While our nation celebrates a new president, two countries on the other side of the world live with politics as usual. Israel recently ended a 22-day conflict with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Bloomber.com reported on Jan. 18 that 1300 Palestinians and 13 Israelis died as a result of the conflict. Conflict between Israel and Palestine has been frequent enough to be called common.

Cary Wolovick, senior political science major, recently visited Israel. He believes Israelis have become accustomed to strife, but doesn’t know if conflict solves any problem.

“Only when Palestinians and Jews fully accept the right of the other to create a sovereign and secure state will there be enduring peace,” said political science professor Daniel Kempton. “Unfortunately, for each this will mean meaningful concessions and to some degree, trusting their security to the other.”

Politics combined with trust plays a large role in the conflict. Currently Gaza is controlled by Hamas, however, the West Bank of Palestine is controlled by the PLO political.

“The Palestinian community is deeply divided between those who support the PLO, which endorses peace and negotiations, and those who support Hamas, which is committed to the destruction of Israel,” Kempton said.

Wolovick believes support for Hamas derives from necessity. He expressed the belief that Hamas gains power by providing necessary infrastructure to Gaza.

“It’s basically money talks,” Wolovick said. “That’s the problem.”

In contrast to Palestine, which is currently divided between Hamas and the PLO, Israel will soon elect a new Prime Minister. Former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni are both running for office. The election’s results may be influenced by the recent conflict in Gaza.

“The majority of Israelis believe the intervention in Gaza was a legitimate and necessary response to the continued rocket attacks launched by Hamas from Gaza,” Kempton said. “Thus, the support for military action is strong given the continuing threat to Israeli citizens.”

The problem with Israel and Palestine is not incurable, but it’s a problem many Americans are not familiar with. News reports give military accounts, but peace between Gaza and Israel will not be achieved by simply waving a flag or signing a document. A change in circumstance and trust is needed before any progress can be made.

Citizens in Gaza look to Hamas for their needs, but Hamas continually launches rockets into Israel. That causes Israelis to continually support military actions against Gaza and vote in leaders who also support military action. The cycle continues because the roots of the problem are not addressed. Wolovick thinks education and support for PLO will aid in both sides coming to a peace treaty. Still, that may not be possible if current trends continue.

“Each round of violence makes trust more difficult, and thus makes future peace less likely,” Kempton said.

Forming an opinion about world events can be easy when the world only comes to life through computer screens and television sets. Realizing the true complexity of this issue requires Americans to think beyond their own political climate. While change should not be a uniquely American idea, circumstances sometimes encourage old methods to remain strong.