Letter to the Times

Sir,

At a moment when most of us are preoccupied with mourning the death of a woman who was probably the most unifying figure our nation has known it is tempting to put other concerns aside. But the tragedy that is unfolding with ever-increasing ferocity in the Middle East demands our attention for it threatens to plunge the world into a turmoil greater than any since 1945.

The prime responsibility for this lies with Ariel Sharon. It was his belligerent insensitivity which provoked the latest intifada. It is his merciless retaliation to the provocation of young fanatics, whose loss of hope has made them willing disciples of terror, that has led to the present carnage. His response to terror, based on his Beirut excesses in 1982, has been that of the terrorist, not of the statesman: the antithesis of Churchill's “jaw jaw”.

Let us hope that, when they meet in Texas, President Bush and the Prime Minister will tell him so and make it plain that, whilst the State of Israel has their unqualified support, the current Israeli regime deserves to stand condemned in the eyes of all who call themselves civilised.