Bet you thought the headline was about Palestinians in Gaza, didn’t you? No, it’s about 45 people killed, including children, when Sri Lankan army shells hit a school near a Tamil camp.

Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka accused government forces of killing 45 civilians yesterday as they sheltered in a school — the bloodiest incident yet since peace talks collapsed last month.

It all sounds depressingly familiar.

The Government denied any knowledge of civilian casualties and accused the Tigers of using human shields during a mortar and artillery exchange in the eastern district of Batticaloa.

A military spokesman said that the army had been responding to shelling from Tiger positions, which killed five soldiers yesterday.

But where are the worldwide condemnations?

Why the silence from aid agencies? After all, more died in the Sri Lankan incident than in Gaza.

Will the UN devote a special meeting to this event, as they will for the deaths of the 18 Gazans?

Of course, Independent Catholic News and Ekklesia leap on the indignation bandwagon about Gaza – but not about the bigger event in Sri Lanka. They amplify the indignation of Caritas and Christian Peacemaker Teams, whose well of sympathy seems drained by the Palestinians, leaving none for Sri Lankans.

Why is that? No Jews involved in the deaths in Sri Lanka?