Monday's rocket attack on Israel by Hamas militants in Gaza has escalated the conflict between the two sides into a new phase that could lead to the most serious and deadly confrontation since 2014 -- and in the worst case spark a wider war in the Middle East.
Coming 10 days after other rockets were fired from Gaza toward densely populated Tel Aviv, the missile hit a house north of the city, wounding seven people. Dozens more rockets and mortars followed.
In response to Monday's strike, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu cut short his trip to the US and ordered more troops to the border with Gaza. Israeli jets also swung into action, pounding Hamas military positions.
By Wednesday, protests were erupting throughout the West Bank, with reports of Palestinians clashing with Israeli forces near Ramallah, and fears growing of another "intifada". A car ramming in Jerusalem that injured two students was also probably a terror attack.
The violence is spreading and escalating, but what triggered the decision by Hamas to take their fight to Israel once again -- and on such a large scale?
Various theories abound, including that it is an attempt by Hamas to derail Mr Netanyahu's re-election bid with the polls in Israel due shortly on April 9.
Some think it is a tactic by Hamas to draw attention away from its mishandling of Gaza's economy, which has led to street protests that it has put down violently.
Another explanation previously was that the political and military chiefs of Hamas no longer saw eye-to-eye on strategy and that a schism had emerged. The Hamas movement's overall chief, Yahya Sinwar, had been castigated by Islamic hardliners in the past for trying to calm tensions temporarily to end the Gaza blockade.
Sinwar more recently was said by some to have tried to prevent the use of tunnels for Palestinian fighters to enter Israel, as ordered by Muhammad Deif, the military wing's top commander. Then again, others believe Sinwar has never really changed his spots and is not seeking a political solution at all.
Are the two Hamas chiefs in Gaza, along with their allies in the West Bank, actually acting in tandem and trying to trigger a massive Israeli military retaliation?
In Israel, meanwhile, Mr Netanyahu himself has faced harsh criticism from many for being too soft militarily on Iran-backed Hamas.
Israel and Hamas appear to be caught in a vicious cycle of attack and counter-attack. However, no one should underestimate Mr Netanyahu's resolve if there are further strikes on his country, especially Tel Aviv.
In Thailand, many may feel the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a distant one and of little concern. This attitude is wrong. Any conflagration in the Middle East, perhaps with Israel pitted directly against Iran in the bleakest scenario, would further pressure an already stuttering global economy, hurting Thailand's too.
About 25,000 Thais work on farms in Israel, though the majority are not within range of most Hamas missiles. But as Hamas's rocket technology develops, especially with outside help, this could easily change.
If Hamas as a whole has decided on a strategy of coordinated military action involving rocket and terror attacks on Israel, along with fomenting chaos in the West Bank, then not only combatants but civilians on both sides face only death and destruction.
It's time for Hamas and Israel to pull back from the brink, and for the Palestinian militants to set aside their military ambitions and return to the negotiating table -- something that had already been taking place with Egypt acting as a mediator when the surprise onslaught of rocket strikes on Israel began.
