From: Gerald Hodgson, Spennithorne, Leyburn.

When the horrific Hamas attack on Israel took place, there was a conspiracy theory that the very sophisticated Israeli intelligence service was fully aware that the attack was planned but did nothing about it to give Israel an excuse to annex Gaza.

They dare not admit it, of course, if only because of the backlash from relatives of the hostages which would ensue.

The current situation with the physical destruction of vast swathes of infrastructure and the daily murder of large numbers of Palestinians often exceeding the number of remaining hostages lends increasing credence to this conspiracy theory.

Palestinians carry sacks and boxes of food and humanitarian aid unloaded from a World Food Program convoy. PIC: AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi

placeholder image — Palestinians carry sacks and boxes of food and humanitarian aid unloaded from a World Food Program convoy. PIC: AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi

I am sorry for the Jewish diaspora throughout the world who will suffer antisemitism for generations to come as a result of this situation. Netanyahu blames the leaders of other countries including Sir Keir Starmer for generating antisemitism but the truth is that it is the action of his government which is the cause. And history suggests that these actions will only generate more adherents to Hamas which will be strengthened rather than eliminated.

Jews have been persecuted for millennia. The reason, I believe, is jealousy. The Jews are very clever people and have developed a culture whereby they help each other, especially in business. The result is they are disproportionally successful and many become rich. This generates envy which manifests itself in antisemitism, unjustified in my view but which has continued for centuries. The quite small Jewish population in the UK has been disproportionately influential in a very positive way in business, politics and the arts.

But to return to the Gaza situation, we need to ask ourselves why terrorist organisations like Hamas exist. The answer is surely that the Palestinian people are desperate having been dispossessed from their lands in the swell of sympathy for the Jews which followed the realisation of the details of the ghastly holocaust.

This situation has only got worse as Jewish settlers in the West Bank have made life increasingly difficult for Palestinians. There can be no peace without a two state solution which the extreme Jewish religionists say must never happen. Surely there must be a solution or war and terrorism will continue forever.