Israel/Palestine

If the Israelis alone were responsible for it, I would say that the situation needs to change from within, and I would call it a self-inflicted confinement.

If the Palestinians alone were responsible for it, I would say the situation needs to change from without, and I would call it a blockade.

If both sides were equally responsible for it, I would seek dialogue between the sides, and I would call it a regional conflict.

Of course, your proposition and my responses are equally simplistic: the status of Gaza has changed at least four times in three generations, and there are additional regional players other than Palestinians and Israelis involved in determining the fate and status of Gaza.

But in no event would I call Gaza a prison of any kind. By obfuscating the status of Gaza in such terms, one only deflects from seeking a solution to the conflict. And there had been several regional players that never wanted Gaza to be stable or prosperous, and who were only interested in destabilizing both Israel and Gaza (as well as Lebanon and Syria, among others) in pursuit of their own regional ambitions.