Israel - Hamas War
History, Geography, and Latest News
As you might expect, the number of articles I was collecting on Israel and Hamas were taking up a significant portion of the upcoming weekly news update, so I’ve carved out those articles and am sending them to you here. Since the situation is evolving by the minute, this newsletter tries to provide some historical and geographical context, though I have started off with the most recent news updates.
I’ve broken this newsletter up into four sections: latest news, the attack by Hamas, history, and geography.
LATEST NEWS
Israel warns 1.1m people to flee northern Gaza (BBC)
Israel is telling everyone in north Gaza - about 1.1 million people - to relocate to the south of the Strip in the next 24 hours, according to the UN. A Israel Defense Forces spokesman said the military knew it would take longer than that to move everyone but blamed Hamas for telling people to ignore the order. Israel has massed hundreds of thousands of soldiers on the border ahead of an expected ground offensive into the densely populated enclave. The UN called on Israel to withdraw the order, warning of "devastating humanitarian consequences". Hamas kidnapped at least 150 people and took them into Gaza during deadly attacks on Israel at the weekend that killed 1,300 people.
Hamas Tells Civilians Not to Evacuate to the South (WSJ)
Hamas told civilians in northern Gaza to stay in their homes and not heed a call by the Israel military to evacuate to the southern part of the territory. Earlier Friday, the Israel Defense Forces said it sent a message telling people in Gaza City to move south to avoid military operations around the area. The IDF said Hamas fighters are hiding in tunnels underneath houses in Gaza City and in buildings that are occupied by civilians.
Israel says no exceptions to Gaza siege unless hostages freed (Reuters)
Israel said on Thursday there would be no humanitarian exceptions to its siege of the Gaza Strip until all its hostages were freed, after the Red Cross pleaded for fuel to be allowed in to prevent overwhelmed hospitals from "turning into morgues".
Israel's reservists drop everything and rush home following Hamas bloodshed (Reuters)
Some were on their honeymoon, others were studying abroad, many were building new lives in foreign countries. But when Israel called up its reservists and declared war this week, the response was swift and overwhelming. "Everyone is coming. No one is saying no," said Yonatan Steiner, 24, who flew back from New York, where he works for a tech company, to join his old army medical unit. "This is different, this is unprecedented, the rules have changed," he said, speaking by phone from the border near Lebanon where his regiment is based. Israel has called up 360,000 reservists in the wake of Saturday's assault by hundreds of Hamas gunmen who overran towns, kibbutzes and army bases near the Gaza enclave, killing more than 1,200 civilians and soldiers and wounding over 2,700. Most reservists were already in Israel at the time of the call-up - the largest such compulsory mobilisation since the 1973 Yom Kippur War. But many were out of the country, for a variety of reasons, and dropped everything to rush back.
Blinken visits Israel to show US support after Hamas attacks (BBC)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has arrived in Israel in a show of support after the weekend's deadly attacks by Hamas. Mr Blinken is expected to seek the release of hostages kidnapped by Hamas, some of whom are American. He will also urge restraint and seek safe passage for Gaza's civilians ahead of a possible Israeli ground offensive. At least 1,200 Israelis died in the attack, and over 1,100 Palestinians have died in air strikes on Gaza. Some 22 US citizens are also known to have died in Israel.
Here’s a look at the military firepower the US is providing to Israel (C4ISRNET)
Within hours of the horrific attack by Hamas, the U.S. began moving warships and aircraft to the region to be ready to provide Israel with whatever it needs to respond. A second U.S. carrier strike group departs from Norfolk, Virginia, on Friday. Scores of aircraft are heading to U.S. military bases around the Middle East. Special operations forces are now assisting Israel’s military in planning and intelligence. The first shipment of additional munitions has already arrived. More is expected, soon. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will arrive in Israel Friday to meet with Israeli leaders to discuss what else the U.S. can provide. For now, the buildup reflects U.S. concern that the deadly fighting between Hamas and Israel could escalate into a more dangerous regional conflict. So the primary mission for those ships and warplanes is to establish a force presence that deters Hezbollah, Iran or others from taking advantage of the situation. But the forces the U.S. sends are capable of more than that. [Here’s] A look at what weapons and options the U.S. military could provide
USAF C-17s Fly In and Out of Israel, Fighter Jets En Route to Middle East (Air & Space Forces)
Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall revealed Oct. 10 that C-17 Globemaster III aircraft have carried out several missions to and from Israel since the militant group Hamas launched surprise attacks over the weekend, sparking an all-out war. “We’ve had a couple of missions I’m aware of where C-17s have brought some people back from Israel that were there. Beyond that I really can’t get into that area,” Kendall said in an interview with the Atlantic Council, confirming reports from open source flight trackers that noted C-17s flying in and out of Tel Aviv on Oct. 8. U.S. Central Command did not immediately respond to queries from Air & Space Forces Magazine requesting more details about the missions. Kendall declined to reveal more specifics in the interview. In addition to the C-17s, Kendall did note other adjustments in Air Force deployments in the region as a result of the conflict.
U.S., Qatar agree to stop Iran from tapping $6 billion fund after Hamas attack (WP)
U.S. officials and the Qatari government have agreed to stop Iran from accessing a $6 billion account for humanitarian assistance in light of Hamas’s attack on Israel, Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo told House Democrats on Thursday, according to two people who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the private remarks. The decision not to permit access to the money comes just a few weeks after the U.S. and Iranian governments announced a deal to set up the humanitarian assistance as part of a prisoner swap aimed at easing hostilities in the region. U.S. officials had to approve each transaction under the agreement. The fund is financed by Iranian oil sales.
