The propaganda is too deep and pervasive to avoid being taken in

The statistical record suggests both sides lie about the facts in the Arab-Israeli conflict

There are detailed data on the number of Israeli’s killed during the decade ending in 2019 in the conflict between Israel and Palestine and its Arab neighbours. Data are compiled by a unit of the United Nations.

The Jerusalem Post reports that 2,600 rockets landed on Israel between 2017 and 2019. On average, it took more than ten rockets to cause one Israeli fatality with less than two persons injured. The thought of rockets landing on your home is terrifying but it is clear from those data that these rockets are not that effective as weapons.

The media reports on the recent hospital tragedy in the Gaza strip claim some 500 people were killed, and point to a misfired rocket as the cause if you believe the Israeli reports or an air attack by Israel on the hospital if you believe the reports from Palestine. You don't have to be a genius to conclude the errant rocket explanation doesn’t seem likely given the statistical history and an Israeli attack on a hospital is equally difficult to swallow given the Israeli’s culture which values all human life. In reality, we don’t know what happened but we do know that the tragedy is fodder for propaganda.

Major protests have erupted in many countries including Canada and the United States both in support of Israel and in support of Palestine. The hospital tragedy has played a central role in those protests. Whatever the explanation for the loss of life and injuries at the Baptist hospital, it seems that the fallout may be a greater tragedy than the event. An all out war in the middle East cannot be ruled out and would be devastating to the world economy, result in the destruction of many innocent lives, and increase the distance between Jew and Arab who for decades we have hoped would find a way to live in peace without the endless strife that has existed since Israel was created.

What is also clear is that the Arab hatred for Israel has roots not only in religion but also in the carnage Palestinians have suffered (whether deserved or otherwise) in the conflict with Israel. The same U.N source reports a staggeringly high number of casualties on the Palestinian side, about twenty times as great as the Israeli casualties.

I don’t think it matters much to the victims of violence who lost their lives whether the reason for the violence is religion, a fight over territory, or resentment of the interference of Western democracies in mid-East politics (when they adopted the Balfour Declaration from 1917, paid lip service to the Bible as justification, and created the Jewish state). Whether there is a God or not, and whether either of the Bible or Koran is fact or fiction, the statute of limitations on 2,000 year old promises has long since run out and it is time for people of all races, religions, and other identity metrics, to respect one another and live and let live.

Someone knows what actually caused the hospital explosion and in an ideal world they would just admit what happened and clear the air, accepting responsibility for the acts that gave rise to the devastating loss of life. That would be a sensible step towards peace. And world leaders and journalists would do well to avoid jumping on every opportunity to publish a provocative headline and let the facts emerge before drawing a conclusions or making speeches that lay blame, both fueling greater controversy and doing nothing to ease tensions.

But they won’t and this Hatfield and McCoy stand off will persist for decades to come.