Israel's biblical law: 100 eyes for an eye

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Thanks to the delusions of the Bush years, Israel's mailed fist strategy had been overshadowed by the bigger and uglier punches thrown by America in the Middle East. No longer.

Twenty two days of war have left more than 1,300 Palestinians dead. About half of them have been civilians. Israeli deaths numbered 13 - nine in combat and four from Hamas's rockets. That's a death ratio of 1 Israeli to 100 Palestinians.

This show of strength is what happens when intellect gets swallowed by fanaticism. Israel looks like it will never engage in meaningful negotiations with its Arab neighbours to end disputes. The last three weeks show that Tel Aviv thinks it better to resort to overwhelming military force. Hamas has no finer recruiting officer than the Israeli Defence Force. The zealotry Hamas espouses will now grow longer roots in Gazan soil.

The only winners will be colonial Zionism and militant Islamism, blood brothers in war.