From Ancient Roots to Modern Conflict, the Truth About Gaza’s History and Israel’s Fight for Survival

Gaza isn’t just a place—it’s a 4,000-year-old story that erupted into chaos on October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched its brutal attack on Israel. Living through that day in Tel Aviv, hearing sirens and scouring videos of blood and bodies online, I knew I had to dig into Gaza’s story—not as a distant conflict, but as the root of a threat to Israel’s homeland. This isn’t academic history; it’s personal. Gaza’s past and present reveal why the West gets it so wrong and why Israel’s fight is about survival, not conquest.

Gaza, a 25-mile coastal enclave, has changed hands six times over the past century, shaped by wars and geopolitics. Before 1948, it was under British control following the Ottoman Empire’s defeat. In 1917, Britain captured Gaza from the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Under the British Mandate (1920–1948), Gaza was part of the land slated for an Arab state in the 1947 UN Partition Plan (Resolution 181). Arab leaders rejected it, launched a war against Israel in 1948, and Egypt took Gaza, ruling it militarily without annexation. About 200,000 Palestinians fled or were pushed there, mostly by Arab leaders, as historian Benny Morris notes, not by Israeli policy. Egypt held Gaza for 19 years (1948–1967), keeping it under tight control with no statehood or development—just refugee camps and a buffer zone. Egypt didn’t want Gaza then, doesn’t want it now, knowing Palestinians often bring chaos wherever they settle.

In 1967, the Six-Day War changed everything. Israel preemptively struck Egypt, Syria, and Jordan, capturing Gaza, Sinai, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Golan Heights. We took Gaza not for land but to stop rockets, raids, and threats post-1948. UN Resolution 242 called for withdrawal from “territories,” not all, and Israel held Gaza for security, not colonization. From 1967 to 2005, Israel ruled Gaza militarily, offering citizenship to pre-1948 residents (most refused) and fostering economic growth with loans and jobs. Gaza’s economy boomed, with open borders until the 1980s. The 1979 Israel-Egypt peace treaty returned Sinai, but Egypt declined Gaza, reinforcing they’ve never wanted it. The First Intifada (1987–1993), sparked by a misconstrued 1987 truck crash, birthed Hamas, an Islamist terror group, forcing Israel to tighten security as violence escalated.

The 1990s Oslo Accords (1993, 1995) saw Israel hand Gaza to the Palestinian Authority (PA), hoping for peace. Israel pulled troops, gave the PA control, but kept security oversight due to ongoing rockets and terror. Shockingly, the PA’s corruption and Yasser Arafat’s rejection of Clinton’s 2000 offer (91% West Bank, all Gaza, East Jerusalem) sparked the Second Intifada (2000–2005), killing over 1,000 Israelis and 5,000 Palestinians. In 2005, Israel unilaterally withdrew, evacuating 8,000 Jewish settlers from Gush Katif and dismantling communities—a painful move to reduce security costs, not a concession. We even relocated Jewish graves to prevent desecration, honoring our faith while leaving Gaza to the PA.

But peace didn’t follow. Hamas seized Gaza in a 2007 coup, ousting Fatah and killing over 100 in clashes. Winning 44% of PA seats in 2006 by exploiting frustration with PA corruption, Hamas turned Gaza into a terror base. They fired tens of thousands of rockets, built 300–400 miles of tunnels by 2024 with diverted aid, and stored weapons in hospitals and schools. Israel and Egypt imposed a blockade to stop Hamas’s attacks—over 3,000 rockets in 2008 alone—but Hamas hoarded billions in aid, leaving 81% of Gazans in poverty by 2023, per UN reports. Gaza, dense with 5,500 people per square kilometer, became a launchpad, not a state.

The West calls Gaza “occupied,” but Israel left in 2005. Hamas has governed de facto since 2007, ruling through terror, not legitimacy, as October 7th proved. Legally, no one holds sovereign title—Ottoman rule ended in 1922, Britain’s Mandate in 1948, Egypt never claimed sovereignty, and Israel withdrew in 2005. The 1947 UN plan for an Arab state never materialized due to Arab rejection, and Hamas, a designated terrorist group, lacks recognition as a legitimate authority. Israel controls Gaza’s airspace, maritime borders, and most land crossings for security, not ownership, blockading only after rockets began. Palestinians claim Gaza for a future state, but their leaders’ rejectionism (1947, 2000, 2008) and Hamas’s terror derail this. Under international law, Gaza’s status remains unresolved, pending a peace treaty stalled by Palestinian violence.

Post-October 7th, I realized Gaza under Hamas isn’t just a place—it’s a threat to Israel’s existence after 3,000 years. The West cheers Hamas, ignoring history, but Israel’s fight isn’t choice—it’s survival. Hamas turned Gaza into a terror launchpad, proving they don’t want peace; they want Israel gone. This is why Zionism matters—Israel’s security is non-negotiable. Without it, Jews worldwide, even in the diaspora, face erasure. Gaza’s real story exposes Hamas’s terror, not occupation, and underscores Israel’s unwavering fight for survival.