From Retaliation to Displacement: How Gaza’s War Has Evolved

Nuseirat camp in Gaza amid Israel's ongoing military campaign, March 20, 2025 (AFP)
Nuseirat camp in Gaza amid Israel's ongoing military campaign, March 20, 2025 (AFP)
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From Retaliation to Displacement: How Gaza’s War Has Evolved

Nuseirat camp in Gaza amid Israel's ongoing military campaign, March 20, 2025 (AFP)
Nuseirat camp in Gaza amid Israel's ongoing military campaign, March 20, 2025 (AFP)

There is a stark difference between the war Israel launched on Gaza 16 months ago and the one it is waging today. In the first, Israel was driven by a deep wound to its prestige following Hamas’s surprise attack on October 7, 2023, making its military campaign in Gaza an act of retaliation.

Today, however, it is pursuing a war with a clear strategic goal: to eliminate the Palestinian cause and force the displacement of as many Palestinians as possible—not just from Gaza.

Israel now has a military led by a loyal, unchallenging command and the backing of a US administration hostile to Hamas.

While former President Joe Biden’s administration strongly supported Israel’s retaliatory war under the pretext of restoring its deterrence against the “Axis of Resistance,” providing extensive assistance in striking Hamas, Hezbollah, and even directly targeting Iran and the Houthis, the US at the time imposed some constraints on Tel Aviv.

Washington urged Israel to adhere to international law and voiced objections over the high civilian death toll, particularly among women and children.

The Biden administration managed the crisis while keeping political avenues open in response to Arab demands for an end to the war that would prevent future conflicts and destruction.

It was clear to Washington that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government was not suited for a comprehensive peace initiative. Expecting his swift downfall once the war ended, the administration engaged with political forces in Israel working to unseat him.

In the current war, Washington is led by a completely different administration under President Donald Trump, which is fully aligned with Netanyahu. This has allowed Netanyahu to act without restraint from the new US leadership, which harbors deep hostility toward Hamas—not only over the October 7 attack but also due to a fundamental misunderstanding of the group’s policies and objectives.

As a result, the key difference between the two wars is that Netanyahu now enjoys even stronger backing from Washington.

The Trump administration has opened a direct communication channel with Hamas despite Israeli objections, attempting to persuade the group to extend the initial phase of the ceasefire as a compromise that would keep Israel in the truce and allow the US to manage the crisis on its terms.

Moreover, the administration shares the same right-wing ideological base as Netanyahu’s government and wants it to remain in power.

It agrees with Netanyahu on the need to eliminate not only Hamas but also as many Palestinians as possible.

The administration has embraced the far-right proposal advocating for the “voluntary” displacement of Palestinians—an agenda that has come to be known as the Trump Plan.

Trump’s team recognizes that Netanyahu’s government cannot survive without appeasing the demands of the hardline right that controls its fate—not just figures like Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, but also an ideologically rigid faction within Netanyahu’s own Likud party.

 

 



UN Food Agency Says Its Food Stocks in Gaza Have Run out under Israel’s Blockade

A girl puts a pot to her head as Palestinians wait to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza Strip, April 24, 2025. (Reuters)
A girl puts a pot to her head as Palestinians wait to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza Strip, April 24, 2025. (Reuters)
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UN Food Agency Says Its Food Stocks in Gaza Have Run out under Israel’s Blockade

A girl puts a pot to her head as Palestinians wait to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza Strip, April 24, 2025. (Reuters)
A girl puts a pot to her head as Palestinians wait to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza Strip, April 24, 2025. (Reuters)

The World Food Program says its food stocks in the Gaza Strip have run out under Israel’s nearly 8-week-old blockade, ending a main source of sustenance for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in the territory.

The WFP said in a statement that it delivered the last of its stocks to charity kitchens that it supports around Gaza. It said those kitchens are expected to run out of food in the coming days.

Some 80% of Gaza’s population of more than 2 million relies primarily on charity kitchens for food, because other sources have shut down under Israel’s blockade, according to the UN. The WFP has been supporting 47 kitchens that distribute 644,000 hot meals a day, WFP spokesperson Abeer Etefa told the Associated Press.

It was not immediately clear how many kitchens would still be operating in Gaza if those shut down. But Etefa said the WFP-backed kitchens are the major ones in Gaza.

Israel cut off entry of all food, fuel, medicine and other supplies to Gaza on March 2 and then resumed its bombardment and ground offensives two weeks later, shattering a two-month ceasefire with Hamas. It says the moves aim to pressure Hamas to release hostages it still holds. Rights groups have called the blockade a “starvation tactic” and a potential war crime.

Israel has said Gaza has enough supplies after a surge of aid entered during the ceasefire and accuses Hamas of diverting aid for its purposes. Humanitarian workers deny there is significant diversion, saying the UN strictly monitors distribution. They say the aid flow during the ceasefire was barely enough to cover the immense needs from throughout the war when only a trickle of supplies got in.

With no new goods entering Gaza, many foods have disappeared from markets, including meat, eggs, fruits, dairy products and many vegetables. Prices for what remains have risen dramatically, becoming unaffordable for much of the population. Most families rely heavily on canned goods.

Malnutrition is already surging. The UN said it identified 3,700 children suffering from acute malnutrition in March, up 80% from the month before. At the same time, because of diminishing supplies, aid groups were only able to provide nutritional supplements to some 22,000 children in March, down 70% from February. The supplements are a crucial tool for averting malnutrition.

Almost all bakeries shut down weeks ago and the WFP stopped distribution of food basics to families for lack of supplies. With stocks of most ingredients depleted, charity kitchens generally can only serve meals of pasta or rice with little added.

World Central Kitchen -- a US charity that is one of the biggest in Gaza that doesn’t rely on the WFP -- said Thursday that its kitchens had run out of proteins. Instead, they make stews from canned vegetables. Because fuel is scarce, it dismantles wooden shipping pallets to burn in its stoves, it said. It also runs the only bakery still functioning in Gaza, producing 87,000 loaves of pita a day.

The WFP said 116,000 tons of food is ready to be brought into Gaza if Israel opens the borders, enough to feed 1 million people for four months.

Israel has leveled much of Gaza with its air and ground campaign, vowing to destroy Hamas after its Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel. It has killed over 51,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, whose count does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.

In the Oct. 7 attack, gunmen killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251. They still hold 59 hostages after most were released in ceasefire deals.