid annually, for the following ten years; in 2009, the annual amount was raised to US$3 billion; and in 2019, the amount was raised again, now standing at a minimum of US$3.8 billion that the US is committed to providing Israel each year.In addition, the only foreign military installations on Israeli soil are US bases, including an AN/TPY-2 early missile warning radar station on Mt. Keren.
A powerful pro-Israel group gathered donors at a summit outside Washington, where a video montage targeted top Democrats in primaries, including Rep. Jamaal Bowman and his challenger, George Latimer. The tensions over the Israel-Gaza war have become focal points in Democratic primaries from New York to Pennsylvania to Missouri, reflecting divisions in the party. Bowman, a Black Congressman, criticized Israel's military response to Hamas' attacks, drawing parallels between Israeli treatment of Palestinians and US police treatment of Black Americans.
Senior aides from the Biden administration, including Steve Benjamin and Samantha Power, will travel to Michigan to meet with Muslim and Arab American community leaders. The meeting will focus on issues such as the Israel-Hamas war and civilian casualties in Gaza. President Biden has faced criticism for his response to the conflict, and the administration is hoping to address concerns and improve relations with the Arab American and Muslim communities. Michigan holds the largest concentration of Arab Americans in the nation, and the meeting is seen as an important step in engaging with a key constituency.
The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy is a book by John Mearsheimer, Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago, and Stephen Walt, Professor of International Relations at Harvard Kennedy School at Harvard University, published in late August 2007. It was a New York Times Best Seller.The book describes the lobby as a "loose coalition of individuals and organizations who actively work to steer U.S. foreign policy in a pro-Israel direction". Mearsheimer and Walt decry what they call misuse of "the charge of anti-Semitism", and argue that pro-Israel groups place great importance on "controlling debate" in American academia. The book "focuses primarily on the lobby's influence on U.S. foreign policy and its negative effect on American interests". The authors also argue that "the lobby's impact has been unintentionally harmful to Israel as well".Mearsheimer and Walt argue that although "the boundaries of the Israel lobby cannot be identified precisely", it "has a core consisting of organizations whose declared purpose is to encourage the U.S. government and the American public to provide material aid to Israel and to support its government's policies, as well as influential individuals for whom these goals are also a top priority". They note that "not every American with a favorable attitude to Israel is part of the lobby", and that although "the bulk of the lobby is comprised of Jewish Americans", there are many American Jews who are not part of the lobby, and the lobby also includes Christian Zionists. They also claim a drift of important groups in "the lobby" to the right, and overlap with the neoconservatives.The book was preceded by a paper commissioned by The Atlantic and written by Mearsheimer and Walt. The Atlantic rejected the paper, and it was published in London Review of Books. The paper attracted considerable controversy, both praise and criticism.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has approved a new round of Gaza ceasefire talks to take place in Doha and Cairo amidst stalled negotiations following a UN Security Council resolution for an immediate ceasefire. The war between Hamas and Israel, initiated by Hamas' attack on Israel resulting in casualties on both sides, continues with little progress in negotiations. Meanwhile, tensions rise as the U.S. expresses concerns over Israel's plans to invade Rafah and the situation escalates at the Gaza-Egypt border crossing and in the diplomatic efforts to prevent full-scale war between Israel and Lebanon.
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. ( , BY-dən; born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who is the 46th and current president of the United States. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 47th vice president from 2009 to 2017 under President Barack Obama and represented Delaware in the United States Senate from 1973 to 2009.Born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Biden moved with his family to Delaware in 1953. He graduated from the University of Delaware before earning his law degree from Syracuse University. He was elected to the New Castle County Council in 1970 and to the U.S. Senate in 1972. As a senator, Biden drafted and led the effort to pass the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act and the Violence Against Women Act. He also oversaw six U.S. Supreme Court confirmation hearings, including the contentious hearings for Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas. Biden ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1988 and 2008. In 2008, Obama chose Biden as his running mate, and he was a close counselor to Obama during his two terms as vice president. In the 2020 presidential election, Biden and his running mate, Kamala Harris, defeated incumbents Donald Trump and Mike Pence. He is the oldest president in U.S. history, and the first to have a female vice president.As president, Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent recession. He signed bipartisan bills on infrastructure and manufacturing. He proposed the Build Back Better Act, which failed in Congress, but aspects of which were incorporated into the Inflation Reduction Act that he signed into law in 2022. Biden appointed Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court. He worked with congressional Republicans to resolve the 2023 United States debt-ceiling crisis by negotiating a deal to raise the debt ceiling. In foreign policy, Biden restored America's membership in the Paris Agreement. He oversaw the complete withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan that ended the war in Afghanistan, during which the Afghan government collapsed and the Taliban seized control. He responded to the Russian invasion of Ukraine by imposing sanctions on Russia and authorizing civilian and military aid to Ukraine. During the Israel–Hamas war, Biden announced military support for Israel, and condemned the actions of Hamas and other Palestinian militants as terrorism. In April 2023, Biden announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination in the 2024 presidential election.
