The news of today and "The Sword and the Scimitar" a story from and about the past

As we turn on our television sets in the mornings some of us are checking to see how the conflict in Gaza is going on.

On one "side" or the other, people in Australia have relatives there. Regardless of which "side" of this conflict you happen to support, if you do, or which side in this conflict you feel is in the wrong, if you do, on both sides there are people being wounded or killed.

How they live when they are not killing and maiming each other is also worth commentary, though not here and certainly not by me.

My sympathy goes out to those who have been wounded or died in this conflict and of course their families in Australia or elsewhere.

I make no comment about this situation other than that. I limit my comments simply because I think this is the best I can say to my correspondent in Israel, whose views I published here the other day

I have just finished reading a book called "The Sword and the Scimitar". This represents to some extent, the story of yesteryear.

In general terms this is a rather lengthy story about Malta and it's people, leading up to the siege of Malta during the times of Suleiman "the Magnificent"and La Valette.

In general terms the story depicts the fate of at least one family in Malta and the part that they play in the years leading up to, during and immediately after the siege of Malta.

If you have ever been to Malta and visited the various forts, Auberges and heard something of the history of these islands then somehow the story comes alive.

Equally if you have visited Istanbul and elsewhere in Turkey, then once again the story comes to life for you.

The conditions that prevail at the time of this Muslim/Christian struggle are I think extremely well depicted by the author David Ball. He does not mince words nor does he leave us in doubt about the conditions that prevailed at the time for those who fell into the hands of those in power be they Christian or Muslim at the time

Well worth a read even if it is rather lengthy at times.

If you feel queasy about how people treat each other depending on their religion back then when the Crusades were still around, when half the known world was under the command of Suleiman the Magnificent, then it's not so difficult to see that similar behaviours appear to have stuck around and are with us to this very day. What has changed is who has more or less power at any given moment in time.