Claiming victory after the Israel-Hamas confrontation is insulting to those who died

The Israeli military are claiming big gains in their retaliatory offensive aganst Hamas in Gaza, and the Palestinians in Gaza are claiming victory over the Israelis, although their justification for this conclusion beats me. Neither side won. But the civilian populations in both Israel and Gaza lost because they were the victims of the 11 days of fighting. Israeli airstrikes killed 240 Palestininans but does that official figure include the 150 Hamas fighters and leaders the Israelis claimed to have killed? If so, then 90 Palestinian civilians died, including 65 children. Twelve Israelis, including one 12-year-old boy, died from Hamas rocketfire. So if the figures are accurate it means that in 11 days, 252 people died. That's nearly 23 people every day.So there is no reason or excuse for either side to boast of victory, least of all those living in Gaza who have seen death and destruction on an unremitting scale. The world talks blithely about reconstructing Gaza City but that will take billions of dollars and years of work. And before Gaza City has been rebuilt there could be another outbreak of violence that will once against lead to deaths of civilians and the demolition of buildings. The potential for war to be repeated must be high. Only politics and diplomacy will stop the cycle of violent outbreaks. Any sort of peaceful conclusion looks as unikely today as it has ever been.