As the fighting rages on in the Middle East, spare a moment for the civilians who are being murdered en masse. 

No, I'm not talking about in Gaza. 

Although any civilian deaths are to be mourned, the onus of blame for Gazan lives being lost is on Hamas, a fact lost on media commentators and producers, but illustrated by the graphic (right) quite well, along with this video.

What I mean is that we should spare a moment of thought for Syrians and Iranians.

Gaza dominates the news as the death toll this week climbs to 42 - a staggeringly low statistic considering how many hundreds of raids Israel has made. But we continue for some reason, to ignore the tens of thousands being slaughtered in Syria, and the dozens killed in Iran by their respective regimes.

So far, over 37,000 people have been slaughtered by Assad's regime. And while the international community has had some stern words for the regime, we continue to sit back and effectively ignore the tragedy. Even the media is no longer interested.

In Iran this week, there have been around 81 public executions. Barbaric punishments, including the cutting off of fingers, hangings and floggings continue to blight Iran and yet not a word can be heard from the international community.

Yet we continue to lambast Israel for its tireless efforts in defending its Jewish population in the face of terrorist onslaught.

What does that say about us in the West? I would love to believe that it is simply that many people are instinctively pro-Arab, but the silence on Iran doesn't explain that. I would love to believe it was post-colonial guilt, but I fear it goes much deeper.

Regardless of the reasons behind which we hold Israel to an impossible standard, this does not account for the blackout regarding other areas in the world. 

I hope we can all agree that no ones lives should be considered more important, simply because they are the cause of international celebrity or  NGO campaigns. I look forwarding to hearing accurate and balanced reporting in future. For obvious reasons I won't hold my breath.