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Letter: U.S. shares blame for Middle East violence

(Adel Hana | The Associated Press) Palestinian protesters run for cover from teargas fired by Israeli forces near the fence at the Gaza Strip's border with Israel, during a protest on the first Friday of the holy month of Ramadan, east of Khan Younis, in the Gaza Strip, Friday, May 18, 2018.

What happens when our friends behave badly? What happens when we behave badly? Apparently, nothing. I speak of the slaughter of innocents in Gaza. I won’t pretend Hamas isn’t lobbing rockets, but what is the measured response? Surely, more than 50 killed and 2,000 wounded in one day, in addition to 41 killed and the 9,000 wounded in previous weeks, is “overkill.” Where is the outrage? Where is the conscience of America?

Is it because we are equally guilty? Maybe not Gaza, but Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq? When is enough enough?

I suspect an orchestrated effort to draw Iran into a shooting war, not with surrogates — Yemen and Syria — but between Israel and the U.S., with the Saudis cheering everyone on.

The Saudis want to eliminate Iran as an active player in the Middle East. They want to use the U.S. to do it.

Israel has become the Saudi’s ally, which is why Israel can kill Palestinians with impunity — no Arab outcries. It is no coincidence the JCPOA has been scraped, the embassy moved, and the Israelis are committing “war crimes.” These are all goads to force Iran to act.

If Israel is committing war crimes, we are complicit.

Dennis R. Hanks, Salt Lake City