Gaza Strip
The Gaza Strip is 25 miles long, seven miles wide.
It lies along the edge of the Mediterranean Sea and borders Israel and
Egypt. Over the course of history
it has been a significant trading post for Asia, Europe and Africa. After the
six day war, Gaza stayed under the control of the Israeli occupation and
military control for 30 years. Palestine began its first planned revolt against
Israel in 1987. They began encroaching on Israel’s occupation, quickly settling
into the territory by establishing educational and social programs for
Palestinians. The political party leading this revolt is called Hamas. In 2000,
a second Palestinian uprising erupted due to Israel’s refusal to halt their
settlements. In 2005, Israel withdrew their forces when Hamas grew increasingly
influential. After a political dispute in Palestine between Fatah and Hamas,
Israel created a blockade in Gaza Strip in the hopes of gaining control of the
land’s economy and undermine the Hamas government. This resulted in a siege in
the southern parts of Gaza, occupied by Israelis. After the battle and a six
month cease fire, Israel still continued their blockade. Hamas responded by
sending in rockets, wounding an Israeli. This caused for many problems to
arise, the strengthening of the blockade and a massive bombardment of Gaza
leaving 700 Palestinians and 5 Israelis dead.