Opinion
Israel: Small Nation, Treasure for all Nations, Yet Unconquerable, By Sina Olowookere
To remember how to spell “Israel” properly, try pronouncing it the way Israelis do when they’re speaking English: “ISS-rah-el.
According to the Book of Genesis, Jacob was given the name Israel after he wrestled with the angel (Genesis 32:28 and 35:10).
Isreal is called Isreal because Abraham’s descendants were thought to be enslaved by the Egyptians for hundreds of years before settling in Canaan, which is approximately the region of modern-day Israel. The word Israel comes from Abraham’s grandson, Jacob, who was renamed “Israel” by the Hebrew God in the Bible.
The two meanings of Israel are 1 : jacob sense : the Jewish people. 2 : a people chosen by God.
Israel, Arabic Isrāʾīl, officially State of Israel or Hebrew Medinat Yisraʾel, country in the Middle East, located at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea.
First known in the historical record as Canaan, in the Iron age the area became a hotbed of competing civilisations and cultures, including that of the Israelites, and resulted in the emergence of the Iron Age kingdoms of Israel, Judah and Philistia.
Israel is a gender-neutral name of Hebrew origin. Derived from the Hebrew Yisrael, it means “God perseveres” and shares its name with a Middle-Eastern nation. Israel is used for boys and girls and can be shortened to *Izzy* or *Rae* as an endearing nickname.
Succintly put,
1. the people of Isreal traditionally descended from Jacob; the Hebrew or Jewish people. 2. a name given to Jacob after he had wrestled with the angel.
In 1920, after the Allies conquered the Levant during World War I, the territory was divided between Britain and France under the mandate system, and the British-administered area which included modern day Israel was named Mandatory Palestine.
The term “Israeli”, by contrast, refers to the citizens of the modern State of Israel, regardless of them being Jewish, Arabs, or of any other ethnicity.
The modern State of Israel is the only country where Jews form a majority of the population. In other states, they are minorities. In
United States, they are 5,700,000–10,000,000,
France 453,000–600,000,
Canada 391,000–550,000,
United Kingdom 290,000–370,000.
Through this wrestle, Jacob proved what was most important to him. He demonstrated that he was willing to let God prevail in his life. In response, God changed Jacob’s name to Israel, meaning ‘let God prevail.
However, that the Land of Israel is the homeland of the Jewish people, that God Himself gave that Land to them as heritage and ordered them to live therein is a fact.
Israel claims the whole of Jerusalem as its capital, while the Palestinians claim East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state. The US is one of only handful of countries to recognise the city as Israel’s capital.
Although the concept of the Palestine region and its geographical extent has varied throughout history, it is now considered to be composed by the modern State of Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
As prophesied by Ahijah (1 Kings 11:31-35), the house of Israel was divided into two kingdoms. This division, which took place approximately 975 B.C., after the death of Solomon and during the reign of his son, Rehoboam, came about as the people revolted against heavy taxes levied by Solomon and Rehoboam.
The flag of Israel- Hexagram
The flag of Israel was adopted on 28 October 1948, five months after the establishment of the State of Israel. It depicts a blue hexagram on a white background, between two horizontal blue stripes.
ISREAL: A TRUSTED WARRING CAPABILITY
The 1948 Arab–Israeli War was the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. It formally began following the end of the British Mandate for Palestine at midnight on 14 May 1948.
Tensions are often high between Israel and Palestinians living in East Jerusalem, Gaza and the West Bank. Gaza is ruled by the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which has fought Israel many times. Israel and Egypt tightly control Gaza’s borders to stop weapons getting to Hamas.
The conflict between Israelis and Palestinians is over who gets what land and how it Is controlled, according to Vox. Jews fleeing the persecution in Europe at the time wanted to establish a Jewish state on the land which they believe to be their ancient homeland.
In the immediate aftermath of the Second Israel–Lebanon War, most observers have concluded that Israel lost its war against Hezbollah.
Since the creation of Israel in 1948 there has been fighting in the region with multiple major wars in the last eighty years. May 14, 2022, marked the 74th anniversary of the day of Israeli independence from the British Empire.
Israel is a member of the United Nations (UN) and a number of other international organisations. Israel maintains full diplomatic relations with two of its Arab neighbours, Egypt and Jordan, after signing peace treaties in 1979 and 1994 respectively.
Israel’s continued policies and practices had resulted in flagrant human rights violations and abuses, including brutalisation of children, torture, forcible transfers, and colonisation of land.
Although the concept of the Palestine region and its geographical extent has varied throughout history, it is now considered to be composed by the modern State of Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Since its establishment in 1948, the State of Israel has fought seven recognized wars, two Palestinian intifadas, and a series of armed conflicts in the broader Arab-Israeli conflict.
