History, Politics, Sorrow: Sibling Drama

 

History is repeating itself and two siblings are fighting once again, over the home they inherited, over the wide open spaces each needs to thrive, over access to basic human rights. 

The Beginnings 

The family drama is not new and has been going on in various forms for thousands upon thousands of years. Depending on how you look at it the roots of the conflict could be traced all the way back to Ishmael and Isaac and step-families who never quite learned how to respect each other and co-create belonging and community. Both sides have been abused and hurt throughout time over and over and over.

And then one side experienced unspeakable loss, millions upon millions upon million killed simply because others did not approve of their faith. So in 1948 the world decided to give the side who had just lost so much the land that they claimed historically so that they could create a safe space to live their lives. Which seemed only fair after experiencing the unspeakable.

The challenge was this good faith gesture did not take into account the people who were already living on that land. (Though the mess the colonial powers created in the middle east was not that much more messy then other places they meddled, even if it seems to have longer consequences) And so as what should have been a surprise to no one, there was conflict such as with the people forced out of their home in order to give the land over.

The Messy Middle

1949 was Israel's War of Independence. The fighting ended in 1949 with a series of ceasefires, producing armistice lines along Israel's frontiers with neighboring states, and creating the boundaries of what became known as the Gaza Strip (occupied by Egypt) and East Jerusalem and the West Bank (occupied by Jordan). And some recognized this community/this family's country and some did not so the family continued to feel scared and isolated.

 

1967, with the Six Day War left Israel in occupation of the Sinai peninsula, the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, East Jerusalem and most of the Syrian Golan Heights - effectively tripling the size of territory under Israel's control. For those who lived in these areas or who had been forced into these areas when Israel became a state it felt like an unjustified occupation. 

In 1979 Egypt recognized the Jewish state and Israel left Sinai but they remained occupying the Gaza Strip, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights.

In the early 2000's Israel ended up in a role of semi-occupying, kind of just an awkward mess. Israel has had a de facto border with Gaza since it pulled its troops and settlers out in 2005, but Gaza and the West Bank are considered a single occupied entity by the UN, and the official borders have not yet been determined. The final status and contours of the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem are meant to be decided in negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians living there under Israeli occupation, but decades of on-off talks have so far proved fruitless.

Current Situation (May 2021)

 

And that is what has led to the current conflict between these two siblings. In early May Israel had forces at the al-Aqsa mosque, the third holiest site in Islam keeping Palestinians away during the holy end of Ramadan, in addition a number of Palestinian families in the occupied territories were being evicted from their homes.

And then Hamas gave an ultimatum leave the mosque etc or we will throw weapons at you and then Hamas did. And Israel responded. And it has gone back and forth with many more civilians in Palestine being killed.

Should either be bombing or throwing rockets at their siblings? NO!!!

But neither side is blameless. Being occupied for so long has not helped the Palestinians develop healthy coping mechanism.

When communities do not have their basic human rights and human needs covered they will fight even harder for their families. When one side keeps placing "settlers" into occupied areas in part because they have outgrown their own land they will find that they end up in conflict with those already there. 

In the end both sides need safe spaces to call their own, both sides need access to basic human rights, both sides need to stop killing each other, and both sides need to no longer be occupied or occupiers.