Jonathan Freedland rightly condemns Benjamin Netanyahu for his government’s failure to protect Israel’s citizens (Opinion, 13 October), but he could have broadened his argument to highlight the culpability of Netanyahu and his predecessors for putting them in harm’s way in the first place.
The pogroms perpetrated by the Hamas militia cannot be condoned, excused or understood, and 7 October must now be added to that sad litany of injustices inflicted on the Jewish people over the centuries. The slaughter of innocent, unarmed civilians is never justifiable. But history shows that it is predictable. Oppressed and dispossessed people will vent their resentment and fury, often in brutal and savage ways.
