“The opposite of love is not hate, it is indifference.” Elie Wiesel – writer and Nobel Peace Prize winner
Fifteen days after the brutal terrorist attack on Israel, the actions of international leaders in seeking a solution to the conflict in that region are cynical and paltry. Constant real-time news coverage gives us the false impression that there is global concern about the conflict, given the frequency with which the topic appears in the mainstream media. But when we focus on effective actions, we see that nothing has been done.
If we compare this to the speed with which the same international community acted in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the world's anti-Semitic and Islamophobic stance becomes even more evident. Days after the first bombings in Ukraine, the world made harsh statements against Russia: it opened Europe's borders to receive refugees; sent military equipment; froze the assets of Russian citizens around the world; cut off Russia's sources of revenue from oil and gas sales; banned Russian athletes from sporting competitions; established a Western economic blockade against Russia; and even obtained a decision from the International Criminal Court condemning Vladimir Putin as a perpetrator of war crimes.
In the current conflict in the Middle East, the international community has done almost nothing. In addition to standing by and watching—afraid of bringing upon itself a problem it mistakenly believes to be regional—in practice, we have seen only statements condemning a terrorist cell and some fruitless diplomatic efforts to remove civilians from Gaza. Not even the UN has managed to vote on a ceasefire resolution and deliberate on humanitarian aid in the region. Some countries have sent meager financial resources to show support for the victims of the conflict. This is a gesture that is much more symbolic than effective.
This conflict did not begin on October 7; it has been going on continuously. And now, with this tremendous blow to Israel. In contrast, Palestinian civilians are defenseless, abandoned, and on the verge of being wiped out, given Israel's military might and the need to respond to the brutality perpetrated by a terrorist minority.
For years, we have been witnessing crimes against humanity, in the broadest sense of the term. In the words of Yuval Harari, “a crime against humanity is not just about killing human beings. It is about destroying our trust in humanity.”
The West's complacency with the situation is so bizarre that the main leader of Hamas, the group that governs Gaza, lives in Qatar, where the main US military base in the region is located and which last year hosted the world's largest sporting event and sponsors France's leading soccer team.
The conflict between Jews and Palestinians has been going on for more than 70 years, and there is no longer any empathy between the civilian populations, mired in their own pain and unable to recognize the pain of others. All diplomatic efforts are necessary. But when it reaches this level of brutality—and when the goal is to decimate the other's existence—it becomes clear that diplomacy needs support.
The international community, far removed from the conflict and suffering, must empathize with those who are suffering and take decisive action to bring peace to the region, rather than continuing to be mere spectators of this terrible reality.
The situation must be addressed in accordance with international law. There is no other way to achieve peace unless there is a global intervention that combines: territorial occupation by an international body; legitimization of moderate sectors on both sides for dialogue; investment in infrastructure to improve living conditions and enable the prosperity of civilians; encouragement of free migration with open borders; transformation of the region into a multicultural hub, with peaceful religious coexistence, governed by an international committee; demilitarization of the entire region; and heavy investment in educating new generations of people with less bellicose mindsets.
This disdain for the region is even stranger when one considers that Islam will be the world's largest religion by 2070, according to a study released by the Pew Research Center in Washington. The same study says that the Muslim population in Europe is expected to triple by 2050, mainly in countries such as Germany and Sweden. Not all Arabs are Muslim, and not all Muslims are Arab, but with this rate of growth, their future influence in the West is undeniable.
I have always been skeptical that there could be global movement in one direction. COVID showed me that I was wrong. The world stopped for years. When there is real interest in solving extreme situations, the human side comes to the fore and our need for survival makes us more active. There will always be dissenting voices, such as COVID deniers, but humanity has won and has everything it needs to win this cause too.
International leaders need to understand that this conflict affects the world in different ways, whether through economic decline, terrorist attacks in major world capitals, or the radicalization of rhetoric that generates increasingly violent conflicts. The solution lies in recognizing that this conflict belongs to everyone and in taking effective action to bring peace to the region, lest we lose our humanity.
More about
World