Fearing Hamas Execution Videos, Schools Urge Families To Delete TikTok And Instagram (Forbes)
Schools across the United States and Israel are urging parents to ensure their children delete TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and Telegram “immediately” in anticipation of the terrorist group Hamas broadcasting videos executing hostages it has taken in its attack against Israel. A Hamas spokesperson has warned that the organization will post murders of civilians it has captured if Israel targets people in Gaza without warning. In addition to at least 150 Israelis who were kidnapped, at least 20 missing Americans may be among the hostages taken by Hamas, the White House said Tuesday. The U.S. government has designated Hamas as a terrorist organization and several of its members as terrorists.
Israeli Shekel Slumps To 7.5-Year Low Amid War With Hamas (Forbes)
The Israeli shekel just hit its lowest level against the U.S. dollar in more than seven years, as the escalating military conflict in the country tests the currency and marks one of the most significant market fallouts of the strife.
THE ATTACK BY HAMAS
Why Hamas Attacked—and Why Israel Was Taken by Surprise (Foreign Affairs)
On the morning of Saturday, October 7, the Palestinian group Hamas carried out a surprise attack on Israel on an unprecedented scale: firing thousands of rockets, infiltrating militants into Israeli territory, and taking an unknown number of hostages. At least 100 Israelis have died, and at least 1,400 have been wounded; Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that his country was “at war.” As Israeli forces responded, around 200 Palestinians were killed and around 1,600 wounded. For insight into what this means for Israel, the Palestinians, and the region, Foreign Affairs turned to Martin Indyk, the Lowy Distinguished Fellow in U.S.-Middle East Diplomacy at the Council on Foreign Relations.
How Hamas duped Israel as it planned devastating attack (Reuters)
A careful campaign of deception ensured Israel was caught off guard when the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas launched its devastating attack, enabling a force using bulldozers, hang gliders and motorbikes to take on the Middle East's most powerful army. Saturday's assault, the worst breach in Israel's defences since Arab armies waged war in 1973, followed two years of subterfuge by Hamas that involved keeping its military plans under wraps and convincing Israel it did not want a fight.
Hamas Militants Had Detailed Maps of Israeli Towns, Military Bases and Infiltration Routes (WSJ) (no paywall)
Hamas militants who flooded into southern Israel from Gaza last weekend carried detailed maps of the towns and military bases that they targeted. Some also carried tactical guides identifying weak spots on Israeli army armored vehicles. The documents, written in Arabic, were recovered from the sites of attacks or bodies of dead Hamas fighters by Israeli civilians, soldiers and emergency personnel and seen by The Wall Street Journal. Authorities are examining the trove, Israeli officials said. Taken together, the documents indicate that Hamas set out from the start to target not just military installations, but to attack civilian population centers and to take hostages, and they offer evidence of the scale of Hamas’s intelligence-gathering and the degree of planning for the assault. “It shows sophistication, systematic intelligence collection, use of human sources, use of open intelligence sources and information obtained through cyberattacks,” said Eyal Pinko, a former security services officer, of the Hamas plan for Mefalsim.
Hamas Militants Behind Israel Attack Raised Millions in Crypto (WSJ)
Hamas’s lightning strike on Israel last weekend has raised the question how the group financed the surprise operation. One answer: cryptocurrency. During the year leading up to the attacks, three militant groups—Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and their Lebanese ally Hezbollah—received large amounts of funds through crypto, according to a review of Israeli government seizure orders and blockchain analytics reports. Digital-currency wallets that Israeli authorities linked to the PIJ received as much as $93 million in crypto between August 2021 and June this year, analysis by leading crypto researcher Elliptic showed. Wallets connected to Hamas received about $41 million over a similar time period, according to research by another crypto analytics and software firm, Tel Aviv-based BitOK. Militants from the PIJ joined Hamas on Saturday in storming into Israel from the Gaza Strip, killing some 900 civilians and abducting at least a hundred more.
Here's how Israel's 'Iron Dome' stops rockets — and why Ukraine doesn't have it (NPR)
First deployed in 2011, the Iron Dome is a network of radar detectors and missile launchers that work together to intercept incoming rockets. The highly sophisticated, multi-billion-dollar defense system has been under constant redevelopment since its inception in the early 2000s. Here's how it works, who funds it, and why we don't see it in other parts of the world.
HISTORY
History of Israel-Palestine Conflict
This video presents the History of Israel-Palestine conflict going back a few thousand years.
What Are The Abrahamic Religions?
Religion has been an essential pillar in human history and has been instrumental in shaping cultures, education, and civilization. Abrahamic religions are the religions which are based on an ancient Israelite religious figure known as Abraham.
A very basic family tree of the Abrahamic Religions
A Map of the World’s Religions
Click on link to see enlarged map.
GEOGRAPHY
A Broad Overview
The area we’re focusing on is in the red circle.
Mapping the conflict in Israel and Gaza (Reuters)
This Reuters article contains very informative maps with no paywall.
Size perspective
In the map above, Palestine (in yellow) comprizes West Bank and Gaza. The maps below just show just Gaza.
Of note, I rotated Gaza on these maps to align with major population centers and roads.
Population perspective
Gaza has a population of roughly 2.3M people, with the majority of those (approximately 1.8M) living in Gaza City in the north. At roughly 88 square miles, Gaza City urban area has a population density of 21K people per square mile.
For comparison, Manhattan, a borough in NYC, has a population of roughly 1.7M people, in 22.83 square miles, wich equates to 74K people per square mile. San Antonio has 1.4M people in an area of 500 quare miles, which equates to 3.2K people per square mile.
Physical Map
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