Nepal seeks to avoid wars both internally and externally. However, the fate of this Himalayan nation has been to be involuntarily drawn into global conflicts. Currently, Nepal finds itself affected by the Russia-Ukraine conflict, where Nepali youth are being illegally recruited into the Russian Army in Europe, and by the Israel-Hamas War in West Asia (Middle East), where Nepali citizens have lost their lives and been taken hostage.
The Islamist group Hamas in Gaza, a close ally of Iran, attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, resulting in the loss of over 1,200 lives, including 10 young Nepali students who were in Israel for the ‘Learn and Earn’ agriculture program.
Despite the lack of any direct involvement with the Israel-Hamas conflict, similar to the situation in the Russia-Ukraine war, these Nepali students were tragically killed in Israel.
Another student from Nepal, Bipin Joshi, is among 133 hostages currently held by Hamas. His family has appealed to the Nepali government for assistance in rescuing him from the volatile situation in West Asia.
The Israel-Hamas conflict, which has lasted more than six months, shows no signs of abating. From the perspective of Palestine and Iran, Hamas is an organization that was formed to reclaim lands captured by Israel. Conversely, Israel, the United States, and several Western countries label Hamas as a terrorist organization.
To protect its citizens from such attacks, Israel has constructed the Iron Dome, a critical security technology that intercepts and destroys missiles in the sky. However, on October 7 of last year, Israel failed to intercept an attack, resulting in significant human and material losses.
Hamas inflicted casualties and damage on the Israeli side. Subsequently, Israel began to defend itself with the Iron Dome and other advanced technologies.
In response, Israel launched attacks on the Gaza Strip, which lacks the Iron Dome and similar sophisticated technologies. According to international media reports, during Israel’s operations against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, over 34,262 Palestinian people have lost their lives. Although the UN Security Council has authorized humanitarian aid for the Gaza Strip, delivering it to the people there remains challenging.
To comprehend the conflict between Israel and Palestine, along with the war involving Hamas, one must understand the geography of West Asia (Middle East). Looking at the map, only small fractions of land remain under Palestinian control, with larger areas dominated by Israel. The southeastern part is governed by the extremist Islamic group Hamas. The mid-northern area is Jerusalem, and the adjoining area that extends east and west is the West Bank.
The West Bank shares borders with Jordan, while Gaza’s border connects with the Mediterranean Sea and Egypt. Palestine and Israel share western borders with Lebanon and Syria. The reason for stating that the two countries share borders is that they have not been officially demarcated between the two nations.
Hamas is an ally of Iran, which also supports Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthi in Yemen. The Israel-Hamas conflict has spread across the region, exacerbating tensions between Iran-Israel, Israel-Hezbollah, and Houthi-Israel.
Geo-politics and Security Analyst, Retired Major General Binoj Basnyat, commented that the tension in the West Asian region could harm both the region and the world. “Nepal has already suffered from the incident. Therefore, we need to be careful, and the government of Nepal should act tactically,” he said.
On the map, we can see that Palestine was within Israel, and Israel was within Palestine. It is difficult to differentiate which land belonged to whom. However, one standardization separated the states: their clothing, eating habits, and residences. Everything seemed to be well-managed on the Israeli side, while the Palestinian side was marked by poverty. During field reporting in April 2003 in Lebanon, we observed affluence in Israel.
The United Nations (UN) has recognized only Israel as a state thus far. Palestine has not been recognized as a state and remains an observer state of the UN. However, in 1974, the United Nations General Assembly recognized the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). Israel was recognized as a nation in 1948.
As of December 2020, among the 193 members of the UN, 165 recognized Israel as a new nation, including Nepal. Twenty-eight UN members have yet to recognize Israel.
Countries that have confidence in the USA and the UK have been supporting Israel. Predominantly Muslim countries, including Iran and Turkey, support Palestine. In short, remnants of the Cold War are also evident in the Israel-Palestine conflict. Other nations, for their own benefit, are clearly seen observing the war between the Jews of Israel and the Muslims of Palestine, which is known as a ‘Proxy War’ in the West Asian region. This involves attacking the other side indirectly by using others.
