Israelis and Arabs have been fighting over Gaza
on and off, for decades. It's part of the wider
Arab Israeli conflict.
After World War II and the Holocaust in which six
million Jewish people were killed, more Jewish
people wanted their own country.
They were given a large part of Palestine, which they
considered their traditional home but the Arabs who
already lived there and in neighbouring countries felt
that was unfair and didn't accept the new country.

A history of the Gaza conflict
In 1948, the two sides went to war. When it ended,
Gaza was controlled by Egypt and another area, the
West Bank, by Jordan. They contained thousands of
Palestinians who fled what was now the new Jewish
home, Israel.
Israel's recognition
But then, in 1967, after another war, Israel occupied
these Palestinian areas and Israeli troops stayed
there for years. Israelis hoped they might exchange
the land they won for Arab countries recognising
Israel's right to exist and an end to the fighting.
Israel finally left Gaza in 2005 but soon after, a group
called Hamas won elections and took control there.
Much of the world calls Hamas a terrorist
organisation. It refuses to recognise Israel as a
country and wants Palestinians to be able to return to
their old home - and will use violence to achieve its
aims.
Since then, Israel has held Gaza under a blockade,
which means it controls its borders and limits who
can get in and out.
Life in Gaza.
Life for the many of the 1.5 million Palestinians who
live in the Gaza Strip is difficult.

Martin Patience reports from Gaza about
children there (29 July)
Israel controls its coastline and all the entry and exit
crossings into Israel. There is another crossing point
into Egypt. There is no working airport. Because
access is so restricted, not many goods get into or
out of Gaza. Food is allowed in, but aid agencies say
families are not eating as much meat or fresh
vegetables and fruit as they used to. There are often
power cuts.
Large numbers of people are unemployed because
businesses can get very few of their products out of
Gaza to sell, and people don't have much money to
buy things.
Palestinian refugees
During the 1948 and 1967 wars hundreds of
thousands of Palestinians left, or were forced out of,
their homes and moved to neighbouring countries to
become refugees.
More than 4.6 million Palestinians are refugees and
their descendants, many living in camps in the West
Bank, Gaza Strip, Syria, Jordan and Lebanon. They get
help from the United Nations.
Violence in Gaza
Though the Palestinians don't have an army, rockets
are regularly fired from Gaza into Israel. Israelis
living in border towns are used to having to take
shelter and adapting their lives to deal with the
rockets.
In the years since Israel withdrew its troops in 2005,
Gaza has seen several Israeli offensives. Israel says
these were aimed at putting a stop to rocket fire.
In 2008, Israel sent soldiers into Gaza. An estimated
1,300 people, many of them civilians, were killed in
Gaza before a ceasefire was declared; 13 Israeli
soldiers also died.
In 2012, at least 167 Palestinians and six Israelis
were killed during an Israeli operation. After eight
days a ceasefire was declared with both sides
promising to stop attacks.
Most recently in July 2014, Palestinian authorities
said over 200 people were killed by Israeli air
strikes and many more injured. Israel says more
than 1,100 rockets were fired from Gaza, seriously
injuring at least four Israelis, with one Israeli man
killed.
Peace Process
Other countries, particularly America, have worked
hard to settle the fighting between the Arabs and
Israelis but so far nothing has worked. Many people
want Gaza and the West Bank to be turned into a new country - Palestine. Israel won't agree to this unless it feels safe - and Hamas accepts its right to exist. The other sticking points are what will happen to Israelis who've settled in the West Bank, who will run Jerusalem and what will happen to the Palestinian refugees.

Source: www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/20436092