There is a clear division between the world before October 7, 2023, and the one that followed for Gaza, Israel, the wider Middle East, and the global community. Three years after the conflict began, updated satellite imagery reveals the profound destruction wrought on Gaza, where entire towns have been reduced to rubble, hospitals and mosques have disappeared, and the coastline is crowded with tents marking an attempt to devastate a population.
For Israel, the sense of impregnability cultivated by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was shattered permanently by the Hamas-led attack that killed 1,200 people. The consequences of that assault and Israel's subsequent military response, which has resulted in the deaths of more than 73,000 Palestinians including 21,000 children, have spread far beyond the immediate borders.
Under the rationale of border protection, Israel has launched military operations across the region, sending troops into southern Lebanon and parts of Syria, and engaging in a broader conflict with Iran that has drawn in Gulf states. This widening war has further triggered conflicts involving the Houthis in Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Turkey, Sudan, and Ethiopia, leaving more than a dozen countries entangled in overlapping wars.
Beyond the physical violence, the conflict has openly replaced the rule of international law with military might. While Western leaders previously rallied moral coalitions against violations of international law in other conflicts, their steadfast support and provision of weapons for Israel's campaign in Gaza exposed a deep hypocrisy that has not gone unnoticed by the global south or Western citizens.
This war has also been uniquely broadcast in real time, with hundreds of Palestinian journalists documenting the destruction of civilian infrastructure, hospitals, and food distribution points despite a ban on international press. Furthermore, Israel has pioneered the use of artificial intelligence in target selection, introducing a troubling new dimension to modern warfare.
This escalation occurred as Western powers maintained their backing, with the United States ensuring continuous weapon supplies, vetoing United Nations Security Council ceasefire resolutions, and criticizing international judicial efforts to hold Israeli leaders accountable. Other G7 members, including leaders from France, Germany, Canada, and Australia, also initially provided robust support, leaving UN Secretary-General António Guterres as a rare prominent voice condemning the collective punishment of Palestinians.
Despite these developments, the shared global witness of the past three years has prompted shifts in political climates internationally. In the United Kingdom, political figures have begun confronting past handling of the conflict and acknowledging the realities on the ground, while in the United States, traditional bipartisan support for Israel has eroded significantly among the electorate.