This year has been the deadliest year on record for Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, which could have motivated Hamas to strike Israel with an attack.
Author
Deepanshu Mohan, Professor of Economics and Director, Centre for New Economics Studies, O.P. Jindal Global University; Visiting Professor, School of International Development and Global Studies, University of Ottawa, Canada; Honorary Research Fellow, Birkbeck College, University of London.
Summary
There is a solar flare of deep inter-state conflict, conquest, and siege erupting all over the globe.
Russia and Ukraine have been embroiled in a long-drawn, painful war for over a year and a half. After a 10-month blockade, Azerbaijan launched an attack on 19 September, claiming the enclave in a day and causing nearly the entire ethnic Armenian population to flee.
Give war a chance, as the saying goes.
And, just a few days ago, the Palestinian militant group, Hamas, launched an unprecedented attack on Israel, with its fighters entering communities near the Gaza Strip, killing hundreds of residents and taking dozens of hostages.
Although the attack by the militants on 7 October came without warning, it happened at a time of soaring Israeli-Palestinian tensions.
This year has been the deadliest year on record for Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, which could have motivated Hamas to strike Israel with an attack.
Hamas, it seems, might also have been seeking to score a major propaganda victory against Israel to boost its popularity among ordinary Palestinians.
As reported by the BBC, “The fact that it has taken so many Israelis captive is likely to be aimed at pressuring Israel to free some of the about 4,500 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons – a highly emotive issue for all Palestinians.”
Published in: The Quint
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