Jane Cocking: The political aspects to the Gaza conflict must not stop aid reaching those who need it

The bitter row over the aid agencies' appeal for Gaza has at its heart the assumption that the conflict in the Middle East is unique amongst humanitarian emergencies. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is unusually "political", the argument runs, so doing aid work in Gaza is difficult and contentious, unlike helping the victims of a tsunami, a famine or a war in a despotic African country. Yes, it i

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Jan. 29/’Helping those people means doing everything possible ... but to change it.’/’Now, without in any way downplaying the suffering felt by the people of Sderot and other towns hit by Hamas rocket attacks, it's clear to Oxfam that Gaza is where the greatest humanitarian need lies.’