Understanding the Mideast conflict: A historical primer
Voice of America
Smoke rises in northern Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, as seen from Israel, Oct. 7, 2024. FILE - This photo shows the U.S.-owned Genco Picardy that was attacked Jan. 17, 2024, with a drone launched by Houthis in the Gulf of Aden. (Indian navy via AP) FILE - A woman looks at pictures of hostages kidnapped during the deadly October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas, one year after the attack, in Tel Aviv, Oct. 7, 2024.
The Middle East is on the brink. Just days after a massive missile attack on Israel, Iran is threatening more strikes. Israel, already battling Iranian-backed militias on two fronts, is vowing retaliation. The U.S. has deployed thousands of troops to the region.
FILE - Elon Musk arrives before a joint meeting of Congress at the Capitol in Washington, July 24, 2024. Musk called the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) the country's savior. FILE - Alice Weidel, co-leader of Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, holds a bouquet of flowers she was given by party co-leader Tino Chrupalla during a press conference on Dec. 7, 2024 in Berlin,
Palestinians pray next to the bodies of their relatives killed in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip at Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir al-Balah, Dec. 19, 2024.
FILE - The American and Chinese flags wave at Genting Snow Park ahead of the 2022 Winter Olympics, in Zhangjiakou, China, on Feb. 2, 2022.
FILE - Pakistani military personnel stand beside a surface-to-surface ballistic missile during a Pakistan Day military parade in Islamabad on March 23, 2019. A White House official said on Dec. 19, 2024, that Pakistan is developing missile capabilities that could reach the U.S.
Macao's new leader, Sam Hou Fai, left, is sworn in by China's President Xi Jinping during an inauguration ceremony as part of marking the 25th anniversary of Macao's handover from Portugal to China, in Macao, Dec. 20, 2024.
FILE - The Russian oil tanker Volgoneft-147 stands in Muscat's Mina al-Fahl port, Feb. 7, 2000.
Chinese military personnel line up during the Golden Dragon military exercise in Svay Chok village, Kampong Chhnang province, north of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, May 30, 2024.
A view of the launch event for the "New Mogadishu," a development initiative that aims to reshape the capital's economic landscape, in Mogadishu, Somalia, Dec. 19, 2024. (Somali National News Agency)
Vietnamese military officials look at S-125-2TM anti-aircraft missile launchers and ammunition during the Vietnam 2024 International Defense Expo in Hanoi on Dec. 19, 2024.
FILE - People examine photos as they search for missing or deceased people on the wall outside the morgue of Al-Mojtahed Hospital in Damascus, Syria, Dec. 11, 2024.
France's President Emmanuel Macron visits the Kavani district in Mamoudzou, on the French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte on Dec. 19, 2024, following Cyclone Chido's passage over the archipelago. A young girl walks in the Kaweni slum on the outskirts of Mamoudzou, in the French Indian Ocean island of Mayotte, Dec. 19, 2024, after Cyclone Chido. France's President Emmanuel Macron speaks with children during his visit at the Kavani district in Mamoudzou, on the French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte on Dec. 19, 2024, following the Cyclone Chido's passage over the archipelago. A child sleeps at the Lycee des Lumires where he found refuge, in Mamoudzou, Mayotte, Dec. 19, 2024.