A Thomas, it is not America or Israel who are overthrowing an elected government, but Hamas. President Abbas was elected by the Palestinian people, but his mandate has been taken away by the military force of Hamas. That is not governing, it is usurpation. Hamas can't have it both ways, claiming a right to govern by winning the Parliament while using force to ignore the rules that limit its power (i.e. a Fatah President).

C Nowack, Peoria, USA

Abbas is to Palestine as Chirac, Schroeder, and Zapatero were to France, Germany, and Spain! The weak! The footnotes of history...

It's not so much a judgement, as a law of nature that only the strong survive.

Tommy, Honaker, VA

I agree with Stephen Mc Alpine's thoughts. The changing face of the Middle East is that political Islam is taking hold after an 80 year absence. The west and its illegitimate child Israel will have to come to terms with the new reality and start to get into the habit of talking to Muslims instead of shooting them.

Salman, london, uk

The more violence, suicide bombers, and now outright civil war, the more we hear the cry from the Left that we MUST talk this all out and find a solution. How about just observing the "Law of Harvest," in action. That the Palestinians have incorporated utter hatred of the Jews even into there text books.

Now it all bears fruit, this is a prelude to what the entire Islamic world will look like in ten years.

Paul, Carlsbad, CA

Paul, Carlsbad, Calif

A people get the government they deserve, so the addage goes. Palestine has the government it deserves; utter chaos. It has worked long and hard to acheive that government, frantically tearing down each and every international attempt to help them create a peaceful and productive society of their own.

Until the masses of Palestinians, currently cowering in their apartments, stand up to the hate-filled elements of their society, there will NEVER be a Palestinian state. Blaming Israel for Palestinian woes rings very hollow now.

Matt Huntley, Stockton, California

I would not count on any kind of "moderation" in Gaza any time soon. There are plenty of moderates in Gaza now (even though they are probably in the minority). But more power Hamas has, the more effectively these moderates will be silenced - with bullets, more often than not. We're often told that there is more to Hamas than their violent retoric and action. That is true - just as it was true of the Nazis. So far there's been no real evidence that Hamas is different (except for the trivial ritual differences), but there is always hope...

Dan, Manchester,

What do people expect. Hamas has a democratic mandate to rule. Just because America and Israel don't like the results they can't be allowed to continue strangling aid and finances in an attempt to overthrow another elected governement. How many countries in the world want to see the destruction of Israel? More than Hamas at a guess.

America has to realise the days of trying to overthrow elected governments can't go on without provoking violent reaction. Let Hamas govern.

A Thomas, durham,

Philip, and how would we 'get tough' with Israel? Israel we stop incursions into Gaza just as soon as Hamas stops the rocket attacks. As for the West bank, who is it who has built all the schools and hospitals? Jordan, or the much dispised Israel!

Jon, Perth, Australia

There seems to be a lot of ignorance as to Israel's entitlement to the lands of Israel. Please listen to "Why They Fight," by Michael Medved. I think the uninformed will come away with a different perspective.

r&b, Sacramento, USA

Arab civilization is in collapse. Gaza is a foretaste of what Iraq will look like once the Americans and their junior partners quit the country. Ironically, the formation of a Fatah government in the West Bank desperate to negotiate with Israel and the West might actually lead to an independent state, and Gaza will become Hamastan.

Klaus, New York, USA

Philip Cronin, Bedford: "Yes, the Palestinians are the losers of the theft of their land. The responsibility for the ruination of this part of the world lies squarely with the Zionists and their backers."

But not apparently with Arab Palestinians who frequently organised Pogroms against Jewish Palestinians and sided with Hitler before the modern state of Israel existsted. Neither with Syria, Egypt and Jordan who were the first to occupy the west bank and Gaza, nor with the Arab and Persian world since then who refused Palestinian Arabs citizenship and treated them like dirt. Nice one, student grant.

Dan, Hampton, UK

What rubbish from Peter Cronin! The simple fact is that 'a people' must have the capacity to generate capital (money,learning,institutions etc,etc) so as to claim statehood. To blame and seek to punish Israel is misguided at best and probably just dyed-in-the-wool antisemitism.
In our society we reward people who strive, delinquents have no future.

Bob, London, UK

"The responsibility for the ruination of this part of the world lies squarely with the Zionists and their backers"

Interesting form of left-wing racism, that.. 'oh these poor dears can't help themselves because of what the evil zionists did to them'.. Hamas are not nice people, regardless of how bad Israel is.

Owen, London, UK

The western press's mantra of helping the Palestinian militants see the error of their ways is naive beyond belief.
A Palestinian state in Gaza will only be viable if both sides of the current conflict agree on what "viable" means. Unfortunately for moderates and Fatah, the only definition of "viable" Hamas will countence is an Islamic state. Western liberal culture either doesn't understand this, or worse, refuses to understand this because it does not fit into its neat theory of how secular democracy is what everyone really wants.

Stephen McAlpine, Sheffield,

Yes, the Palestinians are the losers of the theft of their land. The responsibility for the ruination of this part of the world lies squarely with the Zionists and their backers. We can't expect things to improve until we prove that we actually believe in the principles we claim to represent by getting tough with Israel.

Philip Cronin, Bedford,

Again a tragic result for the citizens in Lebanon but an excellent confirmation of the intent of the Arab brotherhood who are finally showing how little they contribute to the Middle East peace process.
Perhaps now Europe and the West can form a unified, cogent block and deal with this festering problem. Certainly the Arabs cannot so responsible regional powers should step up and take control.

Shane Osmond, Fremantle, Australia