Israel-Hamas War: The Israel-Hamas war began on October 7, when Hamas fighters entered Israel and attacked. Hamas fighters not only attacked Israel, but also killed people and kidnapped them and took them to Gaza Strip. Gaza Strip is the same place where Hamas is in control. At the same time, Israel retaliated by carrying out massive bombardment in the Gaza Strip, due to which the entire area has been destroyed.
This is the reason why the Israel-Hamas war is being called one of the most gruesome wars of the 21st century. In this war, there has been loss of life and property on such a large scale that no one had imagined. Even though there has been peace due to the ceasefire for four days, the damage caused by the war has created a humanitarian crisis. Hospitals have become dilapidated and people are facing shortage of food and drink. Humanitarian aid is also being sent intermittently during the seven-week war.
How many people died in the war?
The Health Ministry in Gaza has said that 14,800 Palestinian civilians have died due to Israeli bombing. This includes 6000 children and 4000 women. Israel has said that 1200 people were killed in the attack on October 7, which means 16000 people from both sides have been killed. UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said in a statement that the war that has been going on for 7 weeks between Israel and Hamas has taken a horrific form, which is shocking the world.
Why is Israel-Hamas war the worst war of the 21st century?
People are dying in Gaza at a faster rate than in the wars led by America in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan in the 21st century. 12,000 people were killed in the 2003 war in Iraq. According to the report of Amnesty International and Airwars, when the US-led campaign was conducted in June and October 2017 to liberate the Syrian city of Raqqa from the Islamic State, only 1600 people were killed.
Israel has compared the operation being conducted in Gaza to the uprooting of Islamic State from the city of Mosul in Iraq. America has also warned Israel against doing so. According to AP report, 9,000 to 11,000 people died in the nine-month long war in Mosul, while around 15,000 people have been killed in Gaza in the last seven weeks. This shows how rapidly people are losing their lives in Gaza.
There is another figure from the United Nations, which shows how heavy the Israel-Hamas war is on children. So far 6000 Palestinian children have died in Gaza. The number of children losing their lives in Gaza is twice the number of children killed due to war and internal conflict in the last three years. According to the UN, last year 2985 children were killed in major conflicts in the world, while 6000 children died in Gaza alone.