Sir, - The Holocaust in Nazi Germany was a deliberate programme of mass extermination and it is on this point that those who seek to compare it with what is presently taking place in the Israeli-occupied territories reveal the flaw in their argument.
It is neither Israel's intention nor design deliberately to cause the deaths of innocent people, but such is the unfortunate and deeply regrettable consequence of any conflict that innocent people are indeed losing their lives. It is when we hear the leaders of Hamas and of Islamic Jihad calling for the complete destruction of Israel and its citizens that we might wonder if Nazi ideals are indeed being perpetuated.
It is time terms such as "holocaust", "ethnic cleansing" and "massacre" were no longer bandied about to the extent that their precise meaning becomes devalued. Each describes a selective and deliberate annihilation of innocent people. It is suicide bombers, detonated ambulances and booby-traps that deliberately target innocent people.
Whatever one's views on Israel's reaction to these events, it is not Israel's deliberate intention to kill innocent Palestinians. But in actively pursuing terrorists who take refuge among their own families and other civilians, and who are prepared to die rather than surrender, it is inevitable that innocent Palestinians will also lose their lives.
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a very complex issue. Hopefully there is good intention on both sides, but inevitably there are misjudged and bad responses. The use of the word "holocaust" by Israel's critics and detractors is one such response. They should acknowledge that the Holocaust in Nazi Germany was a deliberate policy to wipe out the Jewish people.
Israel's policy is to ultimately find a way of living side by side with its Palestinian neighbours without the threat of terrorism dominating daily life. - Yours, etc.,
E. MENTON, Jewish Representative, Council of Ireland, Dublin 6.