I hope the military invasion of Gaza by the Israeli Defence Force will come to an end through an enforced ceasefire very soon. At the time of writing this over 1 thousand Palestinians have already been killed - one third of these Palestinian children. 7 Israeli's have died since December 27 two of whom were civilians.

The Gaza invasion has been a topic of conversation in Pagan circles in South Africa, a country that has traditionally maintained a close relationship with Israel, whilst supporting the Palestinian cause for independence and official state-hood. Most South African Pagans understand that this conflict, for better or worse, can not be resolved through ongoing bloodshed by either the Israeli army or Hamas supporters responsible for firing rockets into southern Israel.

Note that I wrote above, /Hamas supporters responsible for firing rockets,/ because unless one understands that Hamas is supported by a vast majority of Palestinians in Gaza and that virtually every Palestinian home in Gaza has family members who support and are members of Hamas, the legally elected government of Gaza, you may be tempted to believe that "Hamas" fired those rockets, rather than accepting that only those individuals guilty of actually firing rockets into Israel are responsible for their actions - not the entire population of Palestinians in Gaza.

This long-enduring conflict of dispossession is a cause for both agreement and dissension between Pagans in South Africa. Those who side with the struggle of the Palestinians for equality and justice are accused of being anti-Semites. Any criticism of Israel, no matter how justified, is regarded as anti-Zionism. When the media - notably Aljazeera - honestly portray events on the ground in Gaza as Israeli forces bombard United Nations schools, hospitals, homes and even graveyards in their declared assault against Hamas militants, the news coverage is dismissed as biased against Israel.

Clearly, I stand in support of Palestinians in Gaza and support their ongoing struggle for equality, justice and liberty. But I do not seek the destruction of the state of Israel as a prelude or consequence. I simply recognize that whilst neither side is innocent, the weight of injustice certainly seems to favour the strong and punish the weak and oppressed.