"A terrorist is a person with a bomb but without an airforce". That rather sardonic quote came to mind when I learned of the assassination by the Israeli government of the Hamas leader, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin. He was, Ariel Sharon said, "a terrorist". The Israelis were, on the other hand, preventing "terror".
Now I hold no brief for Sheikh Yassin, who does indeed appear to have been involved in activities designed to kill innocent Israelis. But by what right does the Israeli government subjectively decide it can execute at will those whom it believes are a threat? Just looking at the matter pragmatically, what kind of response do they believe will be generated by pictures of an aged Palestinian leader in a wheelchair being blown to pieces on his way out of a mosque?
Then there is the Israeli wall, which we are told is for security reasons. Walls are divisive - they are meant to be - as we have seen variously in Berlin and Belfast. Even so, we can sympathise with the concept, given the murderous attacks on Israeli citizens which have occurred. But the wall has not been built along the pre-1967 boundary, as the Israeli Labour Party has suggested, but takes in a much larger area which includes prime Palestinian assets - top-grade farmland, and water supplies. The wall often separates the houses of Palestinians from the land they have a right to farm.
None of this is going to make a lasting peaceful solution any easier to find. Indeed, the famous roadmap is now in pieces.
Why does the Israeli government behave in this way and flout international norms of behaviour? The main reason, in my view, is because they have the backing of the United States. The country is still the largest recipient of US aid. And when a motion was tabled at the UN Security Council on 25 March to condemn the murder of Sheikh Yassin, the US alone vetoed it. (The vote was 11-1, with the UK abstaining).
All of this is tragic for Israelis and Palestinians alike. But the ramifications are much more profound and affect us all. The Palestinian issue is a running sore which poisons a much wider area. I have visited countries such as Saudi Arabia and Tunisia, and the first thing they always want to talk about is this. It is equally a big factor in Iraq.
Tony Blair has been right to link a solution to the Palestinian issue with the battle against terrorism. Sadly, the logic has not been carried through by President Bush. It needs to be if we are to remove the anger that fuels much of the terrorist activity that so mars our world today.
Lastly, can I pay tribute to the police and security services who have in recent days clearly foiled a serious attempt to commit a terrorist attack in this county. We are undoubtedly a major target at present and we all owe them a debt of gratitude for their efficiency and professionalism.
Following the elections in both the Palestinian Territories and Israel, there is undoubtedly a high level of uncertainty in the Middle East. However problematic it is, the international community must now come to terms with the reality of Hamas in government, since it is the democratic choice of the Palestinians.
I and my Lib Dem colleagues believe that the 'Quartet' is right to press Hamas to renounce violence, recognise the state of Israel and commit itself to the peace process. However the response by the EU and the US to suspend direct budget assistance to the Palestinian Authority, and the Israeli decision to withhold customs remittances of approximately US$50 million per month, is now creating a desperate humanitarian situation on the ground.
Around 140,000 Palestinians workers and their families are dependent on the Authority for their salaries and the United Nations has said that essential health, education, water and sanitation services could be seriously affected. My Lib Dem colleague, the Shadow Foreign Secretary, Michael Moore, has written to Jack Straw to express his grave concern about the suspension of aid, and to point out that a deterioration in living conditions in the Palestinian Territories could lead to greater violence.
We believe that unless there is some movement by both Hamas and the international community, the bleak situation in the Palestinian Territories will deteriorate further.
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