On the evening of 27 October 2023, Israel launched a large-scale invasion of the Gaza Strip, with the stated goals of eliminating and destroying Hamas, a military and political movement which led an attack against Israel earlier in October, and to free hostages taken by Hamas. Following the attack, Israel declared a state of war, tightened its blockade, ordered the evacuation of the northern Gaza Strip, and launched "Operation Swords of Iron".More than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since the start of the Israeli operation, including over 12,500 children and 7,000 women, with another 7,000 people missing and presumed dead under the rubble of destroyed buildings. By mid-December Israel had dropped 29,000 munitions on Gaza, destroying or damaging 70 percent of homes in the Strip. Experts say that the scale and pace of destruction in Gaza is among the most severe in recent history. During the invasion, Israel destroyed at least a third of Gaza's homes and hundreds of cultural landmarks, and desecrated dozens of cemeteries in the strip.A severe humanitarian crisis has developed, with healthcare in a state of collapse, shortages of food, clean water, medicine and fuel due to the blockade, electricity and communications blackouts, and the UN warning of potential famine. It was widely reported that there is "no safe place in Gaza" as Israel struck areas it had previously told Palestinians to evacuate to. The widespread civilian deaths have led to accusations of war crimes against both Israel and Hamas. Nearly all of Gaza's 2.3 million population have been internally displaced and around 250,000–500,000 Israelis were internally displaced, while thousands of Palestinians have been detained by Israel, and Israel has stated it lost 225 additional soldiers in its invasion as of 4 February 2024.As a result of the invasion, South Africa instituted proceedings against Israel in the International Court of Justice (ICJ), charging that Israel was guilty of committing a genocide, and requesting that the ICJ render provisional measures of protection.
The U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions on Gaza Now and its founder Mustafa Ayash for supporting Hamas after an attack on Israel. The sanctions target Gaza Now's fundraising efforts for Hamas, with over 300,000 followers on social media. Al-Qureshi Executives, Aakhirah Ltd., and their director, Aozma Sultana, were also sanctioned for partnering in fundraising with Gaza Now. The sanctions, done in collaboration with the U.K., aim to disrupt Hamas' ability to launch further attacks, blocking access to U.S. property and bank accounts for the designated entities.
Exclusive video and witness testimony obtained by Al Jazeera have revealed how Israeli forces killed two unarmed Palestinians in Gaza..
Sgt. Itay Chen, a 19-year-old U.S.-Israeli citizen, was confirmed dead after being held hostage by Hamas since the October 7 attacks in southern Israel. Chen, part of the IDF's 7th Armored Brigade's 75th Battalion, was one of six U.S. citizens held by Hamas. His body is still held captive by Hamas. Chen's family criticized U.S. officials for their handling of the situation, with his father urging President Biden to step up efforts to locate and protect U.S. citizens under attack from Hamas.
The Gaza Strip is experiencing a humanitarian crisis as a result of the Israel–Hamas war. The crisis includes both a famine and a healthcare collapse. At the start of the war, Israel implemented a complete blockade on the Gaza Strip, which has resulted in significant shortages of fuel, food, medication, water, and essential medical supplies. This siege resulted in a 90% drop in electricity availability, impacting hospital power supplies, sewage plants, and shutting down the desalination plants that provide drinking water. Widespread disease outbreaks have spread across Gaza.Heavy bombardment by Israeli airstrikes caused catastrophic damage to Gaza’s infrastructure, further deepening the crisis. By mid-November, Israel had dropped the equivalent of two nuclear bombs on Gaza. The Gaza Health Ministry reported over 4,000 children killed in the war's first month. UN Secretary General António Guterres stated Gaza had "become a graveyard for children."Organizations such as Doctors Without Borders, the Red Cross, and a joint statement by UNICEF, the World Health Organization, the UN Development Programme, United Nations Population Fund, and World Food Programme have warned of a dire humanitarian collapse. On November 8, UN Human Rights chief Volker Turk described the Rafah Crossing as "gates to a living nightmare."
