On eve of its 76th Independence Day, Israel increasingly isolated among the nations - opinion

• Published date: 14 May 2024
• Author: KEREN SETTON/THE MEDIA LINE
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

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When the war between Israel and Hamas broke out seven months ago, Israel received widespread international support. Both Israel and the international community were stunned by the October 7 attack, during which Hamas fighters stormed the border and killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians. Hamas fighters also took more than 250 people hostage and wounded thousands of others.

Since then, support for Israel has sharply declined. Israel launched an offensive on Hamas, which has taken a heavy toll on Gaza and led to increasing criticism and condemnation of Israel. According to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, Israel has killed 35,000 Palestinians since the beginning of the war, and over 75,000 Palestinians have been injured. The United Nations estimates that 1.7 million Gazans have been displaced, with tens of thousands of homes destroyed to rubble.

Israel and Hamas have fought several wars since Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip in 2005. The current war is by far Israel's largest offensive against the terrorist organization, making for repercussions greater than ever before.

"Israel has been isolated for the last 76 years and will always be isolated diplomatically," Gerald Steinberg, a political science professor at Bar Ilan University, told The Media Line. "There is only one Jewish state and over 50 state members of the Islamic group that have a lot of power and allies. As a result, it will always be more criticized and condemned than any other country for whatever it does."

He said that the UN and other nongovernmental organizations were participating in "political and propaganda warfare" using images of suffering from Gaza. "It is obvious that the degree of isolation that Israel is in is greater than it has been for a long time," he said.

Alon Liel, a former Israeli diplomat and former director general of Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told The Media Line that the outcome of Israel's increasing global isolation remains unclear.

"Israel is facing a lot of trouble," he said. "While extensive sanctions may not be the direction in which this is going, wide recognition of the state of Palestine could be in store."

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