CONOR McCARTHY,
Sir, - David Sowby denies that a "massacre" took place in Jenin. He tells us that "no order was given for the Israeli army to kill unarmed people", that the troops progressed with great difficulty, and that armed Palestinians mined and blew up houses. It seems doubtful that Mr Sowby was in Jenin to verify these claims. Neither is he there now. But journalists from all over the world (not merely Palestinians), including Israelis such as Amira Hass and Amos Harel of Ha'aretz, report the overpowering stink of human bodies under the rubble.
There may not have been a "massacre" in which people were massed and then shot, but it seems very clear that the Israeli troops "progressed" by simply flattening houses in their way, regardless of who was inside, using bulldozers to force passages through the dense refugee camp for armour and soldiers. At the very least, this represents a flagrant disregard for what has come to be called "collateral damage". It stands to reason that you cannot surround an area populated by 15,000 people and pour tank, helicopter and fighter-bomber fire into it, and not slaughter many civilians.
It should also be remembered that we are talking about a refugee camp, and that to attack refugees is a breach of the Geneva Conventions and as such a war crime. - Yours, etc.,
CONOR McCARTHY, Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Dame Street, Dublin 2.
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Sir, - There must be Jews who are appalled by Israeli army atrocities on the West Bank, just as there must be Americans who deplore related aspects of US foreign policy and the glass wall of incomprehension and reverse perception that seems to exist between the United States and the rest of the Western world on this and other issues.
Might I suggest that there is an urgent need at this time for such dissenting Jews and Americans to let their voices be heard? - Yours, etc.,
MICHAEL COADY, ( Member of Aosdána), Carrick-on-Suir, Co Tipperary.