There’s lots that I could cover in this column. A Cabinet Reshuffle, inflation dropping to 4.6%, the Supreme Court decision, emergency legislation on immigration, or my speech in the House of Commons on economic growth.
But this week I wanted to talk about the current situation in Israel and Gaza. Whilst I have tried to sanitise this column, it contains graphic information that might be upsetting. So please do consider whether you want to read on.
On Wednesday I joined with a small number of Parliamentarians in watching the raw footage of what happened on 7th October this year. The video – 43 minutes in length – showed the depths to which Hamas terrorists sank that day. It was depravity on a scale that is incomprehensible.
Out of respect for the families of the victims I haven’t gone into the details of everything that was shown. But some of it – snippets – are what some will have seen on social media. Children and babies murdered. People burnt alive. Fleeing civilians killed as they tried to get away. And crowds of ordinary Gazans celebrating the sight of Jews who had been dragged back from where they were killed, pushing to the front to take part in the desecration of the dead.
These scenes were harrowing, and upsetting. I say this not to cause upset amongst those reading this column, but because I am worried about the moral equivalence that some are seeking to draw. This fight is not one between two equal sides, but between good and evil.
But even in the fight against evil, hatred and a thirst for revenge cannot win. That’s why I have been consistent in my view that in responding Israel must exercise extreme caution and compassion. Innocent civilians didn’t ask for this war, and they shouldn’t be the casualties of it.
Despite the clear risks it brings to its own forces, Israel must help evacuate civilians before military action takes place. And it must continue to facilitate aid in ever greater quantities.
I have been to Israel and the West Bank. I saw the optimism that many Palestinians have for their future. We cannot let that be shattered by the brutality of Hamas and its terrorist ideology. Nor should Israel let it be shattered by its desire to see Hamas eliminated.
A ceasefire would, at this stage, only result in Hamas being given free rein to carry out further atrocities. But in fighting against this Israel must hold itself to the standards of a liberal, western democracy.
