Fear reigns from Wayanad to the Himalayas; and what will happen if Iran and the US enter the Israel-Hamas war?
I am deeply disturbed by the dance of death and destruction. The landslides in Wayanad have claimed the lives of more than 250 innocent people. Meanwhile, the mountains from Himachal Pradesh to Uttarakhand are crumbling and the situation is scary. I have no hesitation in saying that the root cause of all these incidents is the grave negligence of the governments. I use the word negligence because the government is aware of everything and yet people are living in dangerous zones only because they are poor. In these areas, trees are being cut down to make way for plains. Is it not necessary to relocate these people by constructing houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY)? It is, but unfortunately, no one seems to care!
No one is concerned about the ordinary Palestinians caught in the war between Hamas and Israel in the Middle East either. When Hamas attacked Israel, I wrote in this column last October that the biggest sufferers of this war would be the common Palestinians and that is exactly what is happening. Around 40,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 85,000 have been injured in Gaza. Women and children are suffering the most. There seems to be no end in sight to this war. The assassination of Hamas’ top political leader Ismail Haniyeh has raised the question: What next? Haniyeh’s assassination has become a prestige issue for Iran. Haniyeh had gone there to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. Union road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari represented India at this ceremony. After the ceremony, Haniyeh met the President and being a state guest, stayed in the area heavily guarded by the Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Despite this, he was assassinated. Though Israel has not taken the responsibility openly, the blame is being placed on it. There had been four previous attempts on Haniyeh’s life and Israel had claimed responsibility for killing 10 members of his family. Immediately after Haniyeh’s assassination, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stated that avenging Haniyeh’s death is Iran’s duty. An Israeli newspaper, citing sources, reported that Khamenei has ordered an attack on Israel. If Iran does not take action, it will be seen as a weakness and Iran does not want to appear weak.
The US, on one hand, is putting pressure on Iran to avoid escalating the situation, but the US secretary of defence Lloyd Austin has categorically stated that if Iran attacks, the US will defend Israel. This means the US could directly enter the war. It is also important to consider China’s role in this situation. China recently stated that it cannot ignore the carnage in the Gaza Strip. I believe China may engage in a war of words but will not risk getting involved in this Middle Eastern conflict. So, will China help Hamas financially? Well, it is possible.
Another question is over the role of Saudi Arabia in the present situation. Saudi Arabia has always desired to be the leader of Muslim countries while maintaining good relations with the US and Israel. A peace agreement between Saudi Arabia and Israel was about to be finalised too. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had said on the UN platform that a significant peace agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia was imminent, which would end the Arab-Israeli conflict and normalise relations between Israel and other Arab countries. This would increase the prospects for peace with the Palestinians, he had asserted. However, Hamas’ attack on Israel has destroyed all such possibilities, although Saudi Arabia has distanced itself from Hamas.
On the other hand, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that if necessary, Turkey could invade Israel. Israel responded by saying that any such action would lead to a fate similar to Saddam’s. This means that Israel is not backing down under any circumstances. What curse has befallen this region? If you look at any instance in history, this entire region appears bloodstained. You may remember the Iraq war, in which about one lakh innocent people were killed. You may also recall the sight of the Iraqi city of Mosul turning into a graveyard. Just imagine, what will happen if Iran, Turkey, Lebanon and the US join the war between Israel and Hamas? Certainly, there will be a massive dance of death. The lines from Sahir Ludhianvi’s ghazal come to my mind:
Jang toh khud hi ek masla hai,
Jang kya maslon ka hal degi!
Aag aur khoon aaj bakhshegi,
Bhukh aur ehtiyaaz kal degi!!
And then I give vent to my feelings:
Sambhal jao maut ke saudagaron,
Maut insaniyat khaati hai,
Aaj kisi aur ki baari hai,
Kal tumhein bhi nigal legi..!
The author is the chairman, Editorial Board of Lokmat Media and former member of Rajya Sabha.
