Re: Hamas to blame for conflict
Carolyn Moore asks: "what would we do?" if we were Israel. She needs to also ask the same question if we were Palestinians living in Gaza. 1.8 million people, mostly refugees who fled or were forced out of other parts of Palestine, have to live in an area 41 kilometres long by 6 to 12 kilometres wide. It's hard to imagine that many people living in a narrow band of semi-arid land the same length as the distance from Nelson to Ainsworth Hot Springs. The Gazans can't have a sea port or an airport or cross freely over their land border. Gaza is basically a large prison camp.
Moore and our present Canadian Government have chosen to align themselves with one side. If they learned about and understood the history of the origins of this Middle East problem they would have a much more balanced view.
The origins of the problem go back to the start of the Zionist movement in the late 1800s. Then read about the Balfour Declaration in Britain in 1917 and the Palestine Mandate by the League of Nations in 1922. The 28 articles of this Mandate encourage the establishment of a Jewish state in Palestine but almost nothing for the Palestinian people living there.
Less finger pointing and blaming and more knowledge about the situation would go a long way to being a positive influence in this dilemma.
Barry Rice, Balfour