The Israeli–Palestinian conflict is an ongoing military and political conflict in the Levant. Beginning in the mid-20th century, it is one of the world's longest-continuing conflicts. Key areas of the conflict include the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, the status of Jerusalem, Israeli settlements, borders, security, water rights, Palestinian freedom of movement, and the Palestinian right of return.The conflict has its origins in the arrival of Jewish immigrants and settlers to Palestine in the late 19th and 20th centuries and the advent of the Zionist movement. The local Arab population opposed Zionism, primarily out of fear of territorial displacement and dispossession. The Zionist movement garnered the support of an imperial power in the 1917 Balfour Declaration issued by Britain, which promised to support the creation of a "Jewish homeland in Palestine". Following World War I, Mandatory Palestine was established, and tensions grew into open sectarian conflict between Jews and Arabs. In 1936, an Arab revolt erupted demanding independence, which the British suppressed.The 1947 United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine triggered the 1948 Palestine war, which saw the expulsion and flight of most Palestinian Arabs, the establishment of Israel on most of the Mandate's territory, and the control of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank by Egypt and Jordan, respectively. In the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel occupied the West Bank and the Gaza Strip (which became known as the Palestinian territories), which is now considered to be the longest military occupation in modern history, and has drawn international condemnation for violating the human rights of the Palestinians.The conflict has claimed many civilian casualties, mostly Palestinian, since its inception. Various attempts have been made to resolve the conflict as part of the Israeli–Palestinian peace process, alongside efforts to resolve the broader Arab–Israeli conflict. Progress towards a negotiated solution between the Israeli government and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) was made with the Oslo Accords of 1993–1995. The majority of recent peace efforts have been centred around the two-state solution, which involves the establishment of an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel. Public support for a two-state solution, which formerly enjoyed support from both Israeli Jews and Palestinians, has dwindled in recent years. Official negotiations are mediated by the Quartet on the Middle East, which consists of the United Nations, the United States, Russia, and the European Union. The Arab League, which has proposed the Arab Peace Initiative, is another important actor, along with Egypt and Jordan. Since 2006, the Palestinian side has been split between Fatah dominating the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and Hamas that gained control of the Gaza Strip. Attempts to remedy this have been repeated and continuing. Since 2019, the Israeli side has also been experiencing political crisis. The latest round of peace negotiations began in July 2013 but were suspended in 2014. Since 2006, Hamas and Israel have fought five wars, the most recent of which began in 2023 and is ongoing as of March 2024.
The International Court of Justice has unanimously ordered Israel to enable the unhindered flow of aid into Gaza to prevent a famine following warnings that famine could hit the region within weeks. Israel denies blocking aid, dismisses allegations of genocide, and blames the UN for aid distribution issues. The court ruling states that Gaza is no longer at risk but is already facing famine, with 31 people, including 27 children, already dead from malnutrition. Israel must cooperate with the UN to provide urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance, as ordered by the court.
A blockade has been imposed on the movement of goods and people in and out of the Gaza Strip following Hamas's takeover in 2007, led by Israel and supported by Egypt. The blockade's current stated aim is to prevent the smuggling of weapons into Gaza, although previously stated motivations have included exerting economic pressure on Hamas. Human rights groups have described the blockade as illegal and a form of collective punishment as it restricts the flow of essential goods, contributes to economic hardship, and limits the freedom of movement for Gaza's residents. The blockade and its effects have led to the territory being described as an "open-air prison".Exit and entry into Gaza is prohibited by sea and air. There are only three crossings to go in and out of Gaza, two of them controlled by Israel and one by Egypt. Movement of Palestinians through Erez is heavily regulated by Israel, with applications being considered only for a small number of laborers (less than 5% the number in the year 2000) and for limited medical and humanitarian reasons. Israel's military cooperation with Egypt and its control of the population registry (through which it controls who can obtain the necessary travel documents) provides it with influence over movement through Rafah. Imports are heavily restricted, with "dual use" items being only permitted as part of donor projects. This includes construction material and computer equipment. Exports are also heavily restricted with the main impediment to economic development in Gaza being Israel's ban on virtually all exports from the Strip.Israel blockaded the Gaza Strip at various levels of intensity in 2005–2006, with Israeli imposed closures having a history going back to 1991. In 2007, after Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip, Israel imposed an indefinite blockade of Gaza that is ongoing to present day, on the grounds that Fatah and Palestinian Authority forces had fled the Strip and were no longer able to provide security on the Palestinian side. In response, Hamas fired thousands of rockets towards urban areas in Israel. Israel stated that the blockade was necessary to protect itself from Palestinian political violence, rocket attacks, and to prevent dual use goods from entering Gaza.Israel has been accused of violating or failing to fulfill specific obligations it had committed to under various ceasefire agreements on different occasions to alleviate or lift the blockade. "Crossings were repeatedly shut and buffer zones were reinstated. Imports declined, exports were blocked, and fewer Gazans were given exit permits to Israel and the West Bank." The blockade has been decried by human rights groups, international community representatives and legal professionals as a form of collective punishment in contravention of international law, specifically the Fourth Geneva Convention. Rights groups have held Israel mainly responsible as the occupying power.
