Letter to the Editor: taking sides over Gaza

From Barry Newman

The opposing views that David Warden and John Baxter have expressed in their recent articles in this publication on the appalling situation in Gaza are in my view both deeply flawed. Both contributors have indulged in sifting and selecting historical ‘facts’ – usually in themselves challengeable or open to interpretation – to justify and defend opposing moral positions on the recent events in that part of the world. Both have raided a vast and hugely complex history to justify their respective moral positions on this monumental human tragedy.

Political power in Israel is currently held by a fundamentalist, religious and expansionist nationalist clique that is driving the country into an ever-deepening moral abyss – recovery from which is hard to imagine. The trigger was the barbaric attack by Hamas in October 2023 against a background of a dysfunctional coalition political system in Israel which allowed a small minority to take control of government. There can be little doubt that their direction of the IDF has resulted in a campaign that can only be described as disproportionate to the point of gratuitous brutality.

The Gazan Palestinians have been and still are ruled by a fundamentalist Muslim religious organisation whose declared ideology is militant Jihadism. Their ideals do not stop at killing all Jews in Israel and reclaiming all of Israel for Muslims. The brutal autocratic actions of Hamas have immiserated the lives of Gazans for decades and they are justifiably seen as an existential threat to Israel.

So where should humanists stand on this complex human tragedy? Whose side should we take? Whose cause should we champion? My answer is – neither. We should be very wary of assuming absolute knowledge of the moral truth in a situation of such historical, political and cultural complexity. We should reject self-righteous certainty and avoid identifying with either set of fanatics, because this can only deepen polarisation and further entrench the conflict. The conflict must not become an arena where we choose a champion and cheer them on to ‘victory’.

I suggest that as humanists we should identify with the suffering – on both sides. We should be championing peace and some kind of reconciliation – or at least a durable truce. We should hold the lives of both Gazan Palestinians and Israelis equally dear. We must take great care not to choose the side of ‘right’ on the basis of unconscious bias and post hoc justification but, rather, we should empathise with all those who are suffering – unconditionally. We must also endeavour to be as objective as we can be.

I despair at the polarisation that has broken out over this issue in this publication and hope that other readers can see the fundamental flaw. I assume that most readers identify as humanists, so let us champion humanity. Our victory should be lives saved and enriched. All lives.

The articles to which this letter refers are available in previous issues.