Television pictures of euphoric Gazans celebrating in the southern city of Rafah last Monday after Hamas announced it was agreeing to a ceasefire proposal captured the almost sadistic cruelty these people are being made to suffer. Immediately, Israel rejected the deal, seized control of the main border crossing for fuel supplies, ordered about 100,000 refugees to get out of Rafah, and advanced on the city’s outskirts in its long-threatened ground assault. In the time it took to say “forget it”, the scenes in Gaza turned from heavenly to hellish. One moment, jubilant young children were dancing ecstatically on the back...