Afghan and Iraqi wars exacerbate conflicts in Middle East and Africa

Our deepest sympathy must go the families and friends of the three Irish citizens, Laurence and Martina Hayes, and Lorna Carty, who were murdered in Sousse, Tunisia, last week. Nothing ever justifies murder, and nothing ever justifies mass-murder.

Yet, in order to prevent such atrocities in the future, it is important to begin the process of trying to understand what drives rational individuals to do such irrational deeds.

There are media reports that the Tunisian gunman Seifeddine Rezgui deliberately chose Western tourists whose states supported US-led wars in the Middle East.