The devastating war in Gaza has dragged on throughout 2024 with hopes of a ceasefire rising and falling.
The conflict between Israel and Hamas, following the October 7, 2023 attack, has claimed the lives on tens of thousands of Palestinians, displaced millions, and put the Middle East on the brink of an all-out war.
Here are the main developments that took place in 2024:
Targeting Hamas’ Senior Figures
Israel has been targeting Hamas’ senior commanders. On January 2, 2024, an airstrike on the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon, killed the deputy leader of Hamas’ political bureau, Saleh Al-Arouri. He was widely believed to be one of the architects of the Hamas October 7 attack on Israel.
On July 13, Israel said it had targeted and killed the military commander of Hamas, Mohammed Deif, and Commander of the Hamas Khan Younis Brigade, Rafa Salama, in airstrikes in Al-Mawasi area near Khan Yunis. However, Hamas denied the death of Deif.
In one of the biggest blows to the Palestinian group, the head of the political bureau of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, was killed in an explosion in Tehran on July 31, 2024. Although Israel did not confirm or deny responsibility at the time, the Israeli Defense Minister, Israel Katz, recently acknowledged that Israel assassinated Haniyeh.
On October 17, 2024, Israel announced it had killed Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar, an operation in the southern Gaza Strip. Sinwar is believed to be the mastermind behind October 7 attack on Israel.
Gaza Humanitarian Crisis
The ongoing war in Gaza has claimed the lives of over 45,000 Palestinians and 1,700 Israelis and foreign nationals, according to the UN. Israeli hostilities against refugee shelters and health facilities continue, while aid convoys face impediments that make them unable to deliver supplies.
As winter approached, more newborns and infants in Gaza are facing death. On Friday, December 27, 2024, the UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, Edouard Beigbeder, said that four newborns and infants died in recent days from hypothermia.
“These preventable deaths lay bare the desperate and deteriorating conditions facing families and children across Gaza,” he said. He added that many in Gaza are living without nutrition, or healthcare.
Moreover, Israel’s “near-total blockade” of food and other aid will likely drive deaths from starvation to above famine levels in northern Gaza as soon as next month, according to the Famine Early Warning System Network, a US-created global food-crisis monitor. The internationally recognized mortality threshold for famine is two or more deaths a day per 10,000 people.
Worsening Health Conditions
The deteriorating living conditions caused by the war and siege have led to a polio outbreak. On August 23, the WHO confirmed the first case of type 2 polio virus in Gaza in 25 years. Israel and Hamas agreed on limited pauses in the fighting in Gaza to allow for polio vaccination.
As a result, UNRWA, WHO, UNICEF, and partners embarked on a two-round vaccination campaign across the Gaza Strip between September and November 2024. Around 560,000 children under 10 were vaccinated.
In October, the spokesperson of the UNICEF, James Elder, warned that Gaza has become a real embodiment of “hell on Earth” for its one million children, adding that the daily airstrikes and military operations are making the situation worse. He stressed the need of immediate ceasefire to alleviate humanitarian sufferings.
ICJ Ruling on Gaza War
As part of a case filed by South Africa against Israel, accusing it of genocide in Gaza, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered Israel in January 2024 to do everything possible to prevent deaths, destruction, and acts of genocide in Gaza.
In March, the ICJ issued temporary precautionary measures to ensure the entry of essential food supplies to the Palestinian territories. These included increasing aid access to Gaza, and increasing land crossings to facilitate aid delivery.
The ICJ, in May 2024, ordered Israel to halt its military assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah. The ruling expressed concerns over the humanitarian situation in Rafah, but did not call for a full ceasefire in Gaza, as per South Africa’s request.
Moreover, the ICJ concluded in July that Israel’s continued presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory is unlawful and it has an obligation to end its unlawful presence as rapidly as possible. It also concluded that Israel is under obligation to cease immediately all new settlement activities and evacuate all settlers from the occupied territories.
While the ICJ has no means to enforce its decisions, they put more pressure on Israel and increase its global isolation.
ICC Arrest Warrants
In November 2024, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, his former Defense Minister, Yoav Gallant, and Hamas’ commander, Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al Masri, known as Mohammed Deif.
The arrest warrants came against the backdrop of alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity over Israel’s war in Gaza and Hamas’ October 2023 attack on Israel, respectively.
The ICC Chief withdrew his request for warrants for two other senior Hamas commanders, Yahya Sinwar and Ismail Haniyeh, after their death in the conflict.
The ICC chief prosecutor filed applications for arrest warrants in May 2024. After the court’s ruling, Netanyahu, Gallant and Deif have become internationally wanted suspects and are at risk of arrest if they travel abroad.
Recognizing Palestine
Amid the brutal Israeli aggression on Gaza, several Western states took the decision to officially recognize the Palestinian state, in a push towards settling the Palestinian-Israeli conflict through a two-state solution.
In May 2024, Norway, Spain, and Ireland announced that they will recognize the State of Palestine. Following suit, Slovenia, the Caribbean nation of Antigua and Barbuda, and Armenia officially recognized the State of Palestine.
Targeting Humanitarian Zones
Since the start of the war in Gaza, Israel has repeatedly targeted hospitals, schools, refugee camps, aid workers, and journalists. In early April, an Israeli airstrike killed 7 aid workers, including foreigners, in the World Central Kitchen organization.
In July 2024, Israel targeted an UNRWA school in the Nuseirat refugee camp and the Attar area in Khan Yunis in Gaza. Again in August, 3 Israeli missiles hit the Tabeen School in central Gaza. The school was a shelter for displaced families.
In September, Israeli strikes targeted a crowded tent camp in Al-Mawasi, a designated humanitarian zone in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza, in one of the deadliest attacks in Al-Mawasi.
Gaza Ceasefire Proposals
Since the outbreak of the Gaza war, there have been intensified diplomatic efforts to reach a ceasefire that ends hostilities and secure the release of all hostages. However, all negotiations have proved futile.
In March 2024, the UN Security Council adopted an immediate ceasefire resolution that calls for the prompt and unconditional release of all hostages. Later, on May 31, the US President, Joe Biden, laid out the details of a three-phase proposal, drafted by mediators from Egypt and Qatar, which involves the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza and ending war in the Strip.
The first phase of the proposal would involve a six-week “full and complete” ceasefire, during which the Israeli forces would withdraw from all densely populated areas of Gaza and some hostages would be released in exchange of Palestinian prisoners.
The second phase would include the release of all remaining living hostages, and Israeli forces would withdraw from Gaza. The permanent ceasefire would begin. The third phase would involve the start of a major reconstruction plan for Gaza and the return of the “final remains” of deceased hostages to their families.
On June 10, the UN Security Council adopted the proposal as Resolution 2735. However, the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said his country was open only to a partial ceasefire that did not include ending the war in Gaza.
Growing Optimism
Negotiations have been ongoing, with both sides expressing optimism that the deal is close. However, some hurdles remain concerning the exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, with both sides trading accusations over who is responsible for the lack of progress.
On December 25, 2024, Hamas accused Israel of introducing new conditions regarding the withdrawal from Gaza, the prisoners, and the return of displaced people, which it said was delaying the deal, according to Euro News.
On the other hand, Israel’s government accused Hamas of reneging on understandings that have already been reached. However, both said discussions are ongoing, with Axios reporting that US and Israeli officials are concerned that the odds of an agreement before President Trump takes office on January 20, 2025, are slim.
