Why do Israelis and the rest of the world view the Gaza conflict so differently? And can this disconnect be overcome?

By Eyal Mayroz, University of Sydney

Hamas’ vicious attack on southern Israel on October 7 and Israel’s ruthless response have sparked a global campaign for a ceasefire in Gaza and an end to Palestine’s occupation.

Once the fighting stops, the world’s attention will shift to tough “day after” negotiations, which would necessitate, among other things, painful and risky concessions from both sides.

Given the vast deficits of trust and favour between Israelis and Palestinians, such concessions will be extremely difficult to achieve.

Decades of mutual grievances, tit-for-tat violence, daily rights violations of Palestinians and intergenerational trauma have eroded whatever goodwill may have existed once for the “other side”.

And while learning about the tragedies of others can support healing and reconciliation processes, turning victimhood into a competition has produced polarisation and distrust.

The only hope for peace now is of a plan imposed from the outside.

To encourage faith in the process, mediators will have to demonstrate both fairness and a previously missing commitment to push the parties into making such concessions – on assurances of robust and durable international support.

Even then, changes of leadership will have to take place for any meaningful breakthrough to occur.

How Israelis are viewing the war

The world has largely moved on from the October 7 attacks, with many people’s memories now obscured by the daily footage of the carnage in Gaza. More than 28,000 Palestinians have been killed so far, and many more are still under the rubble.

However, Israelis don’t see on their screens what the rest of the world sees. Rather, they continue to relive — through survivors’ testimonies and other stories — the horrors of October 7. These kinds of reports are rarely watched now by others.

Gaza’s destruction and the mass killings of Palestinians – many of them elderly, women and children – are reported by Israel’s mainstream media very selectively, as “unfortunate” but inevitable collateral damage for which Hamas alone should be held accountable.

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