Israel's offensive
22 November, 2012
The world community has failed to develop a coherent peace strategy and seems helpless in normalising the situation created by Israel's attacks on the Gaza Strip. It is the need of the hour for the entire Muslim world and international community to develop comprehensive diplomacy to stop Israel's aggression, which entered the sixth day on Monday after a huge toll of casualties. As a result of Israel's offensive, more than 78 Palestinians, 23 of them children, have been killed in Gaza and hundreds have been wounded. Still there is no sign of intensifying diplomatic efforts to stop Israeli air strikes on Gaza and retaliatory rocket fire from the Gaza Strip. Only Egypt seems serious in wanting a ceasefire, calling for the entire Muslim world to play a pivotal role for an immediate stop to the offensive against Gaza. The questions remains why Gaza is facing a blockade and why Israel continues to follow the policy of targeted assassinations. If Israel desisted from such operations, Hamas would never attack Israel. Rocket fire and attacks by Hamas against Israel are retaliation after the many casualties Gaza has suffered. The recent offensive by the Israeli forces has, so far, drawn western support. US and European leaders have called these strikes Israel's 'right of self-defence'. This support has fanned the flames of this war. This is a war between right and wrong — one is an occupying force and the other is an occupied land, one has nuclear weapons, the other just has rockets, one has the support of the world's superpower, the other does not. These rivals have long standing issues and conflicts, which ought to be settled by the world community under the banner of the United Nations. Despite the west's hypocrisy, there should be a sincere effort to immediately stop Israel's aggression. We need lasting peace in the Middle East. SYED SADAQAT HUSSAIN
Karachi
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