As I explained to them, and I'll explain again to you now - I do not want to get into a back-and-forth about who released what evidence etc. It's largely pointless to do so. Do I believe there was widespread over reporting of crimes? Sure. That's a product of what happens in most cases.

Do I believe Hamas did not attack, rape and murder civilians and Israel made the whole thing up? No.

I am not looking to quibble over the degree of harm - I am looking simply at whether terror in the form of murder, kidnap and rape was used as a weapon against a civilian population. I believe it was - I don't think even Mossad has the ability to fake such a thing.

As for retaliation - let me be clear, I'm not condoning Israeli attacks, but nor am I prepared to use anti-semitic reasoning to re-write what the entire world witnessed. It may be part of what the far left encourages its adherents to do - but the centre ground (where I sit politically) will not engage in doublespeak simply because it is expedient to do so.

Hamas is a terrorist organisation. There should've been legal means to subjugate and/or remove it - as happened with ISIS.... but Israel has moved above and beyond moral acceptability. But Israel's actions do not cancel out Hamas' initial actions as many seem to argue.