Israel must be defended. So too must innocent Palestinians

Following Hamas’ brutal terror attacks, George Pitcher understands the pledges from Western leaders to “stand with Israel”. But he wonders if such statements of support are incomplete  

The West’s response to the crisis in Gaza is acutely worrying. Not so much because of its factional nature, inflammatory and offensive as that may be, but because it is insufficient.

Gavin Drake’s excellent explainer on these pages at the start of this week laid out lucidly how the region has arrived at the hellish choice between the complete destruction of Israel or Gaza. It’s incumbent on the United Nations to unravel that doomsday serpent-coil. And simple commitments to common cause fall well short of that aspiration.

Western leaders have united in their resolution that Israel has a right to defend her borders. Of course she does. The danger arises - after they have projected her flag onto their government buildings and sent armaments to assist her to do so - that these leaders then look away as Gaza is flattened in reprisal for Hamas atrocities committed on Israeli soil.