Birds of lead

I recently read a Human Rights report into eye witness accounts of the Israeli military gunning down civilians carrying white flags during their Cast Lead offensive. I am amazed at the hypocrisy of a lot of countries, condemning terrorism, yet continuing to support Israel, after countless acts of state sponsored terrorism. I wrote this to express my feelings.

The small group walks the blasted street
A white shirt flutters high
Women speak in voices hushed
In hand a young child cries
Homes left in the streets behind
Where again violence has erupted
Searching out a safe haven
Sanctuary not yet corrupted
And then the silence shatters
As the leaded birds take flight
Their stuttering song is deafening
Muzzle flashes, plumage bright
And then again silence descends
As the echoes roll away
Smoke heavy in the now still air
Pools of red beneath the grey
And scattered all around they lay
Burqa’s turned to funeral shrouds
A hand outstretched on broken ground
A glazed eye reflects the clouds
Breath halted in its rhythmic tide
Stories ended, large and small
And the white shirt asks with ink blots red
What do we really see at all ?
For all the empty talk of peace
There’s no dove yet in sight
Just skies darkened with birds of lead
And a land that trembles with their flight
It’s never been as simple
As a line drawn in the sand
And its terrorism none the less
When blood stains official hands
For all the overseas backing
Biblical reasoning and aplomb
Their actions speak the same language
As a man strapped to a bomb