World is witnessing a war-like situation in the Middle-East region between arch rivals Israel and Palestine. Though the tension between the two states is not a new thing, this time the situation has become grimmer due to clashes erupted into heavy violence in which several civilians and police personnel have lost their lives.

It all started in the second week of May when there were some clashes between the Israeli police and the protesters at the Al Aqsa Mosque, on the compound revered by Jews as Temple Mount and by the Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary, in East Jerusalem, which has been under Israeli control since 1967.

Hamas, a terrorist outfit, which is eyeing political power in the upcoming elections, which have been pending since 2006 and postponed recently in Palestine, took cognizance of the event and warned Israel of dire consequences.

The situation got worse when Hamas attacked Israel’s second most populous city Tel Aviv, which is a technological and business center of Israel. Tel Aviv is a home of many foreign embassies, including the Indian embassy. More than 1,000 rockets have been launched from Gaza targeting different parts of Israel, majorly Tel Aviv.

Civilian population including women and children of Tel Aviv were on the roads rushing for their safety and shelter amid the sound of explosions as Israeli air defense missiles intercepted those attacking rockets launched from Gaza. Air raid sirens were being heard around the city. People were frightened and helpless in the middle of the night. But it was the defense forces and the Iron dome, a robust anti-missile air defense system of Israel, which swiftly came into action for their rescue. With the help of Iron dome, Israel could neutralize more than 90% of rockets and avoid more casualties and devastation on its side.

After this attack from Gaza, Israel retaliated with massive air missile bombardment on Gaza. It has annihilated some major high-rise towers in Gaza and savaged the Hamas territory. Had Hamas not been reacting this way to the minor clashes, the situation would not have escalated to such gory violence. The civilian population of both the sides is paying the cost of the over enthusiastic, short-sighted misadventure of an unaccountable militant outfit called Hamas.

Those who are holding Israel responsible for the current turmoil in the region should try to look at the roots of this turbulence.

Hamas, which has a hold on the Gaza strip, is actually looking to turn this into an opportunity to marginalize Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and to present itself as the guardians of Palestinians in Jerusalem. The current unrest is an outcome of politically motivated and irresponsibly taken steps by Hamas.

Israel as a state has every right to protect its territory, its people and its sovereignty. Many heads of the states across the globe, including the US President, have acknowledged and reiterated this very right of Israel.

In the current scenario, India as a nation and its people must stand at the side of Israel because India has been facing the brunt of the radical Islamic Jihad and extremism since long. Indians can empathize with the pain and agony through which Israelis are going through. One Indian nurse, Soumya Santosh, working in Israel was also killed in this exchange of fire. Innocent people like her have been falling victims to such gory terrorist activities since long.  

Israel is dealing with these terrorists with an iron fist, which is an apt way to treat them. Indians should understand the role of Israel in countering the terrorism at a global level. Lot of things can be learnt from them. Some radical Left activists and sympathizers are standing against Israel, as if this havoc was created by Israel, while the truth is exactly the opposite. People who are trying to portray it as a war between Islamists and Jews, should be careful while using their words. Radical Left and radical Islamists in India play a very divisive politics. They oppose everyone who favors India and supports all those who have intentions to harm India. Such groups are inciting Indian Muslims against Jews and Israel in the name of Islam, which would not be good for India’s friendly relationship with Israel. Common people should not heed to such anti-Israel calls just for the sake of their own well-being.

It was Hamas, which commenced this act of war by launching rockets without any authority. Hamas leaders do not represent Palestine as they are not elected by the Palestinian people. People must understand the fact that it is neither Israel vs Muslims nor Israelis vs Palestinians; it is actually a fight between a nation and a militant group.

Indians should support this mayhem of Israel against terrorism and extremism. Israel has always backed India in its fight against the proxy wars under the guise of terrorism.

