Middle East conflict accentuates bipartisan divide as politicians turn tragedy into divisive talking points
The United States remains a central figure in the Israel and Palestine conflict, and has been since the latter part of the 20th century. In 1948, the first Arab-Israeli war occurred when five Arab nations invaded territory in the former Palestinian mandate, following the announcement of the independence of the state of Israel on May 14, 1948. The United States, according to the Office of the Historian, “offered de facto recognition of the Israeli Provisional Government in 1947.”
In the most recent news, the U.S, along with several other European countries, have released a joint statement in support of Israel. In the statement, the countries expressed unified support for Israel's self defense efforts and condemned Hamas. According to the White House, “The President reiterated his steadfast support for Israel and the protection of Israeli citizens from Hamas.”
Historically, the United States has largely tried to bring calm to the storm between the two nations when conflict arose. Social studies teacher Micheal Allen understands the complications this conflict brings to the United States.
“It affects the US because we’re traditionally a direct ally of Israel and we try to create peace between these two sides,” he said. “It certainly complicates that, so whenever there is a direct conflict between the two sides, it makes things more challenging.”
According to Allen, American interest in peace connects to both global safety as well as secure trade.
“In the U.S., obviously whether we’re active in other parts of the world or have an interest in keeping peaceful trade ties or political ties,” he said. “We have an interest in maintaining some level of cohesion and peace throughout the globe.”
On October 9, news had surfaced that 11 Americans were confirmed dead because of the war, a stat that brought the conflict closer to American consciousness. In a press conference on October 18 following this specific conflict, President Joe Biden described the impact this violent occurrence has had on American citizens.
“The recent terrorist assault has left a deep wound on the people of this nation. At least 1,300 Israeli citizens were killed, including at least 31 Americans,” he said. Gaza's government media office said the total number of Palestinians killed since October 7 has exceeded 12,000.
Politically, the Israel/Palestine situation has only served to further highlight the radically partisan divide in the American government. Each side, whether supporting Israel or Palestine, sees the other as anti-American, further splitting the already polarized environment.
Allen recognizes the way bipartisanship tries to simplify issues into binaries instead of the truly gray nature they truly occupy.
“Seeing anything but straight Israeli support is seen as anti-American to some degree,” he said. “And so if you start to recognize the plight of the Palestinians and the encroachment of Israel into other Palestinian territories, sometimes you spark a debate of if you’re even ‘American enough’.”
Allen sees political interpretations as being predictable in nature.
“Whereas Republicans are going to be a little more strict on their support for Israel, you tend to see on the other side (the left) of the spectrum of a ‘hey, they both have a legitimate claim’ argument existing,” he said.
According to Allen, religion and institutions of faith, as well as land claims, dating back decades, have given rise to the conflict.
“This is an unfortunate situation that spans back to the early parts of the 20th century where both sides have historic claims to the land, and both sides feel as though this is historically theirs and holds religious significance,” he said.
The unbalance of the conflict has led religious groups within Israel and Palestine to violence. Religious Zionists of Israel see themselves as “guardians and definers of how the Jewish state should be,” according to the Firka Forum. They are very strict in refusing concessions to Arabs.
In contradiction, Islamic groups in Palestine advocate for “the necessity of liberating the ‘holy’ territories and sites for religious reasons,” according to the Firka Forum, and in doing this, preach violence to Jewish people within Israel.
According to Allen, this unstable religious tension accentuates the conflict to dangerous levels.
“Anytime you have a regional issue, that can unbalance a region’s religious ideologies. If you have a peaceful coexistence between the Israelis and the Palestinians -- you have a peaceful coexistence between Judaism and Islam,” he said, “Anytime you have these kinds of flare-ups between these different groups of people, you get these types of reverberations that are felt throughout the world.”
As the conflict intensifies, America has been affected by increased protesting becoming more prevalent throughout the country. A primary example of this is when demonstrators infiltrated Capitol Hill in the fight for humanitarianism on October 31. Activists gathered in Capitol Hill, hands painted red with “Gaza” written on their bare arms as Secretary of State Antony Blinken's speech unfolded.
“The speech had initially been a part of a hearing reviewing the Biden administration's national security supplemental funding request,” said CBS news. But several demonstrators instantly interrupted the speech, crying "People are not animals!" and "Cease-fire now!”
Even protestors who choose to be silent symbolize an incessant pressure put on the U.S government in handling the situation.
Biden has shown an overwhelmingly empathetic support for Israel during the conflict. Because of this, concern for humanitarian access to Gaza have been drowned out, and even repressed as “approximately 12 people” were arrested for “illegally protesting,” according to CBS News.
A main reason this is affecting America is because it so radically fragments the political landscape of the country, bringing the issues in the middle east to the shores in the United States.
By Anika Flores
Published November 27 2023
Oshkosh West Index Volume 120 Issue II