- Hamas has been the de facto governing body in the Gaza strip since 2007.
- Gaza is a 41-kilometer long and 10-kilometer wide territory between Israel, Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea.
Image: BBC
The ongoing war between Israeli forces and Hamas has already left over 1, 000 people dead and thousands of others wounded on both sides.
The fighting which started Saturday has continued with reports indicating that at least 700 people have been killed in Israel and 400 in Gaza.
Here is what you need to know.
Hamas
Founded in 1987, Hamas has emerged as an essential player in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
It is a Palestinian militant group that controls the Gaza Strip and does not recognise Israel’s right to exist.
Hamas translates to “zeal” in Arabic and stands for the Islamic Resistance Movement.
The organisation’s acronym, “Harakat Al-Muqawama Al-Islamia”, stands for the Islamic Resistance Movement.
Gaza strip
It is a 41-kilometre-long and 10-kilometre-wide territory between Israel, Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea.
It is home to about 2.3 million people and has one of the highest population densities in the world.
Who governs Gaza?
Hamas has been the de facto governing body in the Gaza Strip since 2007.
Israel, however, controls the air space over Gaza and its shoreline and restricts who and what goods are allowed in and out through its border crossings.
Egypt also controls who passes in and out through its border with Gaza.
How did the ongoing fights start?
Hamas launched its largest attack on Israeli territory in decades on Saturday.
It fired thousands of rockets at Israel while dozens of fighters breached the border and invaded Israeli communities, killing dozens of civilians and taking others captive.
Israel launched immediate air strikes, saying it was targeting militant sites in Gaza.
The armed militants are said to have broken down the hi-tech barriers surrounding the Gaza Strip to enter Israel while shooting and taking hostages.
The militants in boats also tried to gain entry into Israel by sea.
Why Israel and Hamas are fighting?
The exact reason as to the cause of the fights remains unclear but reports indicate that there has been a constant tension between Israel and Hamas especially in the West Bank.
West Bank is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the Levant region of Western Asia that forms the bulk of the Palestinian territories.
It is bordered by Jordan and the Dead Sea to the east and by Israel to the south, west, and north.
In recent weeks, some Jews have prayed inside the compound of al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem’s Old City.
The area around the mosque is known to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif and is the third holiest place for Islam after Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.
To Jews, it is known as Temple Mount and is venerated as the site of the biblical Jewish temple.
Jews are not permitted to pray inside the al-Aqsa compound; to do so is highly provocative.
Hamas has called its current offensive Operation al-Aqsa Deluge.