President Biden's nomination of Adeel A. Mangi, the first Muslim American appeals court judge, is facing opposition as a third Democratic senator, Sen. Jacky Rosen, has come out against him citing concerns from law enforcement in Nevada. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto and Sen. Joe Manchin III have also expressed their opposition, with concerns about Mangi's ties to certain organizations. The White House is still trying to gather support for Mangi amidst accusations of antisemitism and anti-police sentiments, which they refute as baseless and part of a smear campaign.
The Gaza–Israel conflict is a localized part of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict beginning in 1948, when 200,000 Palestinians fled or were expelled from their homes, settling in the Gaza Strip as refugees. Since then, Israel has fought 15 wars against the Gaza Strip. The number of Gazans killed in the most recent 2023 war — 27,000 — is higher than the death toll of all other wars of the Arab-Israeli conflict.Israel fought four wars against the Egyptian-administered Gaza Strip: 1948 Palestine War, border attacks of 1949–1956, first occupation of Gaza during the Suez Crisis and the capture of Gaza in 1967. During the first occupation, 1% of Gaza Strip's population was either killed, tortured or imprisoned by Israel. Following two periods of low-level insurgencies, a major conflict between Israelis and Palestinians erupted in the First Intifada (523 Gazans killed). The 1993 Oslo Accords brought a period of calm. But, in 2000 the Second Intifada erupted. Towards the end of the Second Intifada, Israel disengaged from Gaza in 2005, Hamas won the 2006 election and seized control of Gaza in 2007.In 2007, Israel imposed a land, air and sea blockade of the Gaza Strip, turning it into an "open-air prison". The blockade was widely condemned as a form of collective punishment, while Israel defended it as necessary to stop Palestinian rocket attacks. Hamas considered it a declaration of war. A 2008–2009 Israeli invasion of Gaza resulted in more than 1,000 deaths and widespread destruction of homes, schools and hospitals. A 2012 Israeli operation also killed more than 100 people.In 2014, Israel invaded Gaza in a major war that resulted in the deaths of 73 Israelis (mostly soldiers) and 2,251 Palestinians (mostly civilians). The invasion resulted in "unprecedented" destruction, damaging 25% of homes in Gaza city and 70% of homes in Beit Hanoun. After 2014, notable events in the conflict included the "Great March of Return" (2018-2019) and clashes in November 2018, May 2019 and November 2019. The 2021 crisis saw 256 Palestinians and 15 Israelis killed.On October 7, 2023, Palestinian militants attacked Israel, killing 1,200 people (mostly civilians). Israel responded with bombing Gaza Strip and launching an invasion that has killed more than 29,000 Gazans as of February 2024.
