Today I came across an article in the newspaper. It talked about how a particular leader wanted to compete again in elections despite his cruel and atrocious activities done to its neighbouring nation. If you are caught up with news, you’d know that I’m talking about Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu, incumbent Prime Minister of Israel.
When we discuss war, all we see is sheer violence and bloodshed- of who? The civilians. It always irritated me that these world leaders for their own political interests fight with other countries but do not partake in the damages caused by their rivals. It is, alas, the citizens of the country who caused no harm who suffer. In Palestine, more than 50,000 children have reportedly been killed or injured since 2023. Many children lay in the pain of malnutrition and other lifestyle diseases due to the conditions set up by war.
The leaders of countries now never fight a war, I repeat, never. The last time it ever took place was in Jordan when its King, Abdullah personally led a bombing mission to avenge a Jordanian pilot’s death. Niccolò Machiavelli, in his seminal treatise, The Prince, wrote that a true King should primarily study the Art of Warfare and must lead his army in battles. Apart from Machiavelli, philosophers including Plato and Sun Tzu have also argued the same.
Recently, The US Department of State has approved weapons sales worth $1.96 Billion to Saudi Arabia. Interestingly, the Pentagon had stated once that the US had spent $25 Billion on its war with Iran. The patterns might suggest US’s growing interest in continuing the war to keep funding weaponry to other countries benefiting its own economy with armament sales.
Now mind you, this is all happening while President Trump, like every other leader during war, is chilling in the White House.
The Iraq war in 2003 had also led to major criticisms as then-President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney launched a bombing campaign named ‘Shock and Awe’ on Iraq leading to thousands of civilian deaths including children whilst being unfazed in their own comfortable cabin.
Historically, even during British rule in India, while countless Indians suffered and died from famine, British officials took a pleasing retreat to hill stations like Ooty and Shimla totally ignoring how the citizens of British India were suffering. This mindset also resurfaced during the Bengal Famine of 1943 which was possibly the worst famine India has ever witnessed in the 20th century which subsequently caused irreplaceable medical repercussions on Indians including the heightened risk of Type-2 Diabetes, Cardiovascular diseases and Truncal Obesity.
Culturally, even the famous song ‘War Pigs’ by Black Sabbath extensively talks about how ‘politicians hide themselves away’ and sarcastically mentions how they use poor people to fight and get the job done by counting them as pawns in a chess game.
War has favoured the ones in power while putting people who fight in frontlines and the ones who have nothing to do with the conflict at the highest risk. It is not just the leaders I mentioned who caused harm, rather every country’s leader technically does not endure the repercussions of war most of the time unless its own citizens assassinate them in unrest.
While this instance was not due to war, ex-Egyptian leader Anwar Sadat was assassinated by the Egyptian Islamic Jihad militant group. While he earned the Nobel Peace Prize for its diplomacy with Israel, it alienated him from much of the Arab world and Islamic fractions within Egypt.
The world will become a much more peaceful abode to live in when these world leaders count wars more empathetically pushing verbal diplomacy and realize how much pain and loss the world suffers because of the actions they do in their little bubble of comfort.
“Now in darkness, world stops turning
Ashes where the bodies burning
No more war pigs have the power
Hand of God has struck the hour
Day of Judgment, God is calling
On their knees the war pigs crawling
Begging mercy for their sins
Satan, laughing, spreads his wings...
Oh Lord, yeah!”
- War Pigs, Black Sabbath.
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