0:00 Israel-Hamas complexity affects India 1:23 GDP of Gaza greatly affected 2:48 Israel-Hamas conflict impacting Indian initiatives 4:09 India's stance on global South criticism of Israel 5:28 India supports Palestine but maintains zero tolerance for terrorism. 6:55 India supports Palestine and criticizes Israeli settlements. 8:16 India maintains a stance on a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine. 9:31 Upcoming panel discussions on books about Israel and Palestine In this episode of Worldview, we discuss where India stands four months after the Israel-Gaza conflict began We return to the conflict in Gaza this week- where despite talks for another ceasefire, the bombardment of Gaza by Israeli Defence Forces who are on the ground in the territory continued for a fourth month. The top 5 statistics of the devastation: Since October 7, when 1,200 were killed in a series of brutal terror attacks in Israel one morning- Israel’s reprisal has left 26,500 people in Gaza dead, 65,000 injured or missing 1.9 million people of 85% of Gaza’s population is internally displaced- mostly in refugee shelters, 80 per cent of the labour force is currently unemployed UNOSAT images show that by the end of November 2023- 37,379 buildings had been damaged- that’s 18% of all structures- among them hospitals, schools, universities. At Davos, an official said just to rebuild houses will cost more than $15 billion In 2023, GDP per capita in Gaza shrank by 26 per cent and stands at one third of its peak in 2005, with 80 per cent of this loss occurring since 7 October UNCTAD estimates that even assuming that the military operation ends immediately, reconstruction starts straight away and GDP growth goes to 10 per cent, the GDP per capita of Gaza will return to its 2022 level by 2028 and to its 2006 levels in 2035 The conflict has moved across the region Israeli strikes on Lebanon, Iran-backed Houthis targeting Israel, terror bombing in Iran, Iran’s missile strikes on Iraq and Pakistan, US-UK strikes on Yemen, Israel strike on Iranian officers in Syria, and then a drone strike that killed US soldiers in Jordan- With regional instability inching closer to India, EAM Jaishankar visited Tehran for talks Where exactly does India stand: 1. New Delhi has made the point on zero tolerance to terrorism, and called Oct 7 a terror attack, but not banned Hamas as a terror organisation so far 2. After what seemed like the initial shift towards Israel at the UNGA- India has moved back to its traditional positions on supporting Palestine and criticizing Israeli settlements 3. India has expressed sympathy for Palestinians but is also preparing to send more than 50,000 labourers to fill construction jobs where Israel has cancelled Palestinian entry permits- one concern- the impact on 8 million expats in the rest of the Gulf region 4. India hasn’t called on Israel directly for a ceasefire, but apart from the UNGA resolution, was part of a very strong NAM resolution last month – the Kampala Declaration that condemned Israel 5. India isn’t mediating in the crisis, but is believed to pass on messages from one side to the other, as it has done during the Ukraine war WV Take: The unprecedented destruction of Gaza over the past four months has pushed India back on to the tightrope walk between Israel and Palestine. There is too much at stake in the outcomes of the conflict- including India’s ties with the rest of the region, the future of its major infrastructure corridors and the source of Indian energy and military hardware, for it to be seen coming down on one side or the other. Script and Presentation: Suhasini Haidar Production: Gayatri Menon and Shibu Narayan Thank you for watching our video! You can subscribe to our channel here: https://bit.ly/3c8Adi6 Visit https://www.thehindu.com/ for the latest updates, analysis, opinions, and more. You can also download our apps: Android: https://bit.ly/3nboBEi iOs: https://apple.co/3EDCwt4 The Hindu is committed to keeping you up-to-date with information on the developments in India and the world. We promise to deliver quality journalism that stays away from vested interest and political propaganda. You can support us by subscribing to our digital offerings here: https://bit.ly/3emywiz Follow us: Twitter: https://twitter.com/the_hindu Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_hindu/ #israel #hamas #palestine