The war between the Israeli army and the Hamas of Palestine in the last several weeks, indeed months, have caused great concern the world over. The fierce battles over the Gaza Strip have left many civilians dead, especially on the Palestinian side.
Whereas many in the international community have been at the forefront trying to broker a truce between the two sides, such efforts have brought only temporary ceasefire. Thus one can only hope the recent lull after Egypt’s intervention will hold and bring the atrocities to an end. Many have wondered why this region of the world has remained in a state of volatility for so long. Indeed Israel has been in constant battles with many of its neighbours since its rebirth in 1948.
These battles have been fought both within and outside of Israel’s boarders, sometimes targeting their interests in other nations, including Kenya. Even a “small matter” as the Westgate Mall attack in Nairobi can be traced to these hostilities. What seems clear is that at the center of these fights is the dispute over Israel’s legitimacy as a bonafide member of the community of nations. This is something that some have refused to acknowledge, and especially her immediate neighbours, but which is an undeniable fact of history.
The recent atrocities, for example, started when three Israeli young men were kidnapped and later murdered. Israel took this to be an act of provocation by the Hamas. Some believe Hamas may have done this to regain ground as it was fast losing legitimacy among its own constituency. Whatever the case, Israel’s response may have been a result of its broader concern over the formation, in March 2007, of the Palestinian authority national unity government between Hamas and Fatah. But Hamas soon after took control of the Gaza Strip, replacing Fatah and other government officials with its own.
Afraid of possible breach of security on their territories by Hamas, Egypt and Israel responded by sealing their border crossings with Gaza, and instituting a land, air, and sea blockade on the Gaza Strip, on the grounds that there was no longer guarantee of security on the Palestinian side. Though Hamas has considered the blockade unfair, Israel takes the view that it is necessary for controlling Palestinian attacks and to prevent Hamas from stockpiling.
The international community is largely divided in their support for either side, and so the battle has raged on.
What remains interesting is that whatever happens in Israel has almost always captured global attention.
Events in this region are often interpreted from political, religious and apocalyptic perspectives. For those who believe in the Torah and especially in the Bible, Israel and all that happens to her are ever a point of interest, especially because many consider it a theocracy whose roots and destiny are anchored on many biblical prophecies.
Apocalyptic scholars believe that Israel’s destiny is intricately intertwined with that of the rest of the world, and prophecies about Israel have direct impact on the rest of us. And interestingly, many of these prophecies have often been fulfilled almost to the letter. For example, in Matthew 24, Jesus predicted the total destruction of the temple and the scattering of the people of Israel. When asked when this would happen, He told His disciples that a generation would not pass before the prophecy was fulfilled.
According to historical records, in the year 66 AD, just a year after the completion the construction of the temple and just about 33 years after Jesus’ death and resurrection, the Jews of Judea rebelled against Rome. In response, the Emperor Nero dispatched an army under the generalship of Vespasian to restore order. By the year 68, resistance in the northern part of the province had been eradicated and the Romans turned their full attention to the subjugation of Jerusalem. That same year, Emperor Nero died by his own hand, creating a power vacuum in Rome. In the resultant chaos, Vespasian was declared Emperor. His son Titus then led the remaining assault on Jerusalem that culminated in the burning and destruction of the Temple in AD 70 and the utter scattering of the people of Israel.
The nation was later captured and renamed Palestine. Thus Israel ceased to exist on the world maps until its rebirth in 1948 in yet another fulfillment of prophecy.
It is the preciseness of the fulfillment of these and other predictions that has led many to believe that the rebirth of Israel as a nation was not the result of human declaration of independence, but the fulfillment of God’s divine design. It is unfortunate that this has led to incessant attacks on Israel by those who dispute the fact. The result is an unfortunate and inordinate loss of innocent lives. Yet Israel, like every other nation of the world must be allowed to chart its own course and destiny. For in that, we too we get ours.
