The history of conflicts in the region of Palestine is as old as the oldest history records and comes down to the present day intact and with many unresolved issues. I saw a map that someone published this morning dating from 1947 and showing Palestine as a 'unified' state. Prior to that it had been a part of the Ottoman Empire - since the 16th Century - becoming a British protectorate only after WW1.

Any student of the history of this region will know that 'ownership' of the lands we know as Palestine has changed hands many times; at one stage or another being a part of Ancient Egypt, Ancient Israel and Judah, the Persian Empire, the Roman Empire, the Crusaders, a number of Muslim Caliphates, with the Ottomans bringing up the rear. It has rarely been in control of its own destiny.

So waving a map from 1947 is not going to cut it in terms of who should be doing what now. We are talking about the last five minutes after all, in a game of changed ownership and boundaries that is several thousand of years old.

I don't aim these remarks at the most recent Palestinian occupiers, who have a valid claim to live there, though hardly one that has a deep historical imprimatur. A two state solution seems like the only solution to me, but the current outbreak of war will set that back decades.

But I'd like everyone to truly give peace a chance.