Yesterday was the anniversary of the first day of Gaza’s bombardment by Israel – a 23-day war which left more than 1,400 people dead, many of them children.
I never made it to Gaza during my time in Israel and Palestine, but heard from older people who knew it well how idyllic it used to be, in the years before and immediately after Israel’s creation – long before it was turned into the largest prison camp in the world.
Twelve months on from Operation Cast Lead the tiny enclave is still in tatters. Destroyed homes have not been repaired and the population is haunted by what happened during those weeks.
There’s some blame on both sides of course. Gaza’s leaders are not innocent in this, but Israel’s continued blockade of the territory – and its apparently indiscriminate bombing – is not what you could call a proportionate response.

There’s an interesting programme on YouTube that anyone with an interest in this conflict should watch. Unreported World explains some of the tensions between the growing Haredi – or Orthodox – population and the more secular Jewish Israelis. The Orthodox wield great political power, which will increase enormously over the coming years.