In 1997, according to a UN report on ‘the situation of Jerusalem,’ four years before World War I in 1914, the land of Palestine was ruled by the Islamic Ottoman Empire of Turkey. In 1922, the Ottoman rule evolved into the Republic of Turkey. Historically, the Ottomans ruled over southern Europe, West Asia, and the Mediterranean area before transforming into Turkey after World War I.
The Ottomans also ruled over Palestine and Israel. After World War I, the British became powerful and captured the area that is now Palestine and Israel. At the end of Ottoman rule, the British had seized Western Asian regions. After World War II, before leaving the area, the British supported Israel.
Therefore, Palestinians believe that the colonization of Palestine began in the late 19th century. They view that Zionism emerged in the region during the same period. At the UN General Assembly on November 13, 1974, Yasser Arafat, a prominent Palestinian leader and then-head of the PLO, which represented the Palestinians, stated that ‘Judaism aims to defeat Palestine with the help of European immigrants in the same way that immigrants colonized Africa.’
In Cairo in 1969, the Palestinian National Council (PNC) appointed Arafat as head of the PLO, which was established in 1964. The main purpose of this organization is to represent the Palestinian people and to establish an independent Palestinian state.
The PLO has its headquarters in the West Bank. Initially, the PLO aimed to advance through armed conflict. America and Israel declared it a terrorist organization. However, later the PLO remained a political organization. Arafat, who died in 2004, led the PLO for 34 years. Palestinians believe that the Jews initiated an attack on them in 1881, claiming that at that time, the region had a majority of Muslims and Christians.
Palestinians assert that in 1881 there were only 20,000 Jews in Israel. However, between 1882 and 1917, about 50,000 Jews are believed to have settled in Palestine under the Zionist movement.
It is believed that British citizen Cecil John Rhodes, also known as a pioneer of Judaism, prepared a draft for the establishment of the Jewish state by publishing a book entitled “Le De Jurested” (The Jewish State).
The ‘Balfour Declaration’ served as additional support from the British to the Israelis. A letter from British Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour to Jewish intellectual Lord Rothschild in 1917 announced that the British supported the establishment of a Jewish state in the Middle East. As a result, Palestine suffered further setbacks while Israel benefited. Arafat described the declaration as a bond between Zionism and Imperialism. He stated that Zionist theology was used against the citizens of Palestine.
The League of Nations, formed in 1920 during the First World War, also could not resolve the issue. Consequently, the United Nations was established in 1945. It is evident that even the United Nations, like other organizations, has failed to completely solve the problem.
Palestinians believe that after the Second World War, a campaign began to bring Jews from various nations to Israel to grant them citizenship. By 1947, the number of Jews had reached six hundred thousand, and Palestinians claimed they occupied 6 percent of their country’s arable land. At that time, the Palestinian population was 1.25 million. Currently, Israel has a Jewish population of about 9.2 million and a Palestinian population of only 5.2 million. In 1947, the United Nations decided to divide the land into three parts: a Jewish state, a Palestinian state, and Jerusalem, which is central to three religions—Christianity, Judaism, and Islam—to be monitored by the UN. Israel was allocated 57% of the land, while Palestine received 43%.
Although Israel agreed to accept the UN’s proposal, Palestine made it clear that it would not accept external intervention in their country. Other Arab countries also declared that they would not support the UN’s proposal. As a result, numerous wars, known as the ‘Arab-Israeli War,’ were fought between Israel and the Arab countries. After 1948, many wars occurred between Israel and its Muslim neighbors. Israel won some and sought support from others. Recently, Israel has begun establishing relationships with Arab nations. Arab nations have supported Israel for their own benefit, as Israel is much stronger in new technologies, financial development, and other areas. This has caused further suffering for Palestine.
In 1956, Israel attacked Egypt alongside France and Britain. In 1967, Israel launched a surprise attack on Egypt and defeated it, along with Jordan and Syria. Israel won this war in six days, which is known as the ‘Six-Day War.’
The conflict continues as both nations have not implemented the Oslo Accords. Although the war ended on the 11th day this time, it is only a matter of time before another one starts. The likelihood of lasting peace between these two countries seems very slim.
