The Palestinians are paying for Europe's treatment of the Jews over many years, writes John Couchman.
Almost every day now we read of Palestine in the newspapers. Bloody Israeli subjugation followed by bloody retaliation. Remorseless, senseless, cruel, endless.
We see the Israeli side principally, as their propaganda machine is relentless. Ehraim Halevy, until 2002 head of the Israeli security organisation Mossad, stated in his book Man in the Shadows that when George Bush became US president, the Israeli government was asked to write America's Middle East foreign policy with the sole proviso that it would be as beneficial to the US as it would be to Israel. A devastating claim. It explains a lot about Iraq and the sabre-rattling over Iran, neither of which would be a threat to the US.
It also explains why the Bush administration has not raised a finger to stop the building of Jewish settlements in the occupied territories of the West Bank and the appalling treatment of Palestinians.
He also says that the recognition of Israel by Hamas is not an issue because Hamas is a political entity and thus will wish to take part in the political process which would in time involve reciprocal recognition.
The political programmes, education, healthcare and financial propriety of Hamas is superb, quite unlike the corrupt and leaderless PLO. Hamas has also ensured that all of its members have observed a total ceasefire for over a year now.
The views of Mr Halevy illustrate the less-blinkered approach of thinking Jews to their problems and maybe a realisation that when the US umbrella begins to leak they must have developed a sustainable modus vivendi with the Palestinians.
What needs to happen now is that Israel must recognise Hamas as the democratically elected rulers of Palestine, which they are, and cease their own terrorism.
The Israelis rightly claim they had no coherent reliable Palestinian leadership to talk to for years. They have now. In the midst of all this is a large number of Palestinian Christians who are suffering the same as their Muslim compatriots. They have been terrorised off their farms and most of their water is now pumped into Israel proper to grow fruit for the European market.
They are not allowed to use the new settler roads, have no money and cannot even move around the remaining 53 per cent of the West Bank supposedly theirs (until expropriated) because of petty roadblocks. They have 85 per cent unemployment and are an utterly crushed people living in what is effectively the world's largest prison camp.
They are violently discriminated against and humiliated, with no future and nothing to do. And all this at the hands of a people who lost six million in Nazi gas chambers and suffered similarly earlier in the last century.
The Palestinians are paying for the European treatment of the Jews over many years.
As David Ben Gurion, former Israeli leader, said: "If I were an Arab leader I would never make terms with Israel. That is natural; we have taken their country, we came from Israel a long time ago, but what is that to them? Anti-Semitism, was that their fault? They only see one thing; we have come here and stolen their country. Why should they accept that?"
So on Israel's guidance the US has cut off aid and Europe does the same. Our churches, with all their talk of "Christian unity", sit on their hands.
Political advisers are usually quick to parrot American/Israeli views and are sufficiently intellectually lazy that they keep their eyes closed to this dramatic new opportunity to deal with a strong Palestinian leadership, rather than just save ourselves a few bob while crippling it financially.
From Ireland's point of view I would suggest a change in this mental torpor and that our representatives try to keep abreast of reality instead of languishing in the facile convenience of career safety.
The simple truth is that the Palestinian question is, as are all political questions, solvable at least to a level of grudging acceptance.
As a Christian country we have a part to play if we want to stop this situation exploding and a state of war coming into being between Christian and Muslim the world over.
We in Ireland must use every art at our disposal, diplomatic, financial, humanitarian - breaking ranks if need be - to avoid it, now.
John Couchman was a delegate to the recent Church of Ireland General Synod for Cashel and Ossory diocese. He has a particular interest in the Palestinian question.