This is an evolving story written from the day it occurred. It will be fully updated for the 2024 anniversary.

On October 7, as the sun rose, Hamas crossed into Israel and attacked several towns and a kibbutz. The tactic was unprecedented in the history of the ongoing occupation. Typically, Israel strikes first, and battles are confined to Palestinian territory, towns, and cities, limiting casualties to Palestinians and shielding Israeli citizens from the realities of the attacks. This time, for the first time, a coordinated attack occurred in Israel led by a Palestinian organization.

From the Palestinian perspective:
At 6:30 AM local time on October 7, 2023, Hamas, a political organization with a military resistance wing, the Qassam Brigade, in the Gaza Strip, invaded several towns and kibbutz in Israel, wreaking havoc, kidnapping civilians, and capturing soldiers while bombing various civilian and military targets. The attack followed years of abuse, the daily and systematic terrorization of the Palestinian population, and recent incursions into Al Aqsa Mosque and other non-Jewish holy sites in Israel and the Occupied Territories.

The Israelis were caught entirely off guard, suffering hundreds of casualties, including deaths. News of the offensive reached the Palestinian people, many of whom celebrated in the streets. Celebrations centered on the fact that the Palestinians were finally fighting back after decades of living under apartheid and an illegal occupation that has decimated their way of life, homes, culture, businesses, and communities.

From the Israeli perspective:
At 6:30 AM local time on October 7, 2023, Hamas terrorists launched a murderous attack and invaded Israel, kidnapping innocent civilians and soldiers in a cowardly, unprovoked attack. After the initial shock, Israel declared war on Hamas and all supporting it, vowing to deliver a decisive military operation like none seen before. Israel immediately launched airstrikes on the Gaza Strip, issued a 48-hour civilian order, and reasserted its right to defend itself from the unwarranted terrorist attack. Israeli citizens near the borders were told to go to shelters, and the reserves were called up.

The Israelis consider this a tremendous failure in intelligence and an embarrassment. The fate of the current administration is in doubt, given that historically, when embarrassed, they tend to be replaced in the next few months.
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As is the custom, Western media adopts the Israeli position while reporting in the rest of the world focuses more on context and the events leading up to this latest combat situation. However, behind the scenes, given the escalation of oppression of the Palestinians since the right-wing government assumed control in 2022, few are surprised. Diplomats and political scientists have been warning that the oppression and injustice were due to push the Palestinians over the edge, resulting in an explosion of violence. It is quite possible that October 7, 2023, is the beginning of the Third Intifada (uprising) against the occupation. At least 100 Israelis and six Palestinian insurgents were killed in the first hours. Eighteen hours in, 250 Israelis and 273 Palestinians were confirmed dead.

Israel is one of nine nuclear-armed states with one of the ten most powerful militaries in the world. It conquered 2/3 of the land set aside by the international agreement for a Palestinian state in 1948 and has occupied the remaining land since 1967.

Hamas came into being on December 14, 1987, as a response to the First Intifada. It has a militia of volunteers armed with portable weapons. It does not have nuclear weapons, tanks, ships, airplanes, helicopters, a standing army, or other military advantages. Hamas sees itself like Ireland's Shin Fein, Algeria's ALNF, and the American colonists fighting against England—all of whom were called terrorists by the states they opposed. Israel and many nation-states consider Hamas a terrorist group. Hamas and its supporters consider themselves rebels and freedom fighters.

Under international law, Israel and the Palestinians each have the right to defend themselves. Neither has the right to defend the occupation or conduct offensive operations against civilians.

Historically, roughly 12-15 Palestinians are killed for each Israeli when Israel retaliates. By October 1, over 200 Palestinians, mostly civilians, and 30 Israelis had been killed by each other, making it the deadliest year without a major military engagement since the early 2000s. This new conflict has all the ingredients to be one of the longest and bloodiest protracted battles since Israel's inception.