The Daily Shift’s Shane Burke has his say on the recent troubles between Israel and Palestine…

21 injured on a bus in Tel Aviv as a ceasefire is called

In geopolitical affairs there is perhaps no worse neighbours than Israel and the Palestinian authority whom have been engaged in armed conflict since last Wednesday. Consequently: Since the beginning of the conflict which spanned eight days, 140 people have died. However despite the carnage, negotiations for a ceasefire have been undertaken by both sides with Egyptian mediation. It is hoped the ceasefire will allow the return to a more manageable state of affairs between both Israel and Palestine.

Despite Egypt playing a prominent role in resolving the situation the United States, Israel’s main ally has stated unequivocally, for a lasting peace to occur the rocket attacks which are a menace to the lives of Southern Israelis must stop. While talks were underway the conflict raged on with a bus exploding in Tel Aviv and Israel continuing to use all it’s military might on the Palestinian territory. As if the conflict was not vicious enough the essence of the hate between both sides was made clear when Palestinian militants celebrated, the explosion of the bus in which twelve people were injured all non-combatants.

Ultimately the real victims of war are the civilians caught in the middle of the fighting between the Israeli defence forces, and Palestinian militants. An estimation of the death toll from both sides puts the body count at five Israelis and 139 Palestinians, with such a disproportionate number of Palestinians dead, mainly non-combatants the actions of the Israeli military can only be called into question in particular. Why have so many innocents died on the Palestinian side in comparison to the Israelis?.

As many commentators will confirm, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict which has stretched back decades is among the most bitter rivalries in history, comparable from an Irish perspective to The Troubles in Northern Ireland. With such a bitter situation in a region marked by conflict it is hard to pick sides, but from the perspective of the neutral looking in on the conflict one can but hope for a peace process to end the cycle of death, which has rocked the region since 1948.

Going forward, if a peace process is to be achieved it would perhaps be best to learn from Northern Ireland that anything that resembles peace can only come about through compromise, diplomacy and a will to persevere, so maybe a generation will not be marked by the scars of war.

*Lead image courtesy of euronews.com