Link to article: https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-arrests-two-prisoners-who-escaped-gilboa-prison-israeli-police-2021-09-19/
On Sunday, September 19, Israel recaptured the last two remaining Palestinian militants that escaped from their maximum security jail. The recapturing was accomplished by Israel raiding the city of Jenin in the northern west bank, a decision which caused violence to break out between Israeli troops and Palestinians. Upon exiting Jenin, rocks and explosives were thrown towards Israeli troops. Palestinians have been protesting in support of the escaped militants, who have been praised along with other armed groups that are jailed as heroes in the fight against Israel for statehood in Palestine. The six militants escaped in early September by tunneling out of the jail, a move which Israeli officials claim will be investigated to figure out how the lapse in security was possible.
From an analytical perspective, this seems like another event in the constant fight for statehood between Israel and Palestine. Since the formation of Israel after World War II, there has been almost constant fighting between the IDF and various Palestinian militant groups. Israel almost always wins, and with each victory, they conquer more and more land from the Palestinians. This leads to more protests from the Palestinian population, which boosts the power of militant groups leading to more conflict, and the cycle continues. While these terrorist groups are certainly dangerous, it is hard to consider them a major threat when comparing them to the nuclear power that is Israel, one of the most militarized countries in the world.
This article connects to the class through the topic of global actors. Israel has complete sovereignty and although states like Saudi Arabia do not consider it a legitimate state, it is still fully recognized as one by the U.N. Palestine is the most widely known example of a non-recognized state, with the PLO and Hamas having partial control over their territories, but still not having full sovereignty. The six escaped Palestinian militants would be considered an example of non-state actors.