Cycle of violence and Israel’s lack of moral compass

“This cycle of violence must stop now. All sides must step back from the brink. The people of Lebanon, the people of Israel, as well as the wider region, cannot afford an all-out war.” UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres appealed on Saturday almost helplessly as Israel celebrated the killing of Hassan Nasrallah, the all-powerful leader of the Shia militant group Hezbollah in air strikes on densely populated residential areas of Beirut, Lebanon.

Guterres had earlier in the day ‘fully supported’ the proposal for a temporary ceasefire put forward by countries including the United States and France, which was promptly rejected by Tel Aviv. The US tried selling to the world the idea that Israel was on board the ceasefire plan before rejecting it. Shortly after Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Israeli air strikes pounded Lebanon.

With no deterrence in sight, the impunity with which Israel takes its right of ‘self-defence’ across its borders exposes the dual standards of international law depending on whether the country is an ally or opponent of the West.

The 9/11 terror strikes changed global security structures forever. If a non-State actor or a nation which is not an ally of the West had targeted communication technology like the alleged Israeli attacks on pagers and walkie-talkies in Lebanon, instead of hailing it as great modern technological warfare, the world would have labelled it as an act of terror.

Since the October 7 Hamas terror attacks that killed 1,200 Israelis and 250 were taken hostage, Israel’s retaliation in Gaza has left more than 41,000 Palestinians dead, most of them women and children. In the past week alone, more than 700 have died in bombardments in Lebanon, thousands have been injured and one million people have been displaced, with a ground offensive not ruled out.

Since October 7, homes have been flattened, hospitals, refugee camps, schools and even ambulances have been targeted by Israeli forces as civilian casualties keep mounting and humanitarian aid remains elusive. How do those caught in the dense conflict zones hide from strikes, and where do they return to when entire neighbourhoods are bombed into rubble? Is each one of these casualties a terrorist including women, children, and aid workers?

“If we are to ensure global security and stability, then it is essential that those who seek to lead, set the right example”, said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar at the General Debate of the 79th UNGA session. But when countries are focused on realpolitik and strategic gains, self-interests overshadow questions of morality. Palestinians themselves are politically fractured and the Arab world — particularly the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, and Jordan — have displayed little appetite to stop the war or get entangled in the battlefield. The US’ moral sermons have been selectively directed at those deemed enemies while turning a blind eye to atrocities by close allies. 

Since October 7, New Delhi in its bid to do a balancing act between Israel and Palestine — has made principled statements on Tel Aviv’s right to fight terrorism while raising humanitarian concerns in Gaza and West Bank. In the meantime, the Narendra Modi government has voted in strange ways on resolutions in the UN criticising Israel and calling for a ceasefire. Brazil and South Africa have been more vocal in the Global South and have taken a higher ground in calling out Israel’s disproportionate war. 

Despite its increased engagements with the Arab world and defence strategic partnerships with Israel, India has little leverage in the conflict. West Asia flares up putting at risk the lives, livelihoods, and remittances of 9 million Indians in the region too. India’s ambitious connectivity plans from the Adani Haifa port project to Chabahar port and the yet-to-take-off IMEC stand at risk. Protests in the past 24 hours against the killing of Nasrallah have also erupted in Kashmir adding to domestic challenges. India sending its construction workers to Israel to replace banned Palestinians in the middle of a war hardly shone the champion of the colonised in good light.

The fact is that the only powerful country with leverage on Israel has given it a carte blanche through political and military deals is supporting naked aggression which will not stop with the destruction of Hamas, Hezbollah, or Houthi commands. Nasrallah or Ismail Haniyeh were not unifying holy figures revered across the region. But past wars and invasions have not stopped Iran’s offshore resistance outfits from regrouping and trading missiles at Israel.

The current crisis has the possibility of blowing up into a full-fledged regional escalation unless Iran stays away from a direct conflict given the serious blows to its proxies. For Netanyahu, this is also a personal battle for domestic survival. Is revenge at high costs deprived of an iota of morality justice? How many bodies make a war crime? With no honest brokers in sight, the cycle of violence might take dimensions that are beyond the current military aggression. 

(Smita Sharma is a journalist and Visiting Faculty, Kautilya School of Public Policy. Twitter: @smita_sharma.)

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.