76% of Brits support an immediate ceasefire in Gaza

@helenS Yes, I totally support Israel's right to pursue Hamas for their terrorism.

But the people of Gaza are not Hamas. They are mostly human beings trying to live a peaceful life there and in the West Bank. We are on the brink of a humanitarian disaster.

@Abstraction Right now the "Palestinian People" are playing the victim card again, as usual. They are perfect at that. Poor innocent children will die when Israel attacks a kindergarden where one of their rocket launchers is located.
Ever heard of any protests by parents in Gaza against placing military equipment in schools and mosques?

@helenS I could say it's beautiful for German people who don't have to live in Gaza!

@helenS 💯

@Harmonium1923 I've been told off for my privilege a few times by other people in first world countries who also don't live in the Gaza Strip.

Personally, I'd still choose to be a citizen of a first world country that has been attacked by terrorists than live in an open air prison in dire conditions that is currently being starved and bombed.

I condemn Hamas and the IDF. I value all lives equally and want peace.

@Burnley123 I appreciate your understanding of the suffering of innocent Palestinian civilians in Gaza and elsewhere. I don’t feel otherwise. But I do not accept that there is some kind of moral equivalence between Israel and the terrorists who seek to destroy that country and kill and torture Jews who live there and elsewhere. It’s not the same. It’s not even close. And as one of a small number of Jews left in this world, over about 40% of whom live in Israel, I fear more for our survival than I have at any point in my life. The horror isn’t limited to Hamas, but it sure didn’t take long after their vicious attack for the world to start blaming Jews and Israelis not only for defending themselves, but also for being victims in the first place. It’s not that different from the last 3,000 years but it’s really hitting home in a personal way for me now.

If I were leading Israel, I would try to spare civilian suffering, but I would not stop fighting until I had ensured the survival of my nation and my people. The truth is that the enemies of Israel use civilians as pawns and weapons. Everyone wants to blame the Jews for the suffering of the Palestinians. History suggests their real enemies are elsewhere.

@Harmonium1923 Thank you for being reasonable, even if we strongly disagree.

Your people have suffered great historic injustices and at the hands of white European non-Jews.

I'm very much an opponent of the far right and I'm motivated by the desire to stop war and suffering. I value all lives equally. On moral equivalence, I don't see violence done by the IDF as any better or worse than Hamas and I think hundreds of thousands of civilians are going to die.

I think your concern for Gazans is sincere and I don't think that you like Netanyahu. However, the current actions are going to kill a lot of people. Do Palestinians get security?

I also think that the aggressive actions of the IDF are going to increase the danger, even for Jewish Israelis. A regional conflict is a scary possibility. An invasion of Gaza is also going to lead to the deaths of a lot of young Israeli conscripts, as well as well as increasing the likelihood of terrorist retaliation from elsewhere.

I support Israel's right to exist and know that it was under immediate existential threat at least up until the six day war. If the power dynamics were reversed, I would absolutely be defending Israelis in Gaza from bombing and starvation from the Palestinians.

@Burnley123 I appreciate the civil discussion of a difficult and often emotional topic