Iran’s handiwork behind all the trouble we are seeing

Those anti-Israel protesters chanting “from the river to the sea” need to realise that Iran, as the backer of Hamas, is the root cause of the war in Gaza and the suffering of its civilian population. Through one of its other proxies, Hezbollah, it continues to ratchet up tensions by encouraging attacks on Israel’s north. In addition, international shipping is threatened by the Houthi rebels, one of Iran’s other puppets.

As reported, Iran could have a nuclear weapons capability within weeks. Recent events and statements from the so-called Supreme Leader suggest there would be no qualms initiating a nuclear attack on Israel and, if and when a larger arsenal exists, on other countries in the region.

The shipping that should be blocked is that between Iran and its few remaining trading partners such as Turkey and China, though the risks to protesters would be greater with a regime that has no regard for human rights.

John Kempler, Rose Bay, NSW

Clive Williams claims more than 20,000 civilians have been killed in Gaza (“Israel-Hezbollah escalation risks war at Lebanon border”, 1/1). Civilian deaths are an unfortunate and tragic consequence of any war, including this war started by Hamas, but it’s important to provide accurate figures. Casualty numbers in Gaza originate with the Hamas-run health ministry and should be taken with a grain of salt. Nevertheless, even its latest figure of 21,822 total deaths doesn’t allow for a civilian toll over 20,000 unless Israel has unbelievably killed almost no terrorists. Israel claims more than 9000 terrorists have been killed over the past 12 weeks.

The Hamas health ministry also includes deaths caused by misfired terrorist rockets and it has been caught out greatly exaggerating numbers, including with a false claim of more than 500 killed at the Al-Ahli Arab Hospital. Considering Israel is fighting combatants disguised as civilians who hide in densely populated areas and has carried out more than 12,000 airstrikes, the civilian casualty counts coming out of Gaza are unexpectedly low and will likely be studied by Western militaries faced with similar challenges.

Robert Gregory, chief executive, Australian Jewish Association

Clive Williams’s outline of the conflict along Israel’s northern border with the terrorist group Hezbollah has left out an important fact. This group of fanatics has blatantly broken the ceasefire agreement between it and Israel set up by a resolution of the UN Security Council following the Lebanon war in 2006. The UN resolution forbade Hezbollah regrouping its forces south of the Litani River, which runs about 30km from the Israel-Lebanon border. Hezbollah for some time after disregarding this agreement has moved south, enabling it freely to fire its rockets at visible military and civilian areas in Israel.

Michael Adler, Mt Waverley, Vic

Clive Williams uses the Hamas-supplied figure of 20,000 for the number of Palestinian deaths. This figure does not account for any terrorists. Regardless of the actual number, it is still a tragedy that most of the civilian deaths could easily have been prevented if Hamas on day one had handed over all the hostages, stopped the daily rocket attacks and laid down its weapons. To this day Hamas is still not agreeing to do this.

Michael Burd, Toorak, Vic

It is unfortunately no surprise the US consulate in Melbourne has been vandalised (“Pro-Palestinian attack on US consulate”, 1/1). If our federal and state leaders had stood up and shown real leadership and condemned the attack by Hamas on Israel from the start, this violence in Melbourne and the shocking protests in Sydney might not have happened. The cowardly lack of strong condemnation by our leaders emboldens pro-Palestinian groups.

Rosemary McGeorge, Windaroo, Qld

Will the Albanese government have the backbone to take whatever actions are needed to cut off this shocking anti-Israel and anti-Australian domestic terrorism at its knees before it can do irreparable economic, international and societal harm to our nation? Most unfortunately, I fear the answer is likely to be no. This will prove to be yet another example of instances showing the lack of focus and the incompetence that have become the hallmark of the Albanese Labor government. We deserve so much better in this increasingly challenging world.

Tom Breen, Mosman, NSW