Frank Ball, Tweed Heads
The current conflict in Israel/Palestine is a conflict on many levels.
The main story coming out of the area is about the rockets from Gaza and the bombardment from Israel. This story has been played out on a number of occasions with deadly consequences, mainly for the Palestinians, and if things remain as they are at present will continue again and again in the future with the same results.
The reason being they are the symptoms of the problem not the problem itself. This is because there are approximately equal numbers of Jews and Palestinians within Israel’s borders, the difference being one group (Israelis) has one of the largest and most sophisticated armed forces in the world, while the other group (Palestinians) have no army, air force or navy at all. The balance of power is completely skewed in favour of the Israelis. There is also the political situation within Israel, where, after three elections Benjamin Netanyahu, the present Prime Minister, has not been able to form a government. If he loses power he could be charged with corruption, and there is nothing so good as a lovely war to bring in support.
Therefore the events in Jerusalem with ‘settlers’ chanting ‘death to Arabs’ and trying to evict Palestinians from their homes, allied with the events at the Al Aqsa Mosque where police used excessive force, all played into Netanyahu’s
hand and dragged Hamas into the conflict; and the rest is now playing out.
Gaza is one of the most densely populated places on Earth, under siege from land, sea and air 24/7. The West Bank has been under military rule for over 50 years and the Palestinians who are Israeli citizens do not have equal rights with Jewish Israelis. Until these issues are resolved the conflicts will continue.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
