On October 7th, 2023, the Palestinian Islamist militant group Hamas conducted a series of coordinated attacks in the Gaza Strip on the border with the state of Israel. The multiple assaults provoked by the group have reopened an ongoing conflict between the peoples of Israel and Palestine, alarming countries from all over the world and drawing the attention of international diplomacy.
A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE CONFLICT BETWEEN ISRAEL AND PALESTINE
There are many opinions about what the origins of the never-ending dispute between Israel and Palestine could be. Many events happened during the last centuries that may be the cause of the historical tensions and it is impossible to pinpoint a precise birth date of the dispute.
The first important moment that marked the difficult relationship between the two peoples can be traced back to 1917with the Balfour Declaration. With that document, the British Government supported the existence of a Jewish national homeland in Palestine. The declaration also formally ended the domain of the Ottoman empire that had lasted in the land for the previous 400 years and encouraged a greater flux of Jewish immigration to Israel (McGreal, s.d.).
Despite the above-mentioned event and the inexistence of an exact moment when tensions were born, most experts believe that the conflict between the two peoples has its roots in the Resolution Plan of 1947. Indeed, after the Second World War and the end of the massacre of the Jewish people, the United Nations proposed the Partition Plan for Palestine which recommended the partition of its territory and the creation of two independent countries, the Arab and the Jewish states. The United Nations also decided to establish a Special international Regime for the city of Jerusalem. Therefore, in 1948, the Declaration of Independence of the State of Israel was signed.
After the declaration, the already-present tensions between the Arab and Jewish communities resulted in a war that involved the nations of Egypt, Iraq, Transjordan, and Syria. During the conflict, many civilians from Palestine were forced to leave their homeland. Due to the gravity of the events, Palestinians called this phenomenon of uprooting of their society “nakba”, which means catastrophe in the Arabic language. Indeed, the conflict between the communities caused the exodus of millions of Palestinians, as well as the subsequent discrimination of the remaining Arab community in Israel. These events have marked the history of the land and partially explain why peace has not yet been achieved between the two peoples.
On the logical thread of these occurrences, in 1964, the Palestinian Liberation Organization was founded. The new coalition aimed at re-establishing an Arab state and replacing Israel, but with the use of weapons. The armed struggle initiated by the organization truly impacted the lives of many Palestinians and was condemned by the United Nations. However, the conflict went on: for many years, the Palestinian population was under the control of the government of Israel and tried to combat its military forces. (United Nations, 2023)
The dramatic dispute could not be stopped. New diplomatic attempts were made during the 1990s and early 2000s, but critics were always moved by both the parties of Israel and Palestine. In addition, in 2006, the radical Islamic party Hamas won the elections, and the situation became more complicated and tense, especially for the Palestinians living in the strip of Gaza.
In 2021, after a decision of the Supreme Court of Israel regarding the clearing of some Palestinians from a neighborhood in the east part of Jerusalem, new protests began, culminating in violent clashes with many victims: the fight was then ended in May 2021 by both Hamas and the state of Israel who accepted to cease the hostilities.
However, the “peace” between the two nations was only temporary, because on October 7th, 2023, a new attack in the strip of Gaza was organized by Hamas. The conflict this time seems to be more severe than in the past years and the number of deaths has risen considerably only in the last few weeks.
It is time for a new challenge for international diplomacy. The restoration of peace is fundamental, now more than ever.
THE ROLE OF INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMACY AND THE PERSPECTIVES OF THE INTERNATIONAL LAW
Every field of law is in continuous change and development and no exception is made for the international law that is now facing the challenge to create peace in the land of Palestine.
The recent events demonstrate, once again, how the use of weapons, even for defensive purposes, does not constitute the right way to settle tensions among peoples. The United Nations has made a clear point about that. Indeed, the objective of the UN is and will always be to maintain peace, acting in the role of mediator and attempting a diplomatic settlement of the dispute.
The United Nations has already acted many times to create a solution to the conflict afflicting the territory of Palestine. The Security Council has adopted 69 resolutions: the first of them, as already mentioned in the text, was promoted in 1947 and provided for a division of the state of Palestine into two nations, one Arab and one Jewish. In 1950, the UN founded an agency to offer help and services to Palestinians who became refugees after their fled from the country. The agency (UNRWA) is still aiding the population. In the following decades, more declarations and actions were promoted by the United Nations to maintain peace, until the last 7th of October when the precarious balance between the two populations was affected by the attack of Hamas.
From that moment on, there have been four resolution projects that have been then rejected by the Security Council. Indeed, due to the internal division of the Council and the veto power of the five permanent members (United States, China, Russia, France, and the United Kingdom), the diplomatic organ was not able to exercise any of its coercive powers. Therefore, the United Nations are not yet able to cease-fire between nations. The inevitable consequences are to set aside international humanitarian law.
Despite the tragedy that is happening right now and the temporary powerlessness of international diplomacy, the General Secretary of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, reminded us of the positive perspectives for the future of Palestine and Israel and of the importance of remaining attached to what is and should be the real purpose of all countries, that is human dignity (United Nations, 2023).
Below are his words pronounced on October 24th before the Security Council:
“Even in this moment of grave and immediate danger, we cannot lose sight of the only realistic foundation for a true peace and stability: a two-State solution. Israelis must see their legitimate needs for security materialized, and Palestinians must see their legitimate aspirations for an independent State realized. Finally, we must be clear on the principle of upholding human dignity. Polarization and dehumanization are being fueled by a tsunami of disinformation. We must stand up to the forces of antisemitism, anti-Muslim bigotry, and all forms of hate.”
Bibliografia
McGreal, C. (s.d.). The Guardian. Tratto da https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/oct/18/why-israel-palestine-conflict-history
United Nations. (2023). Tratto da https://www.un.org/unispal/history/
United Nations. (2023). Tratto da https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/sg/speeches/2023-10-24/secretary-generals-remarks-the-security-council-the-middle-east%C2%A0
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