Untrue- there is much anger against Arab regimes for their inaction

Likewise US or Jewish deaths. There is more anger in the US over 3000 killed on 9/11 than the over 20,000 killed each year by fellow Americans. There is more outrage in Israel at 10 people killed by Hamas bombs in 7 years than the far more Israelis murdered by fellow Israelis.

“Muslims being killed by Muslims in huge numbers in Iraq, Afghanistan, Darfur, or indeed in Palestine, do not appear to cause any particular uprising of anger against the jihadists carrying out the slaughter of innocent Muslims.”

You neglect to mention the people such as Al Qaida commiting these crimes are hunted down and punished. Where is the punishment for Bush and Blair and Olmert?

Whereas you re the opposite- you focus on Muslims killing Muslims and ignore non-Muslims killing Muslims- because your aim appears to be to demonise Muslims and more importantly justify israels actions by saying “look they kill themselves too so why shouldnt Israel ?”

Perhaps ‘British Muslims’ believe or have been told, that there are ‘inexplicable’ difficulties in getting humanitarian aid ver the border from Egypt, but there is nothing inexplicableabout it.

Palestinian citizens are held hostage, as refugees and embattled citizens of enclaves like Gaza by Arab and Muslim regimes, and their own representatives.

They are used as a permanent weapon, aided and abetted by a colluding UN, to undermine the right of Israel to exist, and as a human sheild against Israel’s attempts to defend itself.

Egypt will not open its border to allow humanitarian aid to their fellow Muslims in Gaza.

Egypt will not allow Palestinians to move freely across its border and to trade freely.

Egypt has allowed through rather more collusion than turning a blind eye, to allow millions of dollars and long range missiles and other weapons to enter Gaza from its side through apparently only recently detected tunnels.

Only when the scale of Iranian involvement in arming and supplying Hamas risks turning a useful anti-Israeli weapon of human suffering, into a major destabilisation of the region does it even begin to notice the tunnels.

There is nothing inexpicable about this. ‘British Muslims’ are not being told, or they are turning a selectively blind eye to a Muslim nations and the government of Gaza, Hamas, determination to let Gazans suffer for a propaganda war.

Why can’t Egypt provide humanitarian aid, indeed?

I was reacting against the OP which mixed up a eulogy to multicultural London with the real problem of Muslim hate crime occasioned by the Hamas-generated crisis.

I was making the observation that this picture of friendly interaction between the various ethno-cultural groups is v. superficial and Muslims in London themselves are incredibly insular. I referred to “Asians” (generally the tag people in the UK use to describe SW Asians from the Indian sub-continent).

I am critical of all groups that operate effective bans on outmarriage – in my view bans on outmarriage should be made illegal. They have no part to play in a liberal democratic society. I have criticised Jewish groups that employ such bans. Most Orthodox Jews are indeed very insular, leading lives separated from the rest of society – having no marrying with people from other groups, trading with each other, having different charities and separate institutions for all sorts of things. I criticise that. It’s not healthy for society at large. You can get away with it in small numbers, but once millions of tens of millions start behaving that way you have a serious, serious problem on your hands. People don’t interact with each other as citizens but as members of particular groups – favouritism and corruption also result once such people get a grip on public institutions. It’s a very, very serious problem – we have already seen the sort of thing that goes on with postal voting scandals, nearly all being generated by this insular group mentality.

Liberal Jews are another matter although I know from friendship that even Jews from liberal backgrounds face a lot of subtle pressure not to marry out.

People can defend insularity if they want to, but please don’t pretend it isn’t insularity, or that there aren’t effective bans on outmarriage and close friendship with people outside the community. And please don’t pretend that insular group mentality does not lead to corruption and social friction. It does.

thanks for that :)

it is good that you keep an eye on the SWP’s premier blogger

1. No one is suggesting that Gaza was a completely and wholly independent and autonomous Palestinain state. The dismantling and settlements and relinquising of some control was a positive step.

2. There is occupation and there is occupation. Do you think occupied France or Holland in WW2 would have been able to elect a government dedicated to the destruction of the Third Reich? Do you think occupied Germany after WW2 would have been able to fire missiles at France?

As you know it was the location of the trials after World War II, out of which came many tenets of international criminal law, hence its importance. I trust you do not disagree with definition I quoted.

You can’t blame Israel for not wanting to negotiate with terrorists. This is why the peace process was frozen. There was no-one to talk to on the Palestinian side, the process was stalling, and Israel didn’t want to be forced to deal with Hamas, so they froze the process and put the ball in the Palestinian’s court.

If security for Israel and its citizens could magically be guaranteed the Palestinians would have a state asap on or around the 67 borders. The settlements would have to be dealt with but in this hypothetical scenario Israel proper wouldnt let a few zealots ruin their chance for peace. In any event this newly peaceful Palestinain state would presumably be able to tolerate a few Jewish settlements in its midst just as arab towns and areas exist in Israel.