India has every reason to be concerned, worried, and be on guard following the Palestine military movement Hamas' attack on Israel last weekend, two New Delhi-based strategic affairs pundits have said.
What Triggered the Conflict?
On Saturday, when the whole of Israel was celebrating the festival of Sabbath, Hamas militants launched a barbaric attack on the Mediterranean country, butchering over 1,2000 of its citizens in what was the bloodiest assault on the Jewish state in 75 years of its formation.
The attack ignited the bloodiest escalation between Israel and Palestine in decades, with the former launching airstrikes against Hamas fighters in the Gaza Strip, which the hardline Islamic group has controlled since 2007.
According to Palestine's health ministry, nearly 1,400 have died in Israel's bombardment campaign which began immediately after the Hamas attack on the West Asian nation.
Latest reports suggest that Israel is planning a massive ground offensive to completely "destroy Hamas" in the region as it called up 300,000 reservists for combat duty.
Doubts Grow About the Effectiveness of Israel's Surveillance System
With the bloodshed showing no signs of deescalating, Dr. Muddassir Quamar, an academic at India's prestigious higher educational institution, Jawaharlal Nehru University, urged New Delhi to keep a close watch on the developments between Israel and Palestine.
"In terms of security, the Hamas attack on Israel is a significant development. One of the early lessons is the question about high-tech man-less surveillance system which was breached by Hamas," he told Sputnik India on Thursday.
"Secondly, terrorism is a threat which one cannot take the eyes off. Even if it is dormant, terrorism remains a threat," Quamar added.
Warring Parties Should Never Close the Door For Peace Talks
On the other hand, Fazzur Rahman Siddiqui, a research fellow at the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA), who specializes in West Asian affairs, noted that the main lesson India should learn from the latest escalation of hostilities between Israel and Palestine is that no conflict should be prolonged.
"Secondly, every nation including India should realize that negotiations and diplomacy are the best way to resolve a conflict. Furthermore, warring parties should not close the doors for peace talks and no party should be treated as weaker, vulnerable," the international relations expert said in a conversation with Sputnik India.
On being specifically asked about how India should react to news of Israeli weapons being destroyed by Hamas fighters during their raid in the country, Siddiqui underlined that the Indian government was smart enough to take stock of the situation in the broader context of its security.
India Capable of Repelling a Hamas-Like Attack
He pointed out that India's armed forces have all the means with them to make the necessary upgrades in their security apparatus after assessing what needs to be done to avoid such an attack here.
"Given India's military, diplomatic, and strategic strength, India is quite capable of defending itself against such onslaught or assault or terror activity like what Hamas carried out in Israel," Siddiqui observed.
On the other hand, he also pointed out that India has been one of the oldest supporters of the cause of Palestine before arguing that Hamas was a different story altogether.
Hamas Doesn't Pursue the Path of Peace
"Hamas doesn't pursue the path of peace, and political engagement and that's why, New Delhi has kept itself away from Hamas," the geopolitical commentator remarked.
Yet, he suggested, that it does not mean that India was going to abandon the cause of Palestine as India has repeatedly made its stance clear that it was keen to see an independent sovereign nation-state of Palestine along with Israel.