Israel-Hamas War 2021: Can a Divided World Resolve the Palestinian Dispute?

The present paper comes in the wake of the deadly May 2021 Israel-Hamas war. Widespread destruction of lives and property marked the bloody 11-day conflict, which was the most gruesome after the Israel-Hamas conflict of 2014. While briefly exploring the roots of the Israel-Palestine imbroglio and the peace process, the paper focuses its attention on the current war between the two and finds deep divisions and trust deficit galore within the global community and in the Arab world over their reactions and relations with Israel. Though the Arab world roundly condemned the ‘Israeli aggression’, it was mostly notional as there were no diplomatic rumblings or snapping of ties with Israel. Scathing observations and punitive resolutions were passed in the OIC meeting, the lead organization of the Islamic countries, but without any follow-up action. The detestation for Hamas, a designated terrorist organization, was vivid and failed to generate a united global response against the perceived ‘Israeli aggression’. The paper highlights India’s attitude towards war and points out the vital stakes involved for the country in the resolution of the West Asian crisis. While calling for upholding cease-fire and promoting de-escalation, India has maintained its traditional stand for a ‘two-state solution’, but with a difference. The strategic change in India’s official stand was consequent to the advent of the Modi government in 2014 and the upswing in India’s relations with Israel and the entire Arab world. The paper concludes with findings that fragmented global and Arab politics is at the root of the non-resolution of the Palestine issue. It ends with a note that India and the world will continue to strive to find a peaceful and amicable solution to the Israel-Palestine problem, in line with the ‘two-State Solution’, which Israel, however, rejects at the moment.

Keywords:
Israel, Palestine, Hamas, Arab, War, Ceasefire, De-escalation, Peace, Process, UN, USA, OIC, India