NICHOLAS Hall's account of the battle for Deir Yassin (Letters, April 6) is not factually correct, although I appreciate that the York Palestine Solidarity Campaign is limited to presenting the state of Israel in as bad a light as possible while ignoring the shortcomings of the Palestinian leadership.

Innocent Arabs did die at the battle for Deir Yassin and it was perhaps rather naive of the Jewish forces to let the extreme Irgun undertake this action. It can hardly be said that this was their finest hour.

However, the Palestinian University at Bir Zeit undertook a study of the events at Deir Yassein. Bir Zeit is not known for its sympathies towards the Jewish state but even they could only come up with a casualty list of 107 dead and 12 wounded. Rather a different figure to 250 as quoted by Nicholas Hall.

His assertion that Arabs were hacked to death is without foundation and is not backed up by independent reports trying to see the truth through the propaganda exercises of both sides.

The 1948 war was as dirty and bloody as any. Israel used all means at her disposal as she was fighting for her very existence.

Sadly, this did include the expulsion of Arabs from areas Israel felt she would need to maintain her future security.

The Arabs used all means at their disposal to prevent the Jewish state coming into being. This included the murder of hundreds of Jewish civilians in the period between 1926-1948.

The moral high ground in this tragic conflict would prove extremely difficult for either side to reach. The path up there is drenched with Arab and Jewish blood, much of it innocent.

This is as true today as it was then.

David Lyon,

Kingfisher Close,

Huntington,

York.

Updated: 09:53 Thursday, April 15, 2004