Situation in Israel - we can help.

I listened to an interview with Tony Blair yesterday. He has visited this area over 80 times as peace envoy. I hope this has had some positive effect, but difficult to tell when he talks spin the whole time. When asked about his efforts failing, he reframed it as not yet succeeding. This situation is horrendous, flaring up day after day and children being caught in the crossfire. Surely Palestine can be given a state? Lets hope this time they move to end this violence.

petition here

I have signed this and am pleased to see that it has been posted here. As my grandmother was Palestinian I have a strong opinion on the situation so pleased someone else made the post.

www.map-uk.org/ is an organisation that offers daily medical help if you feel you want to do something practical.

Done.

Done

I am fully aware of the appalling historical aspects of what has happened to Jews in the last century.

I would like to know when the Zionists in the Israeli government are going to realise just how much they keep alienating their neighbours by their continued development of fortified Jewish settlements on the West Bank and their continued flouting of United Nations Security Council resolution 446.

In the mid 20th century, us British finally realised that their attempts to repress and oppress independence by the subjects of the British Empire were failing and that this policy would never bring peace.

The violence perpetrated by British forces trying in to keep the Empire was very brutal. Please note Israel. It only made things worse.

The militant Israelis need to understand that their continued oppression will never bring them peace. Perhaps if they looked at the mistakes we made they could learn from them and save a lot more blood being shed.

I know they consider that the land of Israel was promised to them by God but there were always others living there.

I cannot help thinking that there is a parallel between Israel's line of keeping Israel just for the Jews and Hitler's desire for a pure Aryan race to occupy German lands.
Hitler called it "lebensraum" what do the Zionist Israel's call their policy of easing out the Palestinians from Israel?

Both sides in the current conflict behave with unwarranted aggression but one side is all-powerful. The others are fighting a Guerrilla war not to be forced out of the land at all. Israel has the power they could do more to end this.

I am now off to don my flak jacket.

A little girl in a Gaza hospital shown on bbc news. Bandage on her forehead. So wrong.

Done

While there is an extreme right-wing government in Israel with ambitions for a greater Israel, there is no hope for Palestinians and serious cause for southern Lebanon to worry.

Signed..... seems the Israelies did learn something from the Nazis after all:
'You kill one of our soldiers, and we will retaliate by wiping out dozens of innocent families and their children'
On 'Thought for the Day' (Radio4) on 'Children in Need Day' a Rabbi talked about the need to protect children.... a few moments before the programme presenters had talked about a picture (front page of a newspaper) showing a Palestinian father craddling his dead child in his arms.
I think that made the point far more eloquently than I could. What a juxtaposition!

While Israel views Gaza as a security issue rather than a humanitarian one, nothing will improve for anyone.

Oldgreymare Not all Israelis, by any meansm are so aggressive towards Palestinians as Mr Netanyahu.

Zionists appear to exert great influence in the USA, which has been very reluctant to criticise the Israeli government.
If the majority of Israeli citizens do not support the policy towards Palestine, they will have to show it by their votes.

While you are all worried about the residents in Gaza, I have a friend in Tel Aviv who is 4 months pregnant, has a 2 year old too, she and family have had to move into their bomb shelter. There is wrong on both sides.

Quite right, Oldgreymare. Netanyahu has been around a long time and a lot of Israelis hate him but sadly not the majority, Greatnan.

Dorset - I am quite sure that nobody wants the innocent Israeli civilians to suffer - but they could vote to change the situation. The Palestinians can't.

Many thanks to all of you who have already signed the petition regarding Palestine joining the UN.

Certainly I have no wish for the people outside Gaza city to be harmed. Quite the opposite.

I have also copied below my comment on the Jonathan Sack's remarks on Today programme yesterday,

My daughter's in-laws are Quakers and they lived and worked in Ramallah for 5 years at the Quaker School. They witnessed the lives of many Palestinian people. They also worked with Israeli people who wish to end the conflict and are ashamed of how the Palestinians are being treated with regard to border controls, sanctions and total disregard for their own identity. They witnessed many tragedies and heard some terrible stories.

If the Israeli government would return the lands they took illegally and opened up communications, yes, even with Hamas, then the conflict would, at least, be arrested for the present, and common sense could be restored.

Israel has become the aggressor........I understand the history of the Holocaust and the resolve of the Jewish people never to be so isolated and vulnerable ever again.....but sometimes I feel as though they are treating the Palestinian people in the way they were treated by the Germans, i.e. estranging them from mainstream, forcing them to live in "ghettos" and making them into the enemy, instead of neighbours, who whilst they do not share the same religion, are people who have lived in the Holy Land just as long as the Jews.

By the way I have Jewish blood in my family.

Let us hope that common sense is restored and that President Obama does not give his support and arms to Israel so that they can pursue their agenda.

Also, many people in Iran do not want a war, so let us hope they can have a voice one day and help their dictatorial leaders see sense as well.

Greatnan One of the sources of American support for Israel is extreme Evangelical Christianity. Its adherents don't give a fig for Jews per se but they believe that the Rapture – when they will all be immediately transported (minus their clothes) to heaven – will not take place until the Holy Land is fully restored to the Jews.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Palestinian_rocket_attacks_on_Israel,_2012

Shirley Williams on Any Questions made very good sense on the Arab-Israeli question and David Willetts wasn't bad either. Can be found on BBC radio i-Player, I think.

anno Shirley Williams makes good sense on most things! I missed her on the Israel situation but I heard her very sensible comments about the police commissioner elections debacle at the beginning of the program.

My favourite political thinker. And just as clear-headed as ever. I treasure a photo I have of me shaking her hand at a SDP rally we had in the early, optimistic days.

www.nkusa.org/activities/demonstrations/20110922.cfm

Is an intersting site.

or even 'interesting'!