Maen Rashid Areikat, a Palestinian official (letter, July 12), refers to Gaza as a "prison" and "Israeli target range" while not mentioning the facts necessary to understanding why conditions in the Palestinian territories have come to this pass.

There is no mention of the kidnapping of Cpl. Gilad Shalit; no reference to the hundreds of rockets that have rained down on Israel since its unilateral withdrawal from Gaza nearly a year ago; no effort to admit that conditions in Gaza have worsened as a result of the refusal by Hamas to end terrorism or even to recognize the state of Israel.

It is easy and convenient for Palestinian leaders like Mr. Areikat to blame Israel for the current crisis. Yet until Palestinian leaders show that they are capable of at least a modicum of introspection and self-doubt, there is little hope for a true and lasting peace.