100 days back, on October 7, 2023, Hamas took Israel by surprise in a move that came as a consequence of more than seventy years of occupation, killings, destruction, and displacement of the Palestinians.
Israel took this instance of response as an excuse to go all out in attempts to exterminate Gazans from their land: On October 8, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared war against Hamas and butchered, internally displaced, detained, and tortured thousands of Palestinians in Gaza as well as the Occupied West Bank.
Since October 7 alone, more than 23,600 people have been killed and more than 58,000 wounded in Israeli attacks on Gaza.
Widespread use of and access to social media across the world has exposed Israeli atrocities against the Palestinians more than ever. A number of Palestinians have been reporting from the targeted strip, giving the world insights to the heights of atrocities touched by the Israeli military.
As the Irish lawyer Blinne Ní Ghrálaigh, representing South Africa in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague on January 11 deemed it as “The first genocide in history where its victims are broadcasting their own destruction in real time in the desperate, so far vain hope that the world might do something.”
Nonetheless, the international community has collectively failed to ensure a ceasefire amidst all the loss and blatant violation of human rights..
While the breaches and enormities by Israel are innumerable and immeasurable to say the least, here are some of the most important moments and developments to have taken place the past 100 days.
Aid Blockade
Israel had declared a “complete siege” on Gaza on October 9 2023, hindering the supply of electricity, food, water and fuel into the strip. While a few aid trucks were permitted on 21 October 2023, the aid has been inadequate, and starkly lower than the quantity sent before October 2023.
Additionally, fuel imports are “well below the minimum requirements for essential humanitarian operations”.
The UN Secretary-General has asserted that the level of destruction in Gaza is now so catastrophic that “[t]he conditions for the effective delivery of humanitarian aid no longer exist . . . But even if sufficient supplies were permitted into Gaza, intense bombardment and hostilities, Israeli restrictions on movement, fuel shortages, and interrupted communications, make it impossible for UN agencies and their partners to reach most of the people in need.”
No Facilities
The majority of Gazan hospitals are out of order due to the Israeli air raids and the blockade. According to WHO, 15 out of Gaza’s 36 hospitals are partially functional; nine in the south and six in the north.
Additionally, there is lack of electricity, desalination facilities, and bakeries to shut down and contributed to telecommunications blackouts.
Looming Fears of Famine and Diseases
Due to lack of health facilities and access to water and sanitation, WHO has warned that Gaza is now heading towards proliferation of disease. As of January 1, nearly 200,000 respiratory infections and tens of thousands of cases of scabies, lice, skin rashes, and jaundice were reported whereas the number of diarrhoea cases among children under five has increased 20-fold since October 7.
Additionally, the World Health Organization has warned that “[a]n unprecedented 93% of the population in Gaza is facing crisis levels of hunger, with insufficient food and high levels of malnutrition” and that “[a]t least 1 in 4 households are facing ‘catastrophic conditions’:
“Israeli forces are deliberately blocking the delivery of water, food and fuel, while wilfully impeding humanitarian assistance, apparently razing agricultural areas, and depriving the civilian population of objects indispensable to their survival,” Human Rights Watch has stated.
Internally Displaced
Among the total population of 2.3 million, 1.9 million Palestinians — approximately 85 per cent of the total population — have been internally displaced. People living in Northern Gaza were initially forced to flee their homes on short notice for “safety” to the south, but they were bombed again in the so-called safe south, and were once again forced to flee to
further south or the south west, and have been to live in makeshift tents with no water, sanitation or other facilities.
This situation has thus been declared as the Second Nakba as it resembles the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians by the Israelis in 1948.
Women of Gaza
The United Nations has estimated 50,000 pregnant women presently living in Gaza, with more than 180 births taking place every day despite the lack of health facilities.
Similarly, women have also resorted to norethisterone tablets (that are usually prescribed in times of severe menstrual bleeding, endometriosis, and painful periods) as they are internally displaced, living in poor conditions among a large number of people with no privacy, and having no access to water or menstrual hygiene products like sanitary napkins and/or tampons.
Targeting poets and Journalists
November was deemed as the deadliest month for journalists when at least 50 were killed. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CJP), as of January 11, 79 journalists and media workers have been killed among whom are 72 Palestinian, 4 Israeli, and 3 Lebanese whereas three journalists are reported missing and 21 arrested.
Additionally, multiple assaults, threats, cyberattacks, censorship, and killings of family members have also been recorded.
Moreover, literary figures like Heba Abu Nada and Dr Refaat Alareer, who were vocal against Israel, have also been killed in targeted attacks.
Hostages
Hamas took Israeli hostages on October 7 in order to prompt Israel to return Palestinian hostages who have been in Israeli captivity since years.
While Israel has portrayed Hamas as barbaric, Israeli hostages released have had different stories to tell. Danielle Aloni and her daughter Emilia were held hostage by Hamas for 49 days and on their release on November 24, Aloni wrote a “thank you” letter to Hamas saying, “I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your extraordinary humanity shown towards my daughter, Emilia.”