An armed conflict between Israel and Hamas-led Palestinian militant groups has been taking place chiefly in and around the Gaza Strip since 7 October 2023, when Hamas launched a surprise attack on southern Israel from the Gaza Strip. After clearing Hamas militants from its territory, the Israeli military embarked on an extensive aerial bombardment of the Gaza Strip followed by a large-scale ground invasion beginning on 27 October. Clashes have also occurred in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and with Hezbollah along the Israel–Lebanon border. The hostilities constitute the fifth war of the Gaza–Israel conflict since 2008 and are part of the broader Israeli–Palestinian conflict. They are considered to be the most significant military escalation in the region since the Yom Kippur War 50 years earlier.The Hamas offensive involved 3,000 militants breaching the Gaza–Israel barrier and attacking Israeli communities and military bases. During this attack, 1,139 Israelis and foreign nationals were killed, while 253 Israelis and foreigners were taken captive to the Gaza Strip. The attack was proclaimed as a response to the continued Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories, the expansion of illegal Israeli settlements, the prospect of Arab–Israeli normalization, and the plight of Palestinian refugees and prisoners. In response, Israel declared a state of war, tightened its existing blockade of Gaza and launched one of the most severe bombing campaigns in history, before commencing the ground invasion on 27 October. Israeli forces laid siege to Gaza City on 2 November and moved south to attack Khan Yunis a month later on 3 December; both sieges remain ongoing. Israel's next objective is the capture of Rafah. An estimated 6,000-12,000 militants have been killed during the conflict, and Israel has lost over 200 soldiers during its invasion. A United Nations resolution calling for a humanitarian pause passed on 15 November; the seven-day truce took effect at the end of that month.A humanitarian crisis has developed in the Gaza Strip, with healthcare in a state of collapse, shortages of food, clean water, medicine and fuel due to the blockade, electricity and communications blackouts, and potential famine conditions. More than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza during the conflict, including over 12,300 children and 8,400 women. Nearly all of Gaza's 2.3 million population have been internally displaced. The widespread civilian deaths have led to accusations of war crimes against both Israel and Hamas. In February 2024 576,000 people were "facing catastrophic levels of deprivation and starvation", stated The United Nations. More than 100 Palestinians were killed by Israeli troops that opened fire when huge crowds raced to pull goods off an aid convoy.The war has had significant international repercussions. Popular protests that primarily call for a ceasefire have occurred across the world. Israel's actions have been denounced by the Islamic world and much of the Global South; South Africa launched an International Court of Justice case alleging that Israel committed genocide. Israel has however received significant support from its traditional Western allies, especially the United States, which vetoed multiple UN Security Council resolutions calling for an immediate ceasefire. In response, Iran-backed militias have attacked American military bases in the Middle East, while the Yemeni Houthi movement attacked commercial ships they alleged were linked to Israel, incurring a military response from a number of countries.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; Hebrew: צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , lit. 'The Army for the Defense of Israel'), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym Tzahal (צה״ל), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and the Israeli Navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security apparatus. The IDF is headed by the Chief of the General Staff, who is subordinate to the Israeli Defense Minister.On the orders of David Ben-Gurion, the IDF was formed on 26 May 1948 and began to operate as a conscript military, drawing its initial recruits from the already-existing paramilitaries of the Yishuv—namely Haganah, the Irgun, and Lehi. It was formed shortly after the Israeli Declaration of Independence, and has participated in every armed conflict involving Israel. In the wake of the 1979 Egypt–Israel peace treaty and the 1994 Israel–Jordan peace treaty, the IDF underwent a significant strategic realignment. Previously spread across various fronts—Lebanon and Syria in the north, Jordan and Iraq in the east, and Egypt in the south—the IDF redirected its focus towards southern Lebanon and its occupation of the Palestinian territories, the Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. In 2000, the IDF withdrew from Southern Lebanon and in 2005 from Gaza. Conflict between Israel and Islamist groups based in Gaza, notably Hamas, has continued since then. Moreover, notable Israeli–Syrian border incidents have occurred frequently since 2011, due to regional instability caused by the Syrian civil war.Since 1967, the IDF maintains a close security relationship with the United States, including in research and development cooperation, with joint efforts on the F-15I, the Tactical High-Energy Laser, and the Arrow defense systen, among others. The IDF is believed to have maintained an operational nuclear weapons capability since 1967, possibly possessing between 80 and 400 nuclear warheads.
