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Following the first direct military confrontations between Israel and Iran, which have taken place over the past two weeks, commentators have been debating whether the exchanges ended in a draw, or whether one of the nations gained the advantage.

Eid Al-Fitr was a very sad occasion in Gaza this year, during which people mainly celebrated the fact that they had managed to survive the bloodiest war this tiny enclave has ever experienced — and it is no stranger to conflict and the deaths and devastation that come with it.

Six months into the war in Gaza, a number of countries, including the Netherlands, Japan, Spain and Belgium, have become so exasperated with the manner in which Israel is conducting its campaign that they have taken the unusual step of suspending their arms sales to Tel Aviv.

There was something beyond infuriating about the slowness, and even more so the cynical manner, with which discussions about a UN Security Council resolution calling for a truce in the war in Gaza were conducted.

If anyone thought the decision by the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, to appoint a technocratic government would be greeted with universal approval by political factions in Palestine, their disappointment quickly became clear.