Re: World is holding its breath over events unfolding in the Middle East, Michael Harris, Aug. 5, 2024, Hill Times
August 9, 2024
Dear Editor,
Michael Harris made two errors in his column, " World is holding its breath over events unfolding in the Middle East" onAugust 5, 2024. The first is his assertion that "Israel's nine-month war has killed 40,000 Gazans, many of them women and children".
Firstly, it is not Israel's war, it is the Hamas Israel war that Hamas started in October 7, 2023. Next, in May of 2024, the United Nations revised the number of Gazan casualties to half of the 40,000 number utilized by Hamas. The Hamas Medical Services has been unable to provide more than 10.000 names, so the number may even be lower. In addition, Hamas combatants are listed as children which further skews the number.
All this information is accessible to people interested in the truth. The second error is Harris' accusation that Israel is limiting food to Gaza. Israel has expedited tens of thousands of food trucks to Gaza. Possibly the first time in history when a country at war fed its adversary .
If there is any shortage of food, it is the result of Hamas stealing the trucks and keeping what it needs and placing the rest on the black market. International food aid has even appeared in Egyptian markets suggesting that the Hamas Egyptian smuggling tunnels are still active.
One more comment if I may, and that is Harris' implication that Israel's assassination of Hezbollah leaders is a disproportionate response to barrages of Hezbollah rockets that have killed scores of Israelis including children on their soccer pitch, as well as the burning of much of Northern Israel. One has to be seriously prejudiced against Israel to imply that one Hezbollah leader's life is equal in value to 13 Druze kids playing soccer.
Larry Shapiro, Calgary
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