The Gaza War, also known as Operation Cast Lead (Hebrew: מִבְצָע עוֹפֶרֶת יְצוּקָה), also known as the Gaza Massacre (Arabic: مجزرة غزة), and referred to as the Battle of al-Furqan (معركة الفرقان) by Hamas, was a three-week armed conflict between Gaza Strip Palestinian paramilitary groups and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) that began on 27 December 2008 and ended on 18 January 2009 with a unilateral ceasefire. The conflict resulted in 1,166–1,417 Palestinian and 13 Israeli deaths. Over 46,000 homes were destroyed in Gaza, making more than 100,000 people homeless.A six month long ceasefire between Israel and Hamas ended on 4 November, when the IDF made a raid into Deir al-Balah, central Gaza to destroy a tunnel, killing several Hamas militants. Israel said the raid was a preemptive strike and Hamas intended to abduct further Israeli soldiers, while Hamas characterized it as a ceasefire violation, and responded with rocket fire into Israel. Attempts to renew a truce between Israel and Hamas were unsuccessful. On December 27, Israel began Operation Cast Lead with the stated aim of stopping rocket fire. In the initial air assault, Israel attacked police stations, military targets including weapons caches and suspected rocket firing teams, as well as political and administrative institutions, striking in the densely populated cities of Gaza, Khan Yunis and Rafah. After hostilities broke out, Palestinian groups fired rockets in retaliation for the aerial bombardments and attacks. The international community considers indiscriminate attacks on civilians and civilian structures that do not discriminate between civilians and military targets as illegal under international law.An Israeli ground invasion began on 3 January. On 5 January, the IDF began operating in the densely populated urban centers of Gaza. During the last week of the offensive (from 12 January), Israel mostly hit targets it had damaged before and struck Palestinian rocket-launching units. Hamas intensified its rocket and mortar attacks against mostly civilian targets in southern Israel, reaching the major cities of Beersheba and Ashdod for the first time during the conflict. Israeli politicians ultimately decided against striking deeper within Gaza amid concerns of higher casualties on both sides and rising international criticism. The conflict ended on 18 January, when the IDF first declared a unilateral ceasefire, followed by Hamas' announcing a one-week ceasefire twelve hours later. The IDF completed its withdrawal on 21 January.In September 2009, a UN special mission, headed by the South African Justice Richard Goldstone, produced a report accusing both Palestinian militants and the Israeli army of war crimes and possible crimes against humanity, and recommended bringing those responsible to justice. In 2011, Goldstone wrote that he does not believe that Israel intentionally targeted civilians in Gaza as a matter of explicit policy. The other authors of the report, Hina Jilani, Christine Chinkin, and Desmond Travers, stated that no new evidence had been gathered that disputed the report's findings. The United Nations Human Rights Council ordered Israel to conduct various repairs of the damages. On 21 September 2012, the United Nations Human Rights Council concluded that 75% of civilian homes destroyed in the attack were not rebuilt.
Members of Brothers and Sisters in Arms and Bonot Alternativa (Women Building an Alternative) protested near the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem against Israel's exemptions for ultra-Orthodox Jews from mandatory military service. Israeli police scuffled with ultra-Orthodox Jewish men during a separate protest against a potential new draft law that could end their exemptions, using skunk water cannon to disperse protesters blocking a street.
The Arab–Israeli conflict is the phenomenon involving political tension, military conflicts, and other disputes between various Arab countries and Israel, which escalated during the 20th century. The roots of the Arab–Israeli conflict have been attributed to the support by Arab League member countries for the Palestinians, a fellow League member, in the ongoing Israeli–Palestinian conflict; this in turn has been attributed to the simultaneous rise of Zionism and Arab nationalism towards the end of the 19th century, though the two national movements had not clashed until the 1920s.Part of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict arose from the conflicting claims by these movements to the land that formed the British Mandatory Palestine, which was regarded by the Jewish people as their ancestral homeland, while at the same time it was regarded by the Pan-Arab movement as historically and currently belonging to the Arab Palestinians, and in the Pan-Islamic context, as Muslim lands. The sectarian conflict within the British Mandate territory between Palestinian Jews and Arabs escalated into a full-scale Palestinian civil war in 1947. Taking the side of the Palestinian Arabs, especially following the Israeli Declaration of Independence, the neighbouring Arab countries invaded the by-then former Mandate territory in May 1948, commencing the First Arab–Israeli War. Large-scale hostilities mostly ended with ceasefire agreements after the 1973 Yom Kippur War. Peace agreements were signed between Israel and Egypt in 1979, resulting in Israeli withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula and the abolition of the military governance system in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, in favor of Israeli Civil Administration and consequent unilateral annexation of the Golan Heights and East Jerusalem.The nature of the conflict has shifted over the years from the large-scale, regional Arab–Israeli conflict to a more local Israeli–Palestinian conflict, which peaked during the 1982 Lebanon War when Israel intervened in the Lebanese Civil War to oust the Palestinian Liberation Organization from Lebanon. With the decline of the 1987–1993 First Intifada, the interim Oslo Accords led to the creation of the Palestinian National Authority in 1994, within the context of the Israeli–Palestinian peace process. The same year, Israel and Jordan reached a peace accord. In 2002, the Arab League offered recognition of Israel by Arab countries as part of the resolution of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict