Public figures are often fond of saying, "if it is not broken, then don't fix it". This has to be just an excuse to sit on your hands. I always think if we can put a man on the moon there is little that we cannot fix, if we really want to. It seems we have to have bloody massacres before we are moved to act. And so it is with the Palestinians-Israeli conflict.
Egremont Today has from time to time run reports from the West Bank. Below is one from Gaza. The map to the right shows the region including the Gaza strip where the current violence is taking place.

An English doctor working in Gaza wrote,

"The term here could be ‘chaos’ but the word I could also choose is ‘organized destruction’ from the Israeli side. Over the previous 48 hours 35 killed and around 75 injured. From last night until now in one hospital in Jabbalayeh a further 28 killed including 3 women and 10 under 16 the youngest being one week old. Less than 10% would be classed as ‘fighters’ the majority are civilians with varying injuries. Those with head and chest wounds from blast and shrapnel are, if they survive, often transferred into Shifa Hospital from the peripheral smaller hospitals. The total injured at this one hospital being 50 cases in the last 24 hours. Again most of the injured are from within houses demolished by the missiles. One man has lost both lower limbs with an injury to one shoulder whilst feeding his goats. His father requests his photograph is sent to US as the chances, when he is ready for getting out, for appropriate prosthetic limb fitting, are slim to nil at present and getting any kind of prosthesis in, let alone fitted, is costly. He is 20 years old with a new wife and baby on the way. Underlying all these tragedies is the fact that such sophisticated military destruction is being supported by US and Europe with silence from the rest of the world. There is little condemnation for the state terrorism or continuing collective punishment."

But at least this time the world has responded. Condemnations from the US, UK, and the EU have all hit the headlines. Most of the comments seem to centre upon the disproportionate use of force. What is that? If someone blows my leg off that is just as bad even if 20 other people experience the same.

There are other voices as well, both from within Israel, and from their sympathisers outside. For example Dan Judelson Chair, European Jews for a Just Peace has approached the UK government saying "Gazans, particularly civilians and children, should not be obliged to bear the brunt of Israel's inability to accept the idea of a reciprocal ceasefire. I urge the Foreign and Commonwealth office to follow the EU president's statement and condemn this use of force"
You might want to ponder the map to the left and wonder how secure you would feel in this geographical situation if you were an Israeli! And what would you do to ensure peace?

th