In 1973, when Egypt and Syria unexpectedly attacked Israel, it caused confusion. Israel faced significant pressure throughout the war. The conflict ceased only after the intervention of the UN. The situation was further complicated by the Soviet Union’s strong support for the Egypt-Syria alliance and the United States’ strong support for Israel. This conflict is also known as the ‘Yom Kippur War.’
During this war, Egypt managed to reclaim land that had been captured by Israel in the previous conflict. Later, Israel signed peace treaties with Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994. Additionally, Israel has established peace accords with Bahrain, the UAE, Sudan, and Morocco since 2000. Due to cordial relations between Saudi Arabia and America, Israel has initiated efforts to establish relations with Saudi Arabia as well. With support from America, Israel has begun to forge relations with other countries. Israel is the largest importer of American-made weapons.
According to a 2013 study report for the US Congress, in 2007, the administration of then-President George W. Bush announced a support package equivalent to a 30 billion dollar military aid package to Israel, to be distributed over 10 years, starting from 2009. Even now, as the war escalates, the Joe Biden administration is supplying weapons to Israel worth 735 million USD.
The news regarding the supply of weapons to Israel was published this week in the American daily, ‘The Washington Post’. Meanwhile, Biden has called on both parties to cease violent activities. However, according to the British media outlet, the BBC, the United States is refusing to issue a joint statement to the UN Security Council calling for an end to the violence.
Another significant impact of US support for Israel was the Trump administration’s plan to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in 2018. As a result, other countries have begun moving their embassies within Israel. However, this plan has not been implemented by the US and other countries as of now. The discussion has contributed to the international recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, rather than as disputed territory.
Although the city of Jerusalem came under international control in 1947, it was initially governed by Jordan and later by Israel in 1967. Violent activities in the city have not ceased due to the claims made by three religions, further fueling the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Christians revere their religious sites in the Jerusalem area, claiming that Jesus died, was crucified, and resurrected there.
Most Christians believe that the tomb of Christ is located inside the mountain of Calvary. It is believed that Jesus Christ prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, within the city of Jerusalem, and spent a night there with his disciples before being crucified. This is why Christians around the world attach great importance to this area.
On the other hand, Jews have their own narrative. They consider the area of the Temple Mount as their spiritual center, where, according to tradition, God resided and where Abraham prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac. Jews face Jerusalem and the Temple Mount during prayer.
Jews regard the Western Wall, situated at the heart of the Old City of Jerusalem, as the holiest place in their religion. They consider the wall of the temple as the most appropriate place for prayer. The Hebrew Bible mentions the religious city of Tanah 669 times and the context of Zion (Jerusalem as the land of Israel) 154 times.
Islam is another religion present in this area. The site that Jews refer to as the Temple Mount is known to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif. Muslims consider these places as the third holiest site after Mecca and Medina.
Muslims believe that the Angel Gabriel took the Prophet Muhammad from Mecca to Jerusalem, where he prayed with other prophets before ascending to heaven. The Temple Mount in Jerusalem is also the location of the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock. Muslims believe that Muhammad’s ascension to heaven is the second pillar of Islam and pray five times a day facing this site.
This belief is why Muslims are thought to pray facing Jerusalem. Incidents ranging from verbal altercations to armed violence between individuals of different religions have escalated into a broader conflict between two nations.
Jews are considered a minority worldwide. Six million Jews were killed by Hitler in gas chambers. Despite the time that has passed since this tragedy, Israelis lament that Iranian leaders did not condemn the murder of Jews. Israel harbors greater animosity towards Iran, which supports Hamas, than towards Hamas itself, because Iran supplies all necessary arms and ammunition to Hamas through Egypt.
Britain was the main ally of Israel in the beginning; however, now it is America. It seems Israel has adeptly utilized the increasing tension between America and Iran. Although Palestine claims the land as their own, Israelis consider it theirs since the time of their ancestors.
“No matter how distorted history may be, no one can deny the 4,000-year-old relationship between the Jewish people and the Jewish land,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the US Congress in May 2011. Netanyahu, the second Israeli-born prime minister, believes that “the state of Israel was established in the Middle East, from Nepal to West Asia, from the ashes of the Jewish people.”
