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<h1 class="gmail-single_title">Gaza’s unbreakable resistance: A historical perspective on the war and its aftermath</h1>
<div class="gmail-article-author"><h3>By <a href="https://english.palinfo.com/?p=250012"> Ramzy Baroud </a></h3></div>
<p class="gmail-single_date">Friday 24-January-2025 -<font size="1"> <a href="https://english.palinfo.com/opinion_articles/gazas-unbreakable-resistance-a-historical-perspective-on-the-war-and-its-aftermath/">https://english.palinfo.com/opinion_articles/gazas-unbreakable-resistance-a-historical-perspective-on-the-war-and-its-aftermath/</a></font></p>
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<p>The problem with political analysis is that it often lacks historical perspective and is mostly limited to recent events.</p>
<p>The current analysis of the Israeli war on Gaza falls victim to this
narrow thinking. The ceasefire agreement, signed between Palestinian
groups and Israel under Egyptian, Qatari and US mediation in Doha on 15
January is one example.</p>
<p>Some analysts, including many from the region, insist on framing the
outcome of the war as a direct result of Israel’s political dynamics.
They argue that Israel’s political crisis is the main reason the country
failed to achieve its declared and undeclared war objectives – namely,
gaining total “security control” over Gaza and ethnically cleansing its
population.</p>
<p>However, this analysis assumes that the decision to go to war or not
is entirely in Israel’s hands. It continues to elevate Israel’s role as
the only entity capable of shaping political outcomes in the region,
even when those outcomes do not favor Israel</p>
<p>Another group of analysts focuses entirely on the American factor,
claiming that the decision to end the war ultimately rested with the
White House. Shortly after the ceasefire was officially declared in
Gaza, a pan-Arab TV channel asked a group of experts whether it was the
Biden or Trump administration that deserved credit for supposedly
“pressuring Israel” to agree to a ceasefire.</p>
<p>Some argue that it was Trump’s envoy to Israel, Steve Witkoff, who
denied Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu any room to maneuver,
thus forcing him, albeit reluctantly, to accept the ceasefire terms.</p>
<p>Others counter by saying that the agreement was initially presented
by the Biden administration. They argue that Biden’s supposedly active
diplomacy ultimately led to the ceasefire.</p>
<p>The latter group fails to acknowledge that it was Biden’s
unconditional support for Israel that sustained the war. His UN envoy’s
constant rejection of ceasefire calls at the Security Council made
international efforts to stop the war irrelevant.</p>
<p>The former group, however, ignores the fact that Israeli society was
already at a breaking point. The war on Gaza had proven unwinnable. This
means that, whether Trump pressured Netanyahu or not, the outcome of
the war was already sealed. Continuing the war would have meant the
implosion of Israeli society.</p>
<p>On the Palestinian side, some analyses – affiliated with one faction
or another – exploit the war’s outcome for political gain. This type of
thinking is extremely insensitive and must be wholly rejected.</p>
<p>There are also those hoping to play a role in Gaza’s reconstruction
to gain political and financial leverage and increase their influence.
This is a shameful stance, given the total destruction of Gaza and the
urgent need to recover the thousands of bodies trapped under rubble, as
well as to heal the wounded and the population as a whole.</p>
<p>One thing all these analyses overlook is that Israel failed in Gaza
because the population of Gaza proved unbreakable. Such notions are
often neglected in mainstream political discussions, which tend to
commit to an elitist line. This line is entirely removed from the daily
struggles and collective choices of ordinary people, even when they
achieve extraordinary feats.</p>
<p>Gaza’s history is one of both pain and pride. It stretches back to
ancient civilizations and includes great resistance against invasion,
such as the three-month siege by Alexander the Great and his Macedonian
army in 332 BCE.</p>
<p>Back then, Gazans resisted and endured for months before their
leader, Batis, was captured, tortured to death, and the city was sacked.</p>
<p>This legendary resilience and sumoud (steadfastness) proved crucial
in numerous other fights against foreign invaders, including resistance
to Napoleon Bonaparte’s army in 1799.</p>
<p>Even if some of Gaza’s current population is unaware of that history,
they are a direct product of it. From this perspective, neither Israeli
political dynamics, the change of the US administration, nor any other
factor is relevant.</p>
<p>This is known as “long history” or longue durée. Far from being
merely an academic concept, the long legacy of resistance against
injustice has shaped the collective mindset of the Palestinian
population in Gaza over the years. How else can we explain how a small,
isolated and impoverished population, living in such a tiny piece of
land, managed to withstand firepower equivalent to many nuclear bombs?</p>
<p>The war ended because Gaza withstood it – not because of the kindness
of an American president. It is crucial that we emphasize this point
repeatedly, rather than seeking inconclusive and irrational answers.</p>
<p>It matters little how we define victory and defeat for a nation still
suffering the consequences of a war of annihilation. However, it is
important to recognize that Palestinians in Gaza stood their ground,
despite immense losses and prevailed. This can only be credited to them
-a nation that has historically proven unbreakable. This truth, rooted
in “long history”, remains valid today.</p>
<p><em>-Ramzy Baroud is a journalist and the Editor of the Palestine
Chronicle. He is the author of five books. His latest is ‘These Chains
Will Be Broken: Palestinian Stories of Struggle and Defiance in Israeli
Prisons’. Baroud is a Non-resident Senior Research Fellow at the Center
for Islam and Global Affairs (CIGA) and also at the Afro-Middle East
Center (AMEC). </em></p>
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