Israeli wars and conflicts were executed by its
Arms Sea Corps (Navy) Air Force Ground Forces (GOC Army) and its
Commands Northern Central Southern Home Front.
Most Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied territories live under Israeli occupation and are not Israeli citizens. They are not allowed to vote in Israel.
The economy of Israel and Statistics are:
Population 9,521,000
GDP $527.18 billion (nominal, 2022 est.) $496,84 billion (PPP, 2022 est.)
GDP growth 3.4% (2018) 3.5% (2019) −2.2% (2020) 8.6% (2021) 6.1% (2022e)
GDP per capita $55,359 (nominal, 2022 est.) $52,173 (PPP, 2022 est.)
The warring ability of Isreal is limitless and
historically revealing, the Israelites went out to fight against the Philistines. The Israelites camped at Ebenezer, and the Philistines at Aphek. The Philistines deployed their forces to meet Israel, and as the battle spread, Israel was defeated by the Philistines, who killed about four thousand of them on the battlefield.
The battle ended in an Israeli victory, with 40 Egyptian and 19 Israeli tanks destroyed. Meanwhile, Israeli infantry finished clearing out the Egyptian trenches, with Israeli casualties standing at 14 dead and 41 wounded and Egyptian casualties at 300 dead and 100 taken prisoner.
For 2022, Israel is ranked 18 of 142 out of the countries considered for the annual GFP review.
Since 2006 GlobalFirepower (GFP) has provided a unique analytical display of data concerning 142 modern military powers. The GFP ranking is based on each nation’s potential war-making capability across land, sea, and air fought by conventional means.
As powerful as they are, the 2022 Gaza–Israeli clashes lasted from 5 to 7 August, 2022. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) conducted some 147 airstrikes in Gaza and Palestinian militants fired approximately 1,100 rockets towards Israel.
On May 14, 1948, the State of Israel was created, sparking the first Arab-Israeli War. The war ended in 1949 with Israel’s victory, but 750,000 Palestinians were displaced and the territory was divided into 3 parts: the State of Israel, the West Bank (of the Jordan River), and the Gaza Strip.
Shireen Abu Aqleh killed by ‘seemingly well-aimed’ Israeli bullet fell.
The Palestinian-American journalist, who was wearing a vest and helmet marked “press”, was killed while covering an Israeli army operation.
Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, who was killed by Israeli forces in May while reporting from the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, was deliberately and repeatedly targeted, along with her colleagues, despite being clearly identified as a member of the press.
Abu Akleh, a veteran correspondent and U.S and Palestinian citizen who was well known throughout the Arab world, was shot and killed while covering an Israeli military raid on May 11 in the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank.
Killing of journalist in the occupied Palestinian territory is a rampant event. More than six weeks after the killing of journalist Shireen Abu Akleh and injury of her colleague Ali Sammoudi in Jenin on 11 May 2022.
Abu Akleh, a veteran correspondent who was well known throughout the Arab world, was fatally shot while covering an Israeli military raid in May 2022. A total of 25 journalists altogether have gone down in this fierce battle between palestinians and Isreal in the last 2 or 3 decades.
Israeli gunfire killed journalist Shireen
Abu Akleh, a 51-year-old Palestinian American, was killed on May 11 while covering a morning military raid on the Jenin refugee camp.
Isreal.thereafter in the past formed alliance with some nations. The alliance offers an arena through which Israel could strengthen its ties with democracies and with Mediterranean countries, including Turkey. Israel has enjoyed a special relationship with NATO for over three decades and was the third country to gain non-NATO alliance status as early as 1989. All these have given Isreal as a nation the capanility to live and survive among the 7 islamic nations that surround it, and like our proverbial tongue surviving in the mist of our teeth and yet they live in harmony..
The following 18 (eighteen) countries have never “recognized” the State of Israel:
Afghanistan
Algeria
Bangladesh
Brunei
Comoros
Djibouti
Indonesia
Iraq (formal state of war)
Kuwait
Lebanon (formal state of war)
Libya
Malaysia
North Korea
Pakistan
Saudi Arabia
Somalia
Syria (formal state of war)
OR
The following 10 countries recognized Israel and suspended or severed diplomatic relations later:
Cuba (suspended 1973)
Iran (1979)
Mali (1973)
Mauritania (2010)
Maldives (2014)
Niger (1973)
Oman (2000)
Qatar (2009)
Tunisia (2000)
Venezuela (2009)
Frankly, while we welcome all of these countries to establish friendly, normal diplomatic relations with Israel, whether they do or not will not make much difference in our lives. Their decision not to “recognize” and establish diplomatic relations with Israel is more their loss than theirs.
A very touching revelation from this list indicates that Africa and Middle-Eastern nations are prominent members. Mostly .Muslim denominated nations would not want to establish relationship with Isreal. This is strictly due to 1948 independence given by Britain and France to Isreal as a state which also proclaimed it as such.