MULTILEVEL CONFLICT

The long-standing Arab-Israeli conflict reminded itself again in the first days of May. For several days, Palestinians fired around 600 missiles and mines targeting the south of Israel. The Israeli military responded with strikes against almost 300 targets in the Gaza Strip. According to the latest data, the death toll was four Israelis and twenty-five Palestinians. The exchange of blows was interrupted by more than a month’s silence, becoming the bloodiest skirmish since the summer of 2014.

Laws of confrontation

The situation around the long-standing conflict escalated on May 2. In response to the launch of balloons with incendiary and explosive substances, IDF of Israel attacked a number of positions of the Palestinian movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

In turn, Hamas radicals began a massive launch of unguided rockets. In one day, more than 250 such missiles flew out of the Gaza Strip. Despite the use of various missile defence systems, including the Iron Dome, some of the missiles exploded in populated areas of southern Israel. Ashkelon, Ashdod, Be'er Sheva and other major cities in the south of the country have again become unsafe. In just a few days, four Israelis were killed, about twenty people were injured.

In addition, hundreds of Palestinians attacked the barrier wall on the Gaza border, but were rebuffed. The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) responded to the attack with massive air strikes. Among the numerous targets attacked in Gaza are a group of rocket engineers, armories and workshops, headquarters and training camps, and ships. Hamas was warned that the next stage of the military operation would be the physical destruction of the leaders of the organisation.

As a result, twenty-five Palestinians became victims of Israeli raids. Although the Israeli military claims that a good half of those killed were Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants, it is impossible to reliably know this by virtue of the actual merger of the civilian and militarized population of Gaza.

A side effect of the Israeli air strikes was the destruction of a six-storey building in the centre of Gaza, which had a representative office of the Turkish agency Anadolu. The Turkish Foreign Ministry made a formidable statement against Tel Aviv, calling the Israeli attacks "a crime against humanity." The Israeli military denied the allegations - their data indicate that the intelligence services controlled by the Hamas movement were housed in the destroyed building.

The United States supported Israel. "Israel has the absolute right to defend itself, and the United States supports Israel, our important ally," said Vice President Mike Pence. The opinions of other states were again divided into two camps, and the UN called on the parties to stop the violence and begin negotiations.

In obedience to the laws of confrontation, Israel closed the checkpoints on the border of Egypt and the Gaza Strip and announced a partial mobilization of reservists. To the border with the rebellious enclave, additional armoured formations were deployed.

When the world was ready to witness yet another possible new ground operation by the IDF, a message suddenly came about the conclusion of a truce between Israel and the terrorist enclave with the mediation of Egypt. The five-day escalation of the old conflict took the lives of several dozen people on both sides and left many questions behind.

The problem of "defectors"

The new escalation of the conflict was a continuation of the Great March of Return announced by Hamas last March. It was an attempt by the Palestinians to break through and destroy the border between Gaza and Israel. The main idea of ​​the action was a desire to once again focus the attention of the world community on the problem of Palestinian refugees. Arabs believe that all persons displaced as a result of the Arab-Israeli wars must return to their homes.

The UN estimates that refugees and their descendants make up 1.3 million of the 2 million people in the Gaza Strip. In total, about 5 million people living in neighbouring countries fall under the status of refugees. In his address to those who gathered near the border at the beginning of the Return movement, Hamas leader Ismail Haniya said: “We left our homes, but did not forget about them. For Palestine, there is no alternative and there is no other solution than the return of the territories.”

Israel is categorically against the return of refugees, because it believes that it will violate the demographic situation in the country. Over the course of the year, after every Friday prayer, thousands of Palestinians rush to the barrier fence between Gaza and Israel. But since this territory was declared by Tel Aviv to be a “closed military zone,” the military open fire on Palestinians when they approach close to the border barriers. The Arabs, as in previous years, throw military stones and "Molotov cocktails."

However, the Palestinians came up with a new means of struggle: kites and balloons with explosives. Uncontrolled incendiary air vehicles cross the border without falling under the rays of a missile defence system, and fall in the surrounding areas, causing strong fires.

According to the data of the Jewish National Fund, during the year of such “shelling”, incendiary and explosive devices provoked about one and a half thousand fires and destroyed 50% of forest areas located near the border with the Gaza Strip. Israel has not yet found an effective way to deal with this "new product": the drones launched against "air terrorists" are better at dealing with offensive tasks than with defensive ones.

Economic tools

The shadow side of the conflict around the Gaza Strip is the financing of the militants. It is no secret that Arab countries and international Islamic organizations collect aid in cash for the Palestinians all over the world. Sometimes the amount of assistance is quite impressive. For example, recently the emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, provided $480 million to Palestinians from the Gaza Strip and from the West Bank. In the case of the Gaza Strip, most of the funds allocated go to the military preparations of Hamas. Islamic revanchists do not worry about the fate of their own people, as their main goal is to confront Israel.

Recently, a regular conference on the problems of Gaza was held under the auspices of the EU. Sponsors, donors and mediators from Europe, Arab countries and international organisations discussed what else they could do to alleviate the situation of the residents in this sector. Israel, represented at the conference as an observer, stated that it would not impede these efforts, as far as they would not harm its security.

The main difficulty is how to make the funds that the international sponsors of the population of Gaza are ready to provide to Gaza escape Hamas. On the other hand, the dependence of Hamas on foreign money makes it impossible for long-term offensive actions, since in this case Israel instantly closes all borders tightly. This explains the loyalty of "irreconcilable" radicals to the negotiations.

Target is Eurovision

Another “novelty” of the latest escalation of the Arab-Israeli conflict was the immediate threat to an international event. Islamic Jihad militants have announced their goal to thwart the Eurovision Song Contest, which will be held May 14-18 in Israel. Such a challenge to the international community occurred for the first time after the Munich Olympics. Then the Palestinian terrorists nearly frustrated a major sporting event, capturing and killing eleven Israeli athletes.

The idea of ​​the militants is more understandable than ever: any provocations on the international show would once again draw the attention of mankind to the conflict.

European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has responded to the statements of the militants with a message that a special plan has been prepared in case of an emergency during the Eurovision Song Contest in Tel Aviv. However, how much the plan will be effective in the event of a real development of events remains “behind the scenes”.

In fact, the fact that the problem of the Gaza Strip continues to exist for a long time is quite a unique phenomenon. Perhaps this is due to the status given to the conflict in Palestine by the international community. The increase or decrease in the level of the Arab-Israeli confrontation is influenced by various factors: specific historical situation, different national leaders, public opinion and the magnitude of possible economic benefits. The clash of interests in the Israeli society itself makes it possible to maintain the conflict at a level acceptable to many.