The conflict between Palestinian Arabs and Israeli Jews is a modern phenomenon, dating all the way back to the end of the nineteenth century. The two groups do have religious differences however this is not the main cause of the conflict. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is over who gets what land and how it is controlled. Israel is extremely oppressive, Palestinians have minimal to no control over their own lives. In the original attempts to make peace, these territories were supposed to finally become a Palestinian state. Israel would become independent from Palestine and each would have their own state. Because the two have opposing views(Israel wants a Jewish state and Palestine wants a Palestine state), this solution allowed for the two to run their states differently. However, after years of Israel continuing to overrule Palestine and take the land, the situation only grew worse. And as a result of these conditions, the Palestinian population rebelled. In taking into consideration the perspective of a Palestinian Nationalist, I would consider the ideas and political views of Gandhi to be the best solution for Palestine's current situation. As irrational and foolish a non-violent resistance might be perceived as, a violent revolution will only make matters worse. As we have seen in the case of this conflict, the bloodshed will gradually increase. With a non-violent protest, Palestine is at least trying to preserve human life as opposed to a violent one. Non-violence builds the character and strength of the Palestinians and it saves the lives of more women and children than a violent protest ever will.
Amidst all the blood, smoke and rubble, the idea of nonviolent protest in Gaza seems as ridiculous as it is naive. All of those Palestinians who preached and urged for nonviolent protests, peaceful marches, and mass sit-downs are mostly dead or in jail. However, taking a more violent route can prove to be more disastrous.