in the Arab Peace Initiative. The initiative, which has been reconfirmed since, calls for normalizing relations between the Arab League and Israel, in exchange for a full withdrawal by Israel from the occupied territories (including East Jerusalem) and a "just settlement" of the Palestinian refugee problem based on UN Resolution 194. In the 1990s and early 2000s, a ceasefire had been largely maintained between Israel and Syria, while limited warfare continued in Lebanon against Iranian proxy militias. Despite the peace agreements with Egypt and Jordan, the interim peace accords with the Palestinian Authority and the generally existing ceasefire, until the mid-2010s the Arab League and Israel had remained at odds with each other over many issues. Among Arab belligerents in the conflict, Iraq and Syria are the only states who have reached no formal peace accord or treaty with Israel, with both supporting Iran.The Syrian civil war reshuffled the situation near Israel's northern border, putting the Syrian Arab Republic, Hezbollah and the Syrian opposition at odds with each other and complicating their relations with Israel, upon the emerging warfare with Iran. The conflict between Israel and Hamas-ruled Gaza, is also attributed to the Iran–Israel proxy conflict. By 2017, Israel and several Arab Sunni states led by Saudi Arabia formed a semi-official coalition to confront Iran. This move and the Israeli normalization with Gulf states was marked by some as the fading of the Arab–Israeli conflict.
The prestigious Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute awarded Associated Press (AP) for a picture of Shani Louk, a victim of a brutal Hamas attack, sparking backlash for the image depicting her dead body. Louk, a German-Israeli, was tragically murdered at the SuperNova Festival. AP and Reuters deny collusion with the attack and condemn the allegations. The photo, taken by AP freelance Ali Mahmud, led to widespread criticism and accusations of dishonoring Louk's memory. The competition, Pictures of the Year International, faced backlash for awarding such a graphic image.
Israeli settlements, also called Israeli colonies, are the civilian communities built by Israel throughout the Israeli-occupied territories. They are populated by Israeli citizens, almost exclusively of Jewish identity or ethnicity, and were first established after Israel's victory in the Six-Day War of June 1967. The international community considers Israeli settlements to be illegal under international law, but Israel disputes this.Currently, Israeli settlements exist in the West Bank (incl. East Jerusalem), which is claimed by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) as the sovereign territory of the State of Palestine, and in the Golan Heights, which is internationally recognized as a part of the sovereign territory of Syria. Through the Jerusalem Law and the Golan Heights Law, Israel effectively annexed both territories, though the international community has rejected any change to their status as occupied territory. Although Israel's West Bank settlements have been built on territory administered under military rule rather than civil law, Israeli civil law is "pipelined" into the settlements, such that Israeli citizens living there are treated similarly to those living in Israel. Israel's regulated expansion of existing settlements and construction of new settlements across the West Bank has been condemned by the international community and criticized as an obstacle to the Israeli–Palestinian peace process. In Legal Consequences of the Construction of a Wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (2004), the International Court of Justice found that Israel's settlements and the then-nascent Israeli West Bank barrier were both in violation of international law; part of the latter has been constructed within the West Bank instead of on Israel's side of the Green Line.As of January 2023, there are 144 Israeli settlements in the West Bank, including 12 in East Jerusalem; Israel administers the West Bank as the Judea and Samaria Area, which does not include East Jerusalem. In addition to the settlements, the West Bank is also hosting over 100 Israeli outposts, which are settlements that have not been authorized by the Israeli government. In total, over 450,000 Israeli settlers residing in the West Bank, excluding East Jerusalem, with an additional 220,000 Israeli settlers residing in East Jerusalem. Additionally, over 25,000 Israeli settlers live in Syria's Golan Heights. Between 1967 and 1982, there were 18 settlements established in the Israeli-occupied Sinai Peninsula of Egypt, though these were dismantled by Israel after the Egypt–Israel peace treaty of 1979. Additionally, as part of the Israeli disengagement from the Gaza Strip in 2005, Israel dismantled all 21 settlements in the Gaza Strip and four settlements in the West Bank.Per the Fourth Geneva Convention, the transfer by an occupying power of its civilian population into the territory it is occupying constitutes a war crime, although Israel disputes that this statute applies to the West Bank. On 20 December 2019, the International Criminal Court announced the opening of an investigation of war crimes in the Palestinian territories. The presence and ongoing expansion of existing settlements by Israel and the construction of outposts is frequently criticized as an obstacle to peace by the PLO, and by a number of third parties, such as the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the United Nations (UN), Russia, the United Kingdom, France, and the European Union. The UN has repeatedly upheld the view that Israel's construction of settlements in the occupied territories constitutes a violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention. For decades, the United States also designated Israeli settlements as illegal, but the Trump administration reversed this long-standing policy in November 2019, declaring that "the establishment of Israeli civilian settlements in the West Bank is not per se inconsistent with international law"; this new policy, in turn, was reversed to the original by the Biden administration in February 2024, once again classifying Israeli settlement expansion as "inconsistent with international law" and matching the official positions of the other three members of the Middle East Quartet.
