Hamas is currently in control of Gaza which is under attack from Israel. The majority of Palestinians voted for Hamas in elections which were free and fair.

The West Bank is under the control of Fatah. Fatah is represented by Abbas who is also the Palestinian president. In the West Bank, Israel is constructing a separation wall which is absorbing land illegally and cuts Palestinians from each other and their land. There are also check points and continuous building of settlements. Fatah has been involved in a negotiation process and this has not resulted in the removal of any of these measures by Israel.

Hamas controlled Gaza has been blockaded and all the crossing points, sea and air space is controlled by Israel leading to limited supplied of food, medicine and fuel.

For those Palestinians who did not vote for Hamas and are being attacked then Israel has failed its moral obligation to their children. Those Palestinians who votes for Hamas and not want to destroy them are unable to meet any moral obligation because they are under attack. Those Palestinians who voted for Hamas and do not want them destroyed have neither failed their moral obligation or met them because they have a right to resist occupation.

Israel has a moral obligation as an occupying force to the Palestinians. This obligation has not been met because Palestinians are denied basic amenities and in some cases targeted by the Israeli military. There is also no evidence that Hamas is using children as human shields (these are assertions by Israel without any independently verifiable facts). What can be verified by everyone around the world is that unlike any other conflict before, in Gaza, civilians are unable to escape the conflict. Israel has sealed its borders (Egypt claims it cannot open it due to prior agreements with Israel and safety concerns). Israel is forcing them to participate in the conflict. Even if they were to cooperate with Israel and assist in destroying Hamas members they will not be safe because Gaza is so densely populated. In fact, Palestinians in Gaza might even be going against their moral obligation because to give the coordinates of Hamas members nearby could result in them being collateral damage due to their proximity.

In conclusion, the only moral obligation they have is to protect their children in whatever way they can and for many of them this means finding safe places to shelter even though the UN says nowhere is safe for them in Gaza.

If you believe in God then you must want to make sure God's commandments are enacted on earth especially those promoting what is good and right. To unconditionally support Israel undermines your belief in God because you support anything Israel does even if it goes against what God has told you to do. If you support Israel because you believe they have a record of doing everything that God wants to achieve then the god you believe in must be indifferent to human suffering, death and injustice. I do not know of any religion which promotes these values. In fact I think most religions encourage their believers to act against these forces.

Hamas won elections in Gaza and the West Bank. The Iraqi elections resulted in religious parties dominating the government some of considered by the US to be affiliated to terrorist groups. Hezbollah has MPs in Lebanon. Iran carries out a voting system.

Modern democracy entails respect for human rights and the rule of law. Israel has not respected the human rights of the Palestinians. Look at the UN and Red Cross assessments of the Gaza blockade and current attacks. The Palestinians in Fatah controlled West Bank are treated no better. As for the rule of law, Israel has decided to ignore the recent UN resolution for a ceasefire not to mention countless others. Just recently, 2 Arab parties were banned from the election. The way Israeli settlers are allowed to abuse and determine the actions of the Palestinians underscores this point.

In effect modern democracy is denied to the people in the Middle East if they vote for a party not favourable to US interests. While at the same time the very values inherent in modern democracy are undermined by giving Israel free reign in the region. It is now harder to define what democracy is and means.

The founding members of Israel used terrorism to gain a state. Now Israel claims it is an example of democracy in the Middle East. The US has hailed Iraq as an example of Arab democracy. Iraq is in reality dominated by religious groups, some affiliated to groups the US considers terrorists. The Palestinians had an election (it was accepted to be free and fair) and the majority of the population in the West Bank voted for Hamas.

The US refused to recognise the results and encouraged other nations to isolate them. Fatah (an opposition faction) members trained in Jordan and sponsored by the US tried to over throw the Hamas government in Gaza. They failed and Hamas unilaterally took control. Fatah responded by appointing their members to government positions (in effect setting up two governments).

Israel responded with a siege on the Gaza strip (controlling all the borders, sea and air space) and limiting vital supplies. Israel claims that Hamas is a terrorist organisation and is not a negotiating partner. Members of parliament who are Hamas members are in Israeli jails with no charges. It prefers to work with Abbas (the president and member of Fatah). Fatah controls the West Bank. Palestinians in the West Bank are not able to protest in support of Hamas. The West Bank still sees the building of the Israeli separation wall, continuing settlements, incursions and check points.

The people of Gaza and their democratically elected government are now under bombardment. The argument for Israel based on democracy fails because the Palestinians have also elected a government which is not recognised. The argument for Israel based on its fight against terrorism in the region fails because it used terror to establish itself and arguably the actions being committed against the Palestinians could be described as terror and even genocide. In Israel your rights are determined by your race. Arabs within Israel lack the same rights as Jews (recently two Arab parties were prevented from running in the upcoming elections for expressing opposition to the Gaza attacks) and outside of it.