I read with incredulity Abe Hayeem’s letter and offer this brief history for the benefit of your readers.

Until 2005, Gaza was indeed under Israeli control and prospering: its people lived alongside a small number of Jewish families, (around 2,000), living in farms created from sand dunes never previously cultivated.

All this ended when Hamas won an election with a vow to expel or kill all Jews and, when its term of office ran out, seized power and slaughtered its rivals.

After increased attacks by Hamas, Israel withdrew — every last farmer, worker and soldier.

So ended the occupation, but far from content, Hamas commenced an escalating programme of shelling and mortaring villages and towns within Israel. Eventually, after years of such torment and when three schoolboys had been kidnapped and murdered in cold blood, Israel decided to act; but even then with “kid gloves”, striving to minimise civilian deaths.

Contrary to Hamas claims, more than 900 of the dead were Hamas members and supporters — men of military service age.

Throughout all this decade, Israel did not besiege Gaza. On the contrary, its water, oil and energy needs and most of its medical and food imports were and still are supplied by Israel.

Israel’s “effective control” of the strip was limited to supplies of cement and iron, most of which were used to build tunnels, rockets and  missile launchers to attack Israel more aggressively.

It was only when the nature and diversity of the tunnels under the border was discovered and the murder of the three boys was almost certain, that Israel unleashed a campaign to free the wretched Gazans from Hamas, which was oppressing them.

Its own published information boasts 160 children died when made to dig the tunnels and many more Arabs “disappeared” because they might have revealed the logistical detail to the Israelis.

Never in the history of warfare has a combatant done more to save innocent lives and never has such care been taken to pinpoint legitimate military targets.

In short, the Gazans, misled by Hamas, were the engine of their own thrashing and were very lucky that they were punished by the most humane army in the world.

Look at what we in the UK and our allies have done recently in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya. You may conclude that Hamas and its Gazan supporters have got off lightly for its barbarous behaviour.

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