The tall buildings of Gaza Strip have been razed to the ground due to the Israeli army attack.
With the release of the hostages, the war between Israel and Hamas has ended and the return of people to Gaza has started. the Gaza which It was a battleground for Israel and Hamas. Has always been longing for his freedom. For centuries someone or the other ruled here and the people of Gaza Strip did not get a chance to breathe in freedom. Then in October 2023, the war that Israel waged against Hamas in Gaza resulted in the Gaza Strip of the Middle East literally turning into ruins.
The tall buildings of Gaza Strip have been razed to the ground due to the Israeli army attack. However, now with the exchange of hostages there seems to be hope for peace here. Let us know what is the history of Gaza? Who had control over it?
Was part of the Assyrian Empire thousands of years ago
Gaza is a coastal strip situated on the ancient trade and sea routes along the Mediterranean Sea. It is surrounded by Israel on one side and Egypt on the other. Gaza Strip, which has a history of thousands of years, has its roots in the ancient Assyrian Empire. This empire had captured the Gaza Strip thousands of years ago. Many such documents are found in which it is told that the Assyrian Empire had captured Gaza and considered this place geographically very important for itself. After the Assyrian Empire, the Roman Empire took over the Gaza Strip.
It is surrounded by Israel on one side and Egypt on the other.
Roman Empire ruled
When the Roman Empire annexed Gaza in the first century BC, realizing the importance of this area, it used it for its commercial needs. Due to this it emerged as a major trading centre. Trade routes between Asia, Europe as well as Africa passed through here. During the Roman period, important changes took place in Gaza’s culture as well as its administration. Roman rulers respected the local traditions here and also included the local people in the political system of Rome. When the Roman Empire fell, the Gaza Strip came under the control of the Muslim (Arab) Empire.
development of arab culture
The Arabs captured the Gaza area in the seventh century and made it part of the Islamic Empire. He developed Gaza as a religious-cultural center. Still, there were continuous conflicts here. During this period, there was domination by the Crusaders, Mamluks and then the Ottoman Empire.
The Ottoman Empire ruled the Gaza Strip until 1917. Then in the beginning of the 20th century, the British Empire occupied it and along with it ruled a large part of the Palestinian territory, which lasted till the year 1948. With the end of British rule, the Jewish-Arab conflict began, leading to the birth of a new country, Israel, in May 1948. During this war, thousands of Palestinians took refuge in Gaza to escape.
The Arabs captured the Gaza area in the seventh century and made it part of the Islamic Empire.
Israel captured after defeating Egypt
In 1948, when Israel defeated the Arab coalition in the war, Egypt was left with the control of a small piece of land located between Israel, Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea, which is called the Gaza Strip. Egypt ruled here till 1967. Despite this, the people who escaped Palestine and came to Gaza were not considered Egyptian citizens. He was a citizen of a stateless country. Meanwhile, the Egypt-Israel war took place and in the year 1967, the Gaza Strip came under the control of Israel. Israel captured Jerusalem along with the West Bank. During this period, Israel had established 20 settlements here. During this war, a peace agreement was signed between Egypt and Israel.
Israel handed over control to Palestine after the agreement
Protests against Israel also started in Gaza soon. It started in the year 1987 and the protests continued for the next five years. In the 1990s, negotiations on an agreement began between the leaders of Israel and Palestine. Several agreements were also made between Israel’s then Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestine Liberation Organization’s then leader Yasser Arafat, which are known as the Oslo Accords. After this agreement in 1993-94, control of Gaza was given to the Palestinian Authority and gradually life in Gaza started getting back on track.
After the Oslo Accords in 1993-94, control of Gaza was given to the Palestinian Authority.
Hamas extremists disturbed the peace
However, peace did not last long in Gaza and Hamas extremists started suicide attacks inside Israel. Even Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated in 1995. Then Benjamin Netanyahu became the new Prime Minister of Israel and all hopes of peace in Gaza were dashed. At the end of 2000, the second Palestinian rebellion broke out and all efforts for peace failed.
During this period, from 1993 to 2005, Gaza remained under the control of the Palestinian Authority, but from time to time Israel kept sending its troops for action. However, in 2005, the then Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon announced the withdrawal from Gaza and withdrew all Israeli troops and about 9,000 people from Gaza.
Hamas took control by winning the elections
In 2007, elections were held in Gaza Strip, in which Hamas was victorious and strengthened its hold here. Hamas took control of Gaza’s government offices and military wing. Despite this, Israel, the United Nations, America and many countries of the world continued to consider Hamas as a terrorist organization. On this pretext, Israel often carried out attacks against Hamas and finally started a war in October 2023, due to which life in the Gaza Strip was devastated.
Also read: What is the source of income of the people of Gaza, how did Israel close the doors?