Hamas

Conflict over ancient religious grounds has seen a resurgence in recent months between conflicting nations each championing different religions and governmental systems: Israel, a Jewish nation, and various organizations with allegiance to Islam. This conflict has modern roots in the establishment of the State of Israel that was granted sovereignty by the British in May 1948, which was concurrent with the expulsion of over 750,000 Palestinians from land that would become Israel. The budding nation soon found it engulfed in a war known as the Arab-Israeli War that ended in 1949 after Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria signed an armistice agreement. Further conflict continued to marr the political and geographic history of one of the most coveted lands in the world, such as the Six-Day War, the Yom Kippur War, and the First and Second Intifadas. The newest in a long line of fighting is Israel’s current conflicts with both Hamas in the Gaza strip and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Hamas is an Islamist militant group in the Gaza strip, which is also known as Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiya (Islamic Resistance Movement). Hamas is a Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood. It is recognized as a terrorist organization by the United States Government and many other countries due to its armed resistance against Israel.