Similarly, in an interview, Hin and Ajam, another mother-daughter duo, told that they were kept together and that the militants were respectful to them, taking every precaution to make them comfortable.
On the contrary, Palestinians have returned from Israeli captivity physically and mentally tortured while some have reportedly died in detention.
Back in December, Israeli troops even “mistakenly” killed three Israeli hostages in the course of combat with Hamas in the Gaza Strip on Friday.
Palestinians in Occupied West Bank
As of January 11, the arrests of Palestinians in the Occupied West Bank reached up to 5,810 since October 7.
According to figures released in December, at least 8,800 Palestinians, including 80 women, were held at Israeli prisons.
These arrests are reportedly “marked by abuse, severe beatings, and threats against detainees and their families, in addition to widespread acts of sabotage and destruction of citizens’ homes”. Many are even targeted and shot by the Israeli soldiers.
Additionally, in November 2023, it was reported that around 390,000 Palesinians jobs were lost — 182,000 in Gaza and 208,000 in the occupied West Bank.
‘Emergency’ sale of tanks to Israel
In December, the US State Department approved the emergency sale to Israel of nearly 14,000 rounds of tank ammunition — a sale of 13,981 high-explosive 120mm tank cartridges and related equipment worth $106.5 million.
The State Department said the secretary of state had determined that “an emergency exists that requires the immediate sale to the Government of Israel” of the weaponry, thereby waiving the normal requirement of Congressional review.
Israel vs Middle East
Since the war began, Hezbollah, a close ally of the Palestinian group Hamas, and Israel have been engaged in intense fighting.
In December, The United States announced a 10-nation coalition to end Houthi attacks on ships transiting the Red Sea, with Britain, France, Bahrain and Italy among countries joining the “multinational security initiative.”
The U.S. and British Air Force, in fact, have launched airstrikes against Yemen in retaliation which the American president Joe Biden called it a success, adding that he will “not hesitate to direct further measures to protect our people and the free flow of international commerce as necessary.”
On the other hand, Israel and Hezbollah have been exchanging fires across the Lebanese border, the West Bank since 7 October.
Fears of escalation, hence, loom.
A Global Failure
On Day 60 since October 7, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, in a rare move, invoked Article 99 of the UN Charter “to bring to the attention of the Security Council a matter, which in my opinion, may aggravate existing threats to the maintenance of international peace and security.” He also reiterated his call in the letter he sent to the rotating president of the Council for a “humanitarian ceasefire” and urged the Council to “avert a humanitarian catastrophe.”
Nonetheless, like any other UN action, it was merely a political move with no legal implications — same as the UN Resolutions calling for a ceasefire in Gaza the past few months since October 7. With more than 100 countries voting in support of the ceasefire, the resolution ended in vain since the US and a couple of its allies chose to vote against it.
On the other hand, while powerful Muslim countries have sided with Palestine, their support has, however, been shallow. For instance, in November, the Saudi Minister of Investment, Khalid bin Abdulaziz al-Falih, remarked that the Kingdom was still willing to consider normalising relations with Israel, depending on a peaceful solution to the Palestinian issue. And when asked if Saudi Arabia would use economic devices like oil to push for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, he reportedly laughed and replied: “This is not on the table today. Saudi Arabia is trying to achieve peace through talks that seek peace.”
South Africa vs Israel
South Africa filed a case in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague, Netherlands, asking the court to look into the genocide being committed by Israel against Palestinians.
The imposition of charges did not only pertain to the crimes perpetrated during the last few months since October 7 that have killed more than 23,000 people till now, but also the 75-year long apartheid, 56-year hostile occupation, and 16-year blockade on Gaza.
Israel was accused of committing genocidal acts during their military operations which included mass killings of Palestinians, bodily and mental harm, forced displacement and food blockade, destruction of the healthcare system, and preventing Palestinian births.
It is, however, pertinent to note, that while this case can take years, an “interim measure” intended to halt Israel’s attack in Gaza can be taken “within weeks”. If the interim measure is implemented, Israel will be legally obligated to put an end to its offences. And while the “court’s rulings are final”, it has no authority to impose them, nonetheless.
On the other hand, if the court does not implement an interim measure, “it could still decide it has jurisdiction and proceed with the case”.
Post-war Gaza Plans
Israel’s defence minister publicly presented proposals for the post-war administration of Gaza i.e. after it has dismantled Hamas’s “military and governing capabilities” and secured the return of hostages.
According to the minister, after the objectives are achieved — for which the proposal sets no timeline — Palestinian “civil committees” will begin assuming control of the territory’s governance.
“Hamas will not govern Gaza, (and) Israel will not govern Gaza’s civilians,” the plan said, while offering little concrete detail.
“Palestinian bodies will be in charge, with the condition that there will be no hostile actions or threats against the State of Israel.”
