TORRES, NAOMI ELISE A.

BSED - ENGLISH 2-C

Last October 7, 2023, the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched an unprecedented assault
on Israel, with hundreds of gunmen infiltrating communities near the Gaza Strip.

About 1,200 people were killed, and more than 250 were taken to Gaza as hostages, according
to Israeli tallies. On the other hand, more than 33,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed in
air and artillery strikes carried out by the Israeli military in response, Gaza's Hamas-run health
ministry says.

Ladies and Gentlemen, today, I am about to share the reason behind this gruesome and
devastating war that was occuring between the Promised land of Palestine and the Holy Land of
Israel.

After the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War One, Britain took control the land of
Palestine inhabited by a Jewish minority and Arab majority, the League of Nations granted
Britain a mandate over Palestine. The Balfour Declaration of 1917 supported the establishment
of a Jewish homeland in Palestine, leading to Jewish immigration.

This mandation serves as the seed of the conflict between two nationalities— Palestinian and
Jewish as they began to compete in a way that has ever since proved irreconcilable. The Arab
population wanted what every native majority wants— self-determination. Jews who immigrated
in growing numbers wanted what persecuted minorities almost never attain— a haven, in their
ancient homeland, from the hatred and danger they faced around the world.

Jews realized their wildly improbable dream of a state, and Palestinians experienced the mass
flight and expulsion called the Nakba, or catastrophe. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians
fled or were forced out of their homes and the Jews took control for most of the territory.

Longing for their beloved land, the Palestinian hoped to reclaim their pride and all of the historic
Palestine.