Netanyahu asserts that the Palestinian PLO should negotiate a peaceful solution. Israel’s ambassador to Nepal, Hanan Goder, states that Israel will not hold talks with Hamas. “How can we talk with a terrorist group? We are always ready for talks with the Palestinians. We want to turn more than 100 years of violence into peace,” he said. Goder also urges Nepal to speak out against Hamas attacks. “Israel has a right to defend itself,” he added.
It was expected that the USA-led Oslo Accords could solve the problem between Israel and Palestine that the UN could not resolve. On August 20, 1993, a secret agreement was reached between the Israeli government and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in the Norwegian capital, Oslo. The first agreement in the process was signed on September 13 in Washington by Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO chief Yasser Arafat, in the presence of US President Bill Clinton.
The second agreement was signed between the two parties in 1995 in Egypt. According to the agreement, the PLO would govern the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and Gaza. The agreement led Israel to recognize the PLO, and the PLO to recognize Israel, aiming to resolve the conflict.
The agreement divided the territories of Israel and Palestine into Areas A, B, and C. It was agreed that Palestine would control Area A, both Palestine and Israel would share control of Area B, and Israel would control Area C, with other issues to be resolved. As Israelis expanded their settlements, Palestinians were forced to contract in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Israeli Prime Minister Rabin and PLO Chief Arafat were awarded the 1995 Nobel Peace Prize for reaching this agreement. However, the agreement faced opposition from extremists in both Israel and Palestine. Palestinian writer Edward Said and Hamas condemned the agreement, stating they would not abide by it.
On the other hand, Israeli Prime Minister Rabin was publicly assassinated in Tel Aviv at the end of 1995, by an Israeli who claimed that Rabin had made a wrongful agreement with the Palestinians. This is reminiscent of the case in India, where Mahatma Gandhi was shot dead by Nathuram Godse, one of his followers.
Now, a leader like Rabin is not present to advance the agreement from Israel’s side. Similarly, the head of the PLO, Arafat, could not create an environment to implement the agreement. Palestine and Israel returned to conflict after coming close to a lasting peace agreement. As a result, a major war broke out between the two nations in 2000.
On one hand, Israel’s right-wing government, and on the other, Hamas’s activities since 1987, have failed to bring peace to the two countries. Hamas is intent on defeating Israel and taking the entire territory at any cost.
The main purpose of Hamas’s current attacks on Israel is the continuation of this conflict. Originating from the Islamic Brotherhood Movement of Egypt, Hamas initially was an organization that carried out a variety of social work in the Gaza Strip through a network of mosques.
Hamas declined to participate in the 1997 elections and subsequently became embroiled in an internal conflict with the PLO, the Palestinian Liberation Organization. It also executed suicide bombings against Israel. However, in the 2006 elections held in Gaza and the West Bank, Hamas emerged victorious over the secular Palestinian Nationalist Party.
Hamas now governs the 365-square-kilometer Gaza Strip, home to approximately 1.8 million Palestinians. The PLO and Fatah, another political party, administer parts of the West Bank.
The two parties have been in conflict for nearly a century. To address this issue, various agreements have been attempted, with involvement from organizations ranging from the League of Nations to the United Nations, including the signing of the Oslo Accords. However, the failure of both parties to implement the agreement has prolonged the dispute. The most recent conflict ended on the eleventh day due to international pressure, resulting in a ceasefire that will last until the next outbreak of war. The likelihood of a lasting peace accord between these two countries appears slim.
Nepal, along with the global community, including the United Nations, has urged both parties to seek a resolution through dialogue. Despite the lack of immediate positive signs for talks, there is hope that the UN and influential countries will initiate discussions and swiftly resolve the issues through peaceful dialogue, leading to the release of hostages, including Bipin Joshi of Nepal, who was captured by the Hamas group.
Jagdishor Panday
View More PostsJagdishor Panday serves as the Deputy Chief Sub-editor for the Kantipur Daily newspaper, which is published online at ekantipur.com and is based in Nepal.
