The ‘forever war’ in the Middle East will go on until Palestinians have their own state

Editorial: US airstrikes in Iraq and Syria were inevitable – the question now is how to prevent the Israel-Hamas conflict from merging into a larger crisis that affects the whole region

Palestinians line up for free food distribution during the ongoing Israeli air and ground offensive in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip (AP)

When British planes joined American airstrikes on the Houthis in Yemen, voices were raised in the UK warning against “escalation” of the Gaza conflict to a wider war in the Middle East. There were similar voices on the pro-Palestinian march in London today, warning that the US airstrikes against allegedly Iranian-backed targets in Iraq and Syria risk a wider war.

In one sense, these warnings are misconceived, in that it was the Houthis, formally known as Ansar Allah or “Supporters of God”, who were engaged in escalation, using drones and missiles to attack international shipping in the Red Sea in solidarity with the Palestinians of Gaza. And it was Iranian-supported militia who “escalated” a conflict that otherwise did not exist when they attacked US forces in Jordan, killing three soldiers.

The responses to these attacks cannot be defined as “escalation” if they are trying to prevent and deter further attacks, and if they are proportionate to the initial attack. Unfortunately, in such situations proportionality is very much in the eye of the beholder. Palestinians in Gaza, and their many supporters around the world, do not regard the Israeli response to the 7 October atrocities as proportionate. Some of them even regard the US-British strikes against the Houthis as a display of excessive force, although it is hard to argue that attacks on international shipping should be simply ignored.