The Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, were a series of coordinated attacks carried out by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) from the Gaza Strip in areas bordering Israel on October 7, 2023. The attacks marked the beginning of the war between Israel and the Gaza Strip that continues to this day.

Operation al-Aqsa Flood was a significant turning point in the Palestinian struggle, marking the most fundamental change in the philosophy of resistance since the First Intifada (1987). The Palestinians, who for many decades thought that they would end the occupation and establish an independent state thanks to the support of the Arab world, realized by the mid-1970s that the Arabs would not take the necessary steps in this regard.

The leadership of the Palestinian resistance realized that the only path to progress depended on their own will and initiative, and launched a massive uprising against Israel with the power of its people. The First Intifada, therefore, led to a significant paradigm shift in the Palestinian resistance. Rather than waiting for a move from the international community or the Arab world, the local struggle against the occupying Zionist regime, albeit with limited means, could enable Palestine to make gains toward independence.

This new strategy also allowed the Palestinian resistance to institutionalize and build a strong identity. Moreover, the establishment of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) at the beginning of the First Intifada signaled that not only a methodological but also an ideological transformation would take place in the Palestinian resistance. As a matter of fact, in the following years, Hamas’ conception of the political order, the methods it used, the discourse it produced, and its clear stance against the Israeli occupation resulted in this movement finding a response throughout Palestine and becoming one of the most powerful actors in Palestinian political life

Hamas’ determined strategy over the years and the combat experience of the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades allowed for the launch of an operation against Israel from Gaza. The operation, which began on the morning of October 7, marked a paradigm shift in the aftermath of the First Intifada. The Gazan resistance elements, led by the Qassam Brigades, shifted from a defensive model of resistance against Israeli attacks to an offensive strategy of multi-pronged infiltration. In addition, establishing a “joint operation center” of 12 different resistance groups to fight against the occupation forces in a coordinated manner was also noteworthy in uniting all Palestinian groups against the common enemy

As the first hours of Operation al-Aqsa Flood sent shockwaves through the Israeli side, the first signs of psychological damage also surfaced. For years, the Israeli state has created a convincing myth about the effectiveness and competence of its intelligence units. The undermining of the general belief that any action posing a threat to Israel inside or outside Palestine would be detected in advance and necessary measures would be taken constituted the first leg of psychological damage that started on October 7.

In addition to the failure of the potent intelligence myth after the operation, another myth that collapsed was related to the Iron Dome air defense system. The Iron Dome, widely regarded as one of the most potent air defense systems in the world, failed to fully defend Israel from thousands of Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades missiles. This meant that even points far from Gaza could now threatened by the resistance. The failure of the system it had built has caused more damage than ever to Israel’s state machinery and society. In addition, the neutralization of a large number of army officers and the capture of hundreds of prisoners in the first hours of the operation shows how Operation al-Aqsa Flood dismantled the Israeli security apparatus.

The operation Al-Aqsa Flood and its subsequent local, regional and global repercussions, restored the Palestinian cause to its pivotal position on the Arab, regional and international levels, placing it in a central position amongst the general public as a liberation struggle against colonialism and uprooting racism. This provides an exceptional historical opportunity to reestablish the Palestinian cause on the international level as liberation struggle, facing the most unjust racist colonial aims in modern and contemporary history. This significant issue places a heavy load on not only the liberation activists, but also all the vigorous social actors around the world, especially in the Arab region, who bear the responsibility to take action. Those people are obliged to pursue all possible means to support the Palestinian cause and keep pace with the global solidarity with this cause at various political, diplomatic, legal, media, cultural and intellectual levels.

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  • RION [she/her]
    ·
    10 days ago

    I learned the other day that Tim Walz has a net worth of only $1 million (I know "only" but for someone his age that's actually quite low) and doesn't even own a house or have a mortgage.

    I brought it up with my mom and mentioned that last part as being odd and she got weirdly defensive about it, talking about all his time as a public school teacher and how there's so much upkeep owning a house that it might be better just to sell if you're gonna live in the governor's mansion for six years

    But like, bro can definitely afford a house in Minnesota. He made nearly 200k a year for 13 years as a rep and makes over 200k a year as governor. And he did have a house until he sold it in 2019! Sure he bought it in '97 when rates were higher but he had nearly a decade to refinance during ZIRP times. Why divest from a historically lucrative investment vehicle on the basis that you (probably) won't need it for a few years?

    • CleverOleg [he/him]
      ·
      9 days ago

      Every state is different but it’s very likely that as a public school teacher in a (relatively) union-friendly state, he has a pension waiting for him when he retires.

      • RION [she/her]
        ·
        9 days ago

        I think they included the pension value and his retirement savings. If that's true, he's still running a little lean, though a few more years with a governor or VP's salary ought to help.

        FWIW I'm basing what retirement savings "should" be off the WSJ type investment advice which probably doesn't reflect what's realistic for the average joe. My parents don't really have much of anything saved for retirement so idk what to base it against aware

    • Chronicon [they/them]
      ·
      9 days ago

      yeah he can afford a big house in MN no problemo. I can think of several reasons to do this though. 1) who wants to vote for a landlord, or 2) if it's sitting empty or in part time use by the family, people would harp on him about it every time he said anything about housing, for not entirely wrong reasons, and 3) he probably had higher political ambitions