a jew and an arab walk into a bar...

If you're politically stupid like me, then all of this Israel bombing stuff must be pretty confusing. I mean, it's all like a James Bond movie to me - I never get who is fighting whom, and why, and what is the bad guy trying to do to take over the world, and why James Bond is going where to do what. For reals, I always get Pakistan and Palestine mixed up.

Well, since it's a new year, and I am supposed to be smarter for it, I am summarizing this stuff for my own good. Maybe it will help you too:

Pakistan vs Palestine?
Israel is in conflict with Palestine. India is in conflict with Pakistan - the Mumbai bombings have been tied to Pakistani militant groups.

Hamas vs Hummus?
Hummus is a Middle Eastern food - mashed chickpeas, delicious as a spread. Hamas is a Sunni political party that is in control of the Palestinian parliament right now. One of its objectives is to recapture Israel. Many countries recognize Hamas as a terrorist organization. Its main rival political party is the Fatah, founded by Yasser Arafat. Not sure if they are good guys either - it's all kinda grey, not unlike hummus.

Sunni?
Largest denomination of Islam. Not Mia Farrow's skanky adopted daughter who then shacked up with Woody Allen.

Islam?
A religion following the teachings of Muhammad. A practitioner of Islam is called a Muslim. They follow the Qur'an. Islam means submission to God. Muslims believe God sat Muhammad down back in the day (oh say around 600 AD) and dictated the Qur'an to him. Sort of.

What's a Gaza Strip?
Part of the Palestinian territories currently overseen by the Palestinian National Authority. See, this gets really confusing, cuz Palestine may or may not be a country. The Palestinian territories also include the West Bank, including Eastern Jerusalem. The West Bank is on the east of Israel and west of Jordan. The Gaza Strip, on the Mediterranean coast, is on the west of Israel and north of Egypt. See, originally, these (Israel, Gaza Strip, West Bank, etc) were all part of the British Mandate of Palestine following WWI. In 1948, Israel broke free and formed its own independent Jewish state. The Gaza Strip and the West Bank were then primarily under rule of Egypt and Jordan, respectively. After the Six Day War in 1967, Israel pretty much controlled the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Israeli-Arab/Palestinian fighting continued over the years. In 1993, the Oslo Accords, a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians (Palestine Liberation Organization led by Arafat), called for Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. The exception is that Israel continue to have jurisdiction over the borders and airspace of the Gaza Strip.

BTW, not to be mistaken with a gauze strip. The Spanish word for gauze is (wait for it)...gasa. See, there is no band-aid solution to the Gaza Strip. Haha!



Why is Israel bombing the Gaza Strip now?
So, there have been infighting/civil wars in the Palestinian territories between the Fatah and the Hamas. The Hamas, in 2007, won elections in the Palestinian parliament, declared itself the ruling party, and took over control of the Gaza Strip. The Palestine President, a Fatah, then declared state of emergency and formed a new government without the Hamas and set up base in the West Bank, with international support. The Hamas pretty much faced international diplomatic and economic isolations. Meanwhile, since its takeover, the Hamas has been firing rockets from the Strip into Israel. Israel attacked back, and one thing leads to another, and we have what we have now, with Israel going on an all-out assault of the Gaza Strip by end of December of 2008.

I know, the story has lots of loose ends. So what really is Palestine? Who really is in control? What about the West Bank and Jerusalem now? What's the difference between an Arab and a Muslim? Who is the bad guy again? Hey, I can't be a genius in one day, but I think I understand this stuff a little more now. It is way easier blogging about Lady GaGa and Harold and Kumar. All this reading/studying makes me hungry...for some hummus on some naan perhaps? Or does hummus go with naan??? Somebody stop this; this stuff makes my head hurt.