LETTER: It’s not genocide

Bernard Benson chose to misrepresent what I said while comparing the alleged genocide in Gaza to the actual one in Rwanda (“Weapons sales show elections more important than lives”, April 14).

I did not suggest that numbers define genocide, but that numbers combined with timescale do, since the effective word when defining genocide is intent. So, when 800,000 Tutsis out of 1-million were killed in three months in Rwanda, that suggests intent, whereas 20,000 noncombatants (even by Hamas’ figures) out of a population of over 2-million are killed over a six-month war, does not.

Furthermore, it is not correct — in fact, just made up by him — that “the Western world, including Israel’s allies, openly suggest that there is genocidal intent”. They are in fact disgusted with the allegations from SA, together with another Iranian client, Nicaragua, which appear to be yet another form of Iranian proxyism.

Sydney Kaye
Cape Town

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