A Father's Perspective on the Conflict
A Father's Perspective on the Conflict
This story is from a 36-year-old father in Gaza. Despite stating that he hated politics, he is very knowledgeable on the matter, and this account does not cover even half of his expertise.
With that, this piece leans heavily on the political side of the conflict and his perspective on it.
The following are his exact words; the only edits are for grammar and clarity, as English is not his first language and he used a translator to communicate with me.
“As a 36-year-old man, I lived my whole life in Gaza, and of course, under the fact that we are occupied by another state.”
“For almost my first 17 years, I thought that our struggle was with the Jews, you know, like a religious conflict. However, with the help of the internet, I realized that our struggle was with the Zionists and Zionism, as there are Jewish people who stand with us, and there were many Palestinian Jews, as my grandma (may she rest in peace) used to tell me. And that was when I first realized that peace was really possible.”
Many in the West still view the conflict between Israel and Palestine as a religious conflict, often believing that Palestinians are religious zealots who wish to destroy all other religions. My source often spoke of a time when Jews, Muslims, and Christians coexisted in Palestine.
In the West, we must “deprogram” ourselves of our preconceived ideas surrounding the conflict. Religion may be used to justify it, such as by those in the United States who believe Israel is the Holy Land and must be defended, but in the end, it is also a political conflict.
The Israeli government appears to desire control of land and resources for its own benefit and to become the number one regional power. This is not much different from when European powers and, later, the United States colonized the Americas from sea to sea and eliminated the Indigenous populations who stood in their way.
This is a colonial or imperialist conflict, and the Palestinian population stands in the way of these goals. Look no further than the plan to “rebuild” Gaza, which I will explore later in this interview.¹
“Unfortunately, the whole world back then used to look at us as the ‘bad guys’ and ‘terrorists’ just for fighting back.”
As I stated, those of us in the West have to “deprogram” ourselves. The West has been interfering in Middle Eastern affairs for centuries, including during the Crusades and through European colonialism. The United States has also interfered in the region, including when it helped overthrow the Iranian government in 1953.²
With that has come decades of propaganda targeting people of the Muslim faith and people from the Middle East, which only intensified following the September 11 attacks. Those of us who grew up in the post-9/11 world have been subjected to much propaganda that portrays people in the Middle East as terrorists.
I have studied terrorism extensively, and throughout my studies, it has become clear that terrorism is subjective, and many scholars agree on this. Just as many in the United States view people in the Middle East as terrorists, people in the Middle East may view the United States and its allies in the same way.
“I hated politics and wanted to live my life as if we were not in conflict just like the rest of the world.”
Despite being so knowledgeable politically, my source does not like politics. Many in Palestine are like him and never wanted politics to become such a central part of their lives, just as many in the West do not want it to be.
There are many in the United States who have the luxury of ignoring politics or not allowing it to become a big part of their lives. Those in Palestine are not afforded that luxury. Politics has become their life, and not by choice.
“Israel has forbidden many things in Gaza like a 3G internet. That’s right its the year 2026 and we still live on a 2G internet because of Israel. We’re also not allowed to eve have 3D printers for some reason, and the list goes on. Still I wanted to live the best of life. Gaming was, and still is, my favorite hobby. Unfortunately in this war, not only did I lose my gaming PC, but also so many friends I used to game with.”
“How can we bring the beloved ones back? So many great memories I’ve had with them are now just memories. It’s so painful that I honestly avoid any news about video games.”
My source and his wife also struggled with conceiving a child, and he shared the experience of the couple navigating a pregnancy during the conflict.
“At that point began a new struggle of displacement and finding a place to flee, and bear in mind that fertility pregnancy is fragile and the fear tension and exhaustion could risk a loss of the baby. Not to mention finding the medicine necessary for the pregnancy was a struggle on its own. But the miracle occurred and we had our first at the end of May 2024 after 10 years of marriage, it was the happiest day during this war, and for a moment I forgot we were at war.”
“Diapers reached insane prices, at one point a single diaper could cost up to $4-5 not a package, bt a single diaper which means tat the whole package could reach the price of $300 where in normal doncidtions it would cost only $10.”
“And I don’t need to speak of the famine because you all know what it was like to get a normal meal. But the worst part of it all is that it’s still going and it never stopped. The bloodshed in ths war never stopped, not even during the ceasefire. Bombings and raids haven’t stopped and the peace plamn of rebuilding Gaza has turned into Humanitarian camps.”
As I mentioned earlier, the current peace plan for Gaza has colonialism written all over it. U.S. President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace and its reconstruction plans involve figures including Jared Kushner, Steve Witkoff, World Bank President Ajay Banga, and Marc Rowan from Apollo Global Management.³
What do these billionaires know or care about Gaza? Other than seeing it as real estate from which they can profit, they are dealing with land that was once the home of many innocent people. It was where children played and went to school and where people played video games with their friends, as my source did. Now, much of it is gone, and many of those people have been murdered. Meanwhile, plans for Gaza's future raise questions about who will benefit from its reconstruction and whether Palestinians will have control over their own land.³
“You know why this is happening? Two reasons: The United States government and AIPAC are behind all this, and they never respect any agreements. The second reason is that the world is doing absolutely nothing about it, which makes it an accomplice.”
My source mentioned AIPAC, or the American-Israeli Public Affairs Committee. AIPAC has come under fire over the last year or so for its funding of American politicians, which many view as them simply buying votes, and it certainly looks that way.
And when you consider that many who challenge AIPAC and the American-Israeli alliance lose their offices, such as Cori Bush or Thomas Massie, you start to understand the amount of power this lobby wields, and that it is much more than a “conspiracy theory.”
Throughout my time working in my state's legislature, I can say that the Israeli lobby is even at the state level, and they appear to have the most resources, as their lobbyists and advocates flood the capitol and meet with legislators.
And of course, the problem with money in politics and lobbying extends far beyond the Israeli lobby, as many corporations do it, and the majority of it is harmful and not in the interests of the average person.
And this money and lobbying can be defeated, as evidenced by Abdul El-Sayed’s win in the Democratic Michigan primary in 2026, where he faced millions of Israeli lobby dollars and the political establishment and still advanced past Haley Stevens. ⁴
But it would do the world good if the United States were to restrict or remove AIPAC and all corporate lobbyists who do not work in the interests of the average person, not just domestically but internationally.
With that, here are the parting words of my source and his hope for the future.
“We can only hope to have a normal life like the rest of the world. That’s right, living with no wars, killings, in houses and not tents with electrict, clean water, food, better internet etc. Basic stuff that has become a luxury, one can only hope.”
Charles Anderson, “The British Mandate and the Crisis of Palestinian Landlessness, 1929–1936,” Middle Eastern Studies (2018), https://doi.org/10.1080/00263206.2017.1372427.
National Security Archive, “Iran 1953: State Department Finally Releases Updated Official History of Mosaddeq Coup,” June 15, 2017.
Zaha Hassan, “The Board of Peace Plan for Gaza,” Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, July 30, 2026.
The Washington Post, “How El-Sayed won the contentious Michigan Senate Democratic primary,” August 5, 2026. See also the Associated Press, “Wesley Bell defeats Squad member Cori Bush. A pro-Israel group spent $8.5 million to help oust her,” August 6, 2024.