It was Israel, which helped India in the Kargil war when the US had put sanctions due India’s Pokhran tests. It provided the Litening pods and other technical expertise to the Indian Air Force, which helped IAF in the first ever combat use of Laser-Guided Bombs (LGB), due to which IAF could decimate many enemy hideouts and bunkers on Tiger hills and other places. Not only this, Israel provided surveillance equipment, which facilitated India to keep an eye on enemy activities, the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles of Israel helped India to locate the enemy hideouts in high altitudes. And Israel did all this for India, while remaining under tremendous international pressure, especially from the US, to not support India at that time. Israel ignored the US warnings of not helping India and provided all the military supplies without any delay. It won’t be a hyperbolic statement, if it’s said that it would have been almost impossible for India to win Kargil war had Israel not come to our rescue. At that point, India was facing tremendous lack of tactical military equipment during that period.

Israel did not stop aiding India at the end of Kargil war; it continued its support to India and provided the essential military equipment, especially required for short range combats to counter cross border terrorism and hostilities.

Israel is one of the top arms suppliers to the Indian armed forces from numerous radars, UAVs, surveillance systems and electronic components for military aircrafts, and surface-to-air missile system, air-to-air missile down to a quick reaction anti-tank missile and precision guided bombs.

It helped India to defend itself through training in counterterrorism methods. Israeli X-95 assault rifles used by CRPF’s Cobra commandos have become a game-changer in counter-insurgency operations against the Maoist rebels. Israel provided India three Phalcon AWACS (Airborne Warning And Control System) a mobile, long-range radar surveillance and control center for air defense, in layman’s terms, powerful eyes in the sky. Phalcon AWACS planes are capable of detecting hostile aircraft, cruise missiles and other incoming aerial threats far before ground-based radars. The need for two more AWACS was acutely felt during the recent Chinese aggression in East Ladakh and at the time of Balakot air strikes.

Not only in the military field, but also in other sectors like agriculture, space, water management, environment, technology, India and Israel are collaborating like partners made for each other. Israel’s drip irrigation, vertical farming technologies are bringing revolutionary changes in the crop yields and farming in India and, as a result, empowering the Indian farmers.

India and Israel have signed an agreement to create the India Israel Innovation Initiative fund (I4F) in 2017, modeled after the US-Israel BIRD Foundation. This initiative will give a boost to technological innovations in different sectors.

Moreover, recently when India faced the world’s most severe surge of COVID-19 infections in late April 2021, the Israeli nonprofit IsraAID announced it was sending a large shipment of medical aid to the country. It is noteworthy to mention here that it happened during the same time when the US government had put export bans on the essential raw materials required for vaccine manufacturing.

A friend in need is a friend indeed. In today’s world, it is very rare to find such a friend who stands by you every time when you need him. Israel is one such friend of the Indian state.

India and Indians should not desert Israel in the present turbulence.

Supporting Hamas in the name of Palestinian victims will only defeat the purpose. It will only boost the devil’s morale seeing the success of their tactics of initiating the attack and then playing the victim card, which we saw in Kashmir where terrorists misused the youngsters and women by providing them with stones for pelting it on the Indian army, and when Army retaliated with rubber bullets, they started decrying against the state and the army. Immediately, human rights violation card used to come into the picture. These terrorist organizations, in connivance with the radical Left and radical Islamic forces, have been adopting this same strategy. They have used women or children as a shield, while launching the attack from behind. And, if any of the women or children gets hit in the cross-fire, they deluge the media with pictures of their bodies to portray themselves as victims and earn the sympathy of the world. This is an act of cruelty and inhumanity committed by these terrorists. The whole world should come together to wipe out such militancy and hostility.

Standing by the side of Israel will not only bolster the ties between the two nations, but also send a strong message to the terror sponsors and their supporters. It will reinforce India’s zero tolerance policy towards state sponsored proxy wars by its enemy nations. It will also reiterate the point that India too has a right to defend its boundaries, sovereignty and people from any foreign aggression or any effort to destabilize it from within, and It would also respond to such misadventures in a language, which suit the perpetrators. India should see a powerful friend and a natural ally in Israel and stand by it on every international platform in this high time of turbulence. Togetherness of the two nations will debilitate the morals of terror sponsoring nations.

Finally, sometimes attack is the best defense, which is what Israel is up to in the current situation.

Disclaimer: The views expressed are personal.