Israeli airstrikes near the Syrian city of Aleppo have resulted in casualties among civilians and military personnel, with conflicting reports on the exact numbers. The strikes coincided with drone attacks by Syrian insurgent groups on civilian targets in Aleppo and its suburbs. The Israeli strikes targeted missile depots belonging to Hezbollah in southern Aleppo, leading to dozens of soldiers being killed or wounded. Israel frequently conducts airstrikes on Iran-linked targets in Syria without public acknowledgment.
The Gaza Strip ( ; Arabic: قِطَاعُ غَزَّةَ Qiṭāʿ Ġazzah [qɪˈtˤɑːʕ ˈɣaz.za]), or simply Gaza, is a polity and the smaller of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the West Bank). On the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, Gaza is bordered by Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the east and north.The territory came into being when it was controlled by Egypt during the 1948 Arab–Israeli war, and became a refuge for Palestinians who fled or were expelled during the 1948 Palestine war. Later, during the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel captured and occupied the Gaza Strip, initiating its decades-long military occupation of the Palestinian territories. The mid-1990s Oslo Accords established the Palestinian Authority (PA) as a limited governing authority, initially led by the secular party Fatah until that party's electoral defeat in 2006 to the Sunni Islamic Hamas. Hamas would then take over the governance of Gaza in a battle the next year, subsequently warring with Israel.In 2005, Israel unilaterally withdrew its military forces from Gaza, dismantled its settlements, and implemented a temporary blockade of Gaza. The blockade became indefinite after the 2007 Hamas takeover, supported by Egypt through restrictions on its land border with Gaza. Despite the Israeli disengagement, the United Nations (UN), the International Committee of the Red Cross, and many human-rights organizations continue to consider Gaza to be held under Israeli military occupation, due to what they consider Israel's effective military control over the territory; Israel disputes that it occupies the territory. The land, sea, and air blockade prevents people and goods from freely entering or leaving the territory, leading to Gaza often being called an "open-air prison." The UN, as well as at least 19 human-rights organizations, have urged Israel to lift the blockade. Israel has justified its blockade on the strip with wanting to stop flow of arms, but Palestinians and rights groups say it amounts to collective punishment and exacerbates dire living conditions.The Gaza Strip is 41 kilometres (25 miles) long, from 6 to 12 km (3.7 to 7.5 mi) wide, and has a total area of 365 km2 (141 sq mi). With around 2 million Palestinians on approximately 365 km2 (141 sq mi) of land, Gaza has one of the world's highest population densities. More than 70% of Gaza's population are refugees or descendents of refugees, half of whom are under the age of 18. Sunni Muslims make up most of Gaza's population, with a Palestinian Christian minority. Gaza has an annual population growth rate of 1.99% (2023 est.), the 39th-highest in the world. Gaza's unemployment rate is among the highest in the world, with an overall unemployment rate of 46% and a youth unemployment rate of 70%. The population has one of the highest literacy rates in the world. Gaza has throughout the years been seen as a source of Palestinian nationalism and resistance.
An international team of doctors, including pediatrician Tanya Haj-Hassan, worked at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza for two weeks amidst shortages of supplies and were stunned by the gruesome impact of Israel's conflict with Hamas on Palestinian children.
During an interview on WBT radio, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre abruptly ended the conversation when asked about President Biden's mental state, calling the question insulting. The interviewer, Mark Garrison, mentioned concerns about Biden's cognitive abilities, leading to a quick conclusion of the discussion. The White House accused the radio station of adding drama by including a dial tone at the end. The topic of Biden's mental acuity and age, along with concerns about both candidates' capabilities, is a significant issue for many American voters.
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