Dr Atef Alshaer, Senior Lecturer on Arabic Language and Culture at the University of Westminster, was interviewed on BBC Radio Scotland about the latest conflict in Gaza between Israel and Palestine.
Speaking about how the latest violence started, Dr Alshaer explained: “[This latest flare-up] started with the arrest of a major leader in the West Bank for [Palestinian] Islamic Jihad, Bassam al-Saadi, and the fact that he was humiliated and dragged [away].
“Islamic Jihad warned Israel about [this] and Israel attacked Islamic Jihad in Gaza and assassinated one of their top leaders in the north of Gaza.”
On the scattered nature of the string of attacks that have left dozens of Palestinians dead this year, Dr Alshaer said: “These are not pinpointed attacks, they are very heavy-loaded missiles that attack very densely-populated areas whether in the South or in the North or in the middle of Gaza – so it’s almost indiscriminate really to some extent…the explosion and the nature of the missiles are so huge it devastates many people and many livelihoods and tragically kills children too so it’s extremely tragic.”
He added: “It’s very fragile, but the broader picture…is much more important. The situation in Gaza is extremely volatile, unemployment is very high, the siege is very crippling, the supplies to Gaza are very limited. There is such a high level of despair and tragedy in Gaza, which triggers conflicts of this nature and there is no let up on the side of Israel in terms of expanding in the West Bank…provoking people in Jerusalem…arresting in the Nablus and Jenin camps, and other forms of aggression and oppression against the Palestinians.”
Listen to the full interview on BBC Sounds.
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