On Oct. 8, Israel formally declared war on Hamas, retaliating after the Islamic militant group situated in Gaza launched a large-scale surprise attack on Israel. The offensive began after Hamas fired thousands of rockets on the morning of Oct. 7, followed by Hamas forces invading 22 Israeli towns and army bases. Killing Israeli citizens and soldiers and taking hostages back to Gaza, the Hamas invasion led to the deaths of at least 1400 Israelis and dozens of foreigners, according to PBS. Israel has carried out heavy bombardments on the Gaza Strip and barred entry of fuel, food, water, and other supplies into Gaza.
The Israeli Defense Force has repeatedly sent out evacuation orders, telling Palestinians to flee toward south Gaza. Many Palestinians are now trapped within the Gaza Strip’s borders, leaving them amid an active war zone without hope of safety or escape.
According to Al Jazeera, a Qatari news source, health officials report at least 5100 Palestinian deaths as of Oct. 24. As casualties pile up, hospitals are overwhelmed, with many patients in critical conditions and children separated from their families.
“The whole time you’re thinking this is someone’s baby boy. We don’t know his name,” Dr. Ghassan Abu-Sittah said via NBC News. “You don’t know what happened to the rest of his family. We lost count of people now. We don’t know who’s who.”
Israel has also faced heavy casualties from the Hamas initial attack. Israeli families continue to mourn their dead, with emergency responders spending days in the rubble to recover the dead and identify the missing.
“They took dozens of children, bound them up, burned them and executed them. They beheaded soldiers,” Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a phone conversation with President Joe Biden. “We’ve never seen such savagery in the history of the State. They’re even worse than ISIS and we need to treat them as such.”
Hamas’ prominence began after it won the 2006 Palestinian Legislative Council elections, becoming the dominant party in Gaza. The Palestinians had long suffered defeats and territorial losses in skirmishes with Israel during the 1900s, seemingly sparking support for Hamas’ more radical goals. In its charter, Hamas calls for the destruction of Israel and establishment of an Islamic society in historic Palestine.
The United States and European Union had designated Hamas as a terrorist group long before the conflict, and at least 14 Americans are confirmed to have been killed in the Hamas attack. President Joe Biden condemned the Hamas attack, asserting the U.S. stands with Israel.
“There are moments in this life − I mean this literally − when pure unadulterated evil is unleashed on this world,” Biden said via USA Today. “The people of Israel lived through one such moment this weekend.”
International efforts have focused on sending aid to Palestinian citizens. U.N. agencies, including the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), have flown in food and supplies on Gaza’s borders, but they have only recently been able to send minimal aid into Gaza, not nearly enough for besieged Palestinian citizens.
“Gaza is running out of water, and Gaza is running out of life,” said UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini. “We need this now.”
