Battles & Wars › Modern conflicts
Israel–Hamas war
October 7, 2023 – (ceasefire October 2025)· War· Middle East & Africa
Well documentedSolid records, physical evidence or scientific consensus.
War in Gaza that began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages.
See it on the Battles & Wars map →What happened
Hamas, an Islamist movement that has ruled Gaza since 2007 and does not recognize Israel, carried out the deadliest attack in Israel's history; most victims were civilians. Israel declared war to destroy Hamas and free the hostages, with heavy bombing and a ground invasion. Most of Gaza's 2.1 million people were displaced and much of it destroyed. Gaza's health ministry counted over 67,000 dead by October 2025. Hezbollah, Yemen's Houthis and Iran were drawn in. A US-brokered ceasefire began October 10, 2025.
Why it matters
It was the deadliest round of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, widened into clashes with Hezbollah and Iran, stalled Arab–Israeli normalization, and brought genocide and war-crimes cases before international courts.
How we know
Israeli records of the October 7 attack, figures from Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry, which do not separate fighters from civilians, UN and aid-group reports, and satellite damage surveys. Israel barred independent foreign journalists from Gaza.
Still debated
Israel says it targets Hamas, which fights from civilian areas; critics, including UN investigators, accuse Israel of genocide, which it rejects. Gaza's future government and the ceasefire's durability remain open.
Connections (5)
▸Six-Day War began Israel's control over Gaza, a root of Israel–Hamas warWell documented
The connection
In 1967 Israel captured the Gaza Strip from Egypt, beginning decades of Israeli rule over Gaza's Palestinians, many of them refugees from 1948. Hamas was founded there in 1987 at the start of the First Intifada, an uprising against that rule. Israel withdrew its settlers in 2005 but, with Egypt, blockaded Gaza after Hamas took power in 2007.
When and how
Gaza, June 1967; Hamas founded December 1987; Israel's 'disengagement' in 2005; Hamas seized Gaza from its rival Fatah in June 2007, after which the blockade began.
How we know
The sequence is well documented in UN records, Israeli and Palestinian sources, and Hamas's own 1988 charter, which frames its struggle against Israel.
Debates and open questions
Each side tells it differently: Israel stresses Hamas's aim of destroying it, Palestinians stress occupation and blockade. How much each drove October 7 is contested.
▸Arab–Israeli wars set the backdrop for Israel–Hamas warWell documented
The connection
The 1948 war, fought as Israel declared independence, made about 700,000 Palestinians refugees; many fled to Gaza, where their descendants are most of today's population. Later wars left Palestinian statehood unresolved. As Arab states stopped fighting Israel and some made peace, the conflict centered on Israel and Palestinian armed groups, among them Hamas, which does not recognize Israel.
When and how
Palestine and neighboring states, 1948–73. Egypt made peace with Israel in 1979 and Jordan in 1994; Hamas emerged in Gaza in 1987.
How we know
UN refugee records (UNRWA registers about 1.6 million refugees in Gaza), peace-treaty texts, and both Israeli and Palestinian histories trace the line.
Debates and open questions
Responsibility for the 1948 refugee exodus and the justice of each side's claims remain fiercely disputed, and shape how each side sees the current war.
▸Israel–Hamas war widened into a direct Israel–Iran clash in Twelve-Day War (Israel and the US vs. Iran)Mostly agreed
The connection
After October 7, Iran's allies Hezbollah and the Houthis joined the fighting. In April 2024 an Israeli strike in Damascus killed Iranian generals, and Iran answered with its first direct attack on Israel; more exchanges followed that October. Israel's blows to Hezbollah and Assad's fall then left Iran itself exposed.
When and how
October 2023 to June 2025, across Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and Iran; Iran's first direct strike on Israel came April 13–14, 2024.
How sure are we?
The chain of attacks and retaliations is documented by the governments' own statements and by international reporting.
Debates and open questions
Israel cited Iran's nuclear progress as the trigger; whether it would have struck Iran anyway, without the Gaza war's regional escalation, is debated.
▸2026 US–Israel war with Iran followed the regional war set off by Israel–Hamas warMostly agreed
The connection
The 2026 war was the latest stage of the regional conflict that began on October 7, 2023. That war drew in Hezbollah, the Houthis and Iran, weakened Iran's allies, and brought direct Israel–Iran exchanges in 2024 and 2025. Even after Gaza's October 2025 ceasefire, the Iran front stayed open.
When and how
From Gaza in October 2023 to Iran in February 2026; Hezbollah and the Houthis rejoined the fighting in March 2026.
How sure are we?
The chain of attacks, retaliations and ceasefires is documented by the governments involved, the UN and the international press.
Debates and open questions
Whether the 2026 war grew mainly from the Gaza war or from the unresolved nuclear dispute is a matter of interpretation; both clearly fed it.
▸AI and data-driven warfare drew scrutiny over target selection in the Israel–Hamas warDebated
The connection
In November 2023 and April 2024, +972 Magazine and Local Call, citing Israeli intelligence sources, reported that systems called the Gospel and Lavender generated tens of thousands of suggested targets, with little human review and permissive rules on civilian harm. Israel's military says these are aids for analysts and that humans make every decision.
When and how
Gaza, from October 2023; the reports appeared in November 2023 and April 2024, followed by debate at the UN and among AI experts.
How sure are we?
The claims rest on anonymous sources; Israel acknowledged using such tools but rejected the descriptions, so the extent of the link is debated.
Debates and open questions
How targets were really chosen and checked, and how much AI contributed to Gaza's high civilian toll, are disputed and may only emerge from future inquiries.