Jerusalem is recognised as the capital of Israel

During the early days of December, when everybody was getting in to the gleeful spirit of Christmas, Trump announced that the US would recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Many world leaders and international officials have condemned Trump’s move. "This decision is an outrageous assault to all universal values," Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said. Before we get into how Trump’s decision to move the capital of Israel will make the situation worse, we need to understand who these people are and what their conflict is about.

Who are Hamas?

Hamas is a Sunni-Islamic organisation which practise strict Islamic Sharia law. They were founded in 1986 and have gained control of Gaza using missiles and suicide bombings on civilians. They are also known to launch missiles, both short range and long range, at Israel’s cities. This along with many other threats, prompted the Israeli government to develop the ‘Iron Dome’. This is a network of missile launchers which detect ballistic missiles and shoot them down before they can cause any grievous harm. The Israeli government also bomb Hamas strongholds in Palestine which has caused the deaths of thousands of civilians. These bombings have forced thousands of people, sick and old, to find shelter in refugee camps that private charities or the UN have set up. Over 1.4 million refugees are in UN camps, many more are unaccounted for. Hamas have caused all of this because of their journey to claim Jerusalem back as it is the third holiest city in Islam, after Makkah and Madinah. Jerusalem also plays host to masjid – al – Aqsa, Masjid- al – Aqsa is the second oldest mosque in Islam and is thought to be upon the land on which the prophet Muhammed ascended to heaven. In Judaism It is believed that this was were the Earth was first created and is the holiest site in all of Judaism.

The fact that Trump has declared Jerusalem as the capital of Israel is problematic because of the tensions between Israel and Islamic militant groups, has now increased which will boost the number of projectiles launched from Palestine to Israel. As a direct result of this, the amount of bombing raids will increase, killing more civilians than before.

Written by Muhammed Daud Patel, Lister Community School