The pros and cons of this situation have gone round and round without a resolution. It seems as if the arguments here depict an unshakeable orientation without agreement on opposing views.

My contention is that Israel and the US are occupiers. The only way to resolve this conflict is through non-violence. One way to support the Palestinians is to consider supporting the BDS (Boycott, Disinvestment and Sanctions) toward Israel.
This is one way to force them to the table to negotiate.

From what I can gather, through Ha'eretz and other sources, Israelis are divided on the occupation of Gaza and what is really at loggerheads here is the Netanyahu
recalcitrance with some of the Israeli people.

Israel through Netanyahu is taking an isolationist position, a defensive paranoid
military approach and I wonder how much real backing he has.

There is an underlying problem here in that Israel is becoming less democratic and more theocratic.

There is another underlying problem with Palestinian religious orientation which at this point is not entirely secular.

As we wrestle in the US with the same issue, separation of Church and State, and the possibility of a president who is persuaded that the US Constitution should turn into the Ten Commandments and that Christians have dominion over government, there is the similar problem of religious strife in the Mid-East that dictates the divisions between not only Jews and Arabs but Arabs against Arabs.
fighting over territory.

The mistake that Egypt made was to turn their fledgling new government over to the military which means that the decisions are authoritarian and not favorable
to the Gazans, so Carol's concerns here are justified.

We have to face facts that theocratic decisions are being made in Israel and Gaza
and this compounds the problem.

The UN at this point as abnegated its responsibility to resolving this issue of occupation and legality of borders and who owns Gaza's waters. The US has made its position clear and this may be one of the reasons the UN is being bullied.

BDS might send a message that occupation is not the answer for Israel.