2009 Gaza conflict

In January 2009, Israel launched an invasion of the Gaza Strip with the stated aim of ending rocket attacks by Palestinian militants and destroying tunnels into Gaza used to smuggle weapons as well as food and fuel; 'Operation Cast Lead' widened to the removal of Hamas. The operation led to 1,166 Palestinian deaths (including 89 children) by Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) estimates, but 1,434 (288 children) according to the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR); Israel maintains that the majority of fatalities were Palestinian fighters, rather than the 235 minority reported by the PCHR, and has rejected Israeli soldiers' accounts of abuses and unlawful killings, reported in the Israeli press, as "hearsay". Limited humanitarian assistance was permitted, and many areas were devastated; over 50,000 people were left homeless. The Israeli civilian death toll was three, with 10 soldiers also killed (four by 'friendly fire'). With international pressure growing, the two sides agreed on a temporary daily truce on 7th January, with hopes that this would lead to a permanent ceasefire.

Major hostilities ended on 18th January, with talks opening in Cairo aimed at building a lasting truce. Israel lifted a ban on international aid agencies entering the Gaza Strip on 23rd January; the United Nations' Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Sir John Holmes, criticised Israel for the destruction in Gaza, which led to raw sewage flooding streets and buildings levelled over wide areas. Meanwhile, smugglers resumed moving supplies through tunnels from Egypt.

Occasional rocket launches from Gaza, again with no injury or loss of life, continued after the end of major hostilities, and an Israeli soldier was killed by a roadside bomb; Israel issued a warning that it would use "disproportionate" force in response. By late March, rocket attacks were still occurring; a launch that led to no injury or deaths was followed by Israeli retaliation with air strikes that killed two Palestinians. In an exchange of ground fire, one Israeli soldier was slightly injured. These attacks coincided with the entry to office of Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition government.

Satellite imaging allowed researchers to identify over 1,000 destroyed or damaged buildings; the United Nations Development Programme network estimated that 14,000 Gazan homes, 219 factories and 240 schools had been destroyed in the conflict. Rebuilding efforts would be made under restrictions on imports into Gaza, and an early estimate put costs at over $2 billion over up to five years.