h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

The recent conflict in Gaza may have been a subject of much internet discussion, but it left me pretty much unmoved. The propaganda from both sides and the absolute hatred displayed by the participants and their supporters meant that every story had to be taken with a huge grain of salt. When a picture becomes so confused that every facet is passed through a distorting lens, I think there's a tendency to just look away. Is it wrong to refuse to take sides when the truth is so hard to find?

Time and again the question of innocence or guilt is raised and it's hard to settle the conflicting claims in my mind. I'm not there. I can't put myself in the shoes of Israelis or Gazans as their world is so alien to mine. My life is not full of the visceral hate these people seem to feed on. Call me callous, but when I see pictures of dead children I think back to previous conflicts in the area when, after the dust had settled, it became clear that some such images were false and manipulated.

But the story of the slaughter in Gaza Zoo makes me sick. It's impossible for me to find any justification for the act of shooting zoo animals in their cages at point blank range. The images are horrific and it takes little imagination to envisage the scene as men opened fire. A pregnant camel has a huge hole in her back from a missile. Foxes were driven mad by the noise and ate each other. The monkeys tried to hide; a female and her infant are found dead, shot as they cowered in a clay pot.

The claim is the Israeli army did this. No doubt this will lead to denials and rebuttals but it doesn't matter who did it. The very fact that it happened at all should be enough for us to cry "Enough".

Why does this instil such revulsion and anger in me? Perhaps because there can be no question that these animals were not innocent. Caged as they were, it is inconceivable that they could have presented a threat to anybody. This was truly an act of wickedness. No amount of apologies or attempted excuses can ever change the horror of Gaza's Zoo.

In the aftermath, animal charities in Israel rushed to help. Lorryloads of straw and feed were filled and vets prepared for the short drive from Israel to Gaza. In a final insult, the Israeli Government are demanding a fee of between $170 - $300 for each lorry to be allowed across the border.

In all the years of the Middle East conflicts, I've felt there were rights and wrongs on both sides and that provided a reason for me not to take sides. To be honest, I don't care about who owns what piece of land or any of the other issues. But this one incident has convinced me more than ever that the violence must be stopped. I feel sick right now, ashamed to be human.

I agree. I feel about the same concerning the overall circumstances. I know that both sides have committed war crimes and I don't care anymore... it should just STOP!