Demonstration against Israeli bombing of Gaza in London on Saturday.

[SmilleysPeople]

If anyone is intersted.

It's at 12.30pm along Embankment, nearest tubes Embankment and Charing Cross.

It's being organised by Palestinian Solidarity Campaign, Stop the War Coaltion and numerous other groups.

I will bump this sporadically, but if anyone else would like to help promote this, plaese bump too.

I will be there.

kate, I think a more accurate anology would be that if missiles were being regularly launched from Belfast and hitting Liverpool, then the UK government might think about action to prevent this and defend the people of Liverpool.

With regard to Egypt, I imagine that Israel would have obtained permission from both America and Egypt before starting this action. I hope they know what they are doing, because it seems like a very bad idea all round. Even myself, as an Israel supporter, am dismayed by what innocent Palestinians are going through and the fact that women and children are not allowed to leave Gaza.

I note that both Obama and Blair have been very quiet recently. There is so much we don't know.

That's why I don't read newspapers anymore or watch the TV news, Donnie - or if I do, I treat it like a work of fiction. The world service is the only place where you can get news without ideological spin these days

That is interesting news from Egypt Kate. Pity our news outlets didn;t deem fit to report it.

I think you can equate it because killing people with mortors or missiles is still killing people. The means are unimportant. If Hamas had the munitions, Israel would be dust now. Israel have not used nuclear power, and never will. If Hamas had nuclear power they would use it if they had the chance.

Don't patronise me Donnie.

I read and watch a selection of media but my point is that the BBC which is what most people would rely on for their news is clearly not able to show a complete picture of the conflict.

Kate- imo the difference between Hamas and Israeli govt is vast, one is a religious terrorist organisation and the other is a state govt at war. If Hamas stopped sending rockets into Israel then Israel would pull out of Gaza. But unfortunately, for reasons of their own, Hamas don't just want Palestine, they want to obliterate the state of Israel and as MT stated if they had the arms, they would.

No one can show a complete picture as media have not even been allowed into Gaza in the last week.

"Israel have not used nuclear weapons and never will. If Hamas had nuclear power they would use it if they had the chance"

words fail me.

oh and btw monkeytrousers I would be very, very careful before I described genuine letters of protest published in a national newspaper by named individuals as 'a work of fiction'.

Why do words fail you, donnie?

"very, very careful"?

Is that a threat?

Yes Donnie, why do words fail you? I'm interested to hear if you have anything constructive to say.

I am amazed at the one sided media reportage of this situation.

Hamas is dedicated to the destruction of Israel. They have ended the cease fire. They continue to bombard Israel.

They send their young people into Israel to be suicide bombers. What kind of people are you allying yourselves with? People who scream death to America, death to Britain, death to Jews? You look at the protesters in Pakistan. My god.

I'm beginning to think that anti Semitism is thriving.

Swap 'death to Jews' to any other group of people and how comfortable would everyone feel?

I agree with you WW.

Plenty of Jewish people demonstrated yesterday too, I don't think they can be accused of antisemitism. I don't think demonstrating in favour of Palestinians equals allying myself with Hamas either.

500 Palestinians (nearly all civilians) have been killed versus 4 Israelis. That's one sided.

How does Israel not realise that by their current actions they are only creating the next generation of suicide bombers? What they're doing isn't even in their own interest.

Does the fact that the Hamas rockets haven't managed to kill more Israelis make them OK?

If 20 British people were killed by rockets fired into our country, I'd expect our government to take serious freaking action. Right away. Not after months of rockets as fired by Hamas.

Palestinians voted in Hamas. Hamas's primary focus is to destroy Israel and Jews. You march, you march for Hamas. You march for anti Semitism. Don't be so short sighted.

Why do you think the Egyptians, the Syrians and other Arab nations are keeping their traps shut over this? Because they know that those mad Hamas terrorists represent far more of a threat and a problem than Israel ever would. They are mad men.

You're talking about an organisation that goes into Palestinian homes, holds families at gunpoint and then uses their homes for weapons storage, firing rockets etc. It's not an organisation that gives a stuff about its people.

I know innocents are being killed but I don't believe the Israelis are interested in killing civilians. Hamas are. That's the difference.

And I'm terrified anti Semitism is on the rise again legitimised by people like Annie Lennox and Bianca Jagger.

Absolutely spot on post, WW.

I mentioned upthread I'm no friend of Hamas.
Both Israelis and Palestinians are being seriously let down by their leaders IMO.

If anti-semitism and other forms of extremism are on the rise, don't the Israeli government realise their actions are largely to blame for it?

Sputnik. I'm interested in knowing how you think the Israeli govt should have responded to sustained rocket attacks on Southern Israel.

The solution only to this conflict is only going to come about by people sitting down and talking. Violence only breeds more violence.

The Hamas leaders are now sitting safe in their bunkers. Are the Israelis going to tear up every civilian in Gaza now to get to them?

So the Israelis should have continued to take living with 15 second warnings before their schools and homes were destroyed, in the cause of a greater good?

That's a lot to ask.

So the Palestinians should've put up with the blockade, loss of livelihood, malnutrition, brutalization, hopelessness? Should they now put up with the hell that living in Gaza atm must be like? Really we could go on for days like this and not get anywhere.

And are Hamas going to kill an increasing amount of Israelis with the longer range, bigger and better warheads that Iran and Syria are so thoughtfully providing?

"The solution only to this conflict is only going to come about by people sitting down and talking. Violence only breeds more violence."

So, who's going to start negotiating? Hamas? Yeah right.

Obviously nobody wants violence and civilians suffering. It's terrible but I do think people are very very quick to jump on the anti Israel bandwagon.

Why the feck does nobody march against Mugabe? He's killed thousands!

What happened to the Fatah party. Weren't they voted out in a landslide election?

How can Israel find any lasting peace with a democratically elected govt whose stated aim is the destruction of Israel.