Dear Editor,

Another day, another war. Last week the state of Israel launched missiles into the Gaza Strip at what it claimed were terrorist elements who were threatening the security of the state of Israel.

Since then, there has been non-stop bombardment by both sides who claim their right to security and protection from aggression. This conflict, running concurrently with the Syrian unrest, creates even more instability in an already unstable region. The supposed bastion of world peace ideals, the United Nations, is once again crippled and all but fallen asleep, handcuffed and unable to do anything worth doing to bring an end to either of the two conflicts. Aside from formal visits by Secretary-General Ban-Ki Moon to the region, nothing has been done by the organisation that can effectively bring the conflicts to an end.

In truth, countries with their own interest at heart are more involved in the process of finding peace than the championed organisation. However, this creates a very delicate and dangerous situation. The US presence in the Israeli-Gaza conflict is aimed primarily at protecting the “statehood” and viability of the state of Israel. As such, any peace talks or ceasefire initiated by the Obama administration will not be of any lasting duration as Hamas understandably distrusts and dislikes the USA and by virtue of the USA’s allegiance to Israel. The USA has made it clear that they will protect the security of Israel at whatever cost – this coming from Hillary Clinton on her visit with Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu. Iran, on the other hand, has become a pillar of support for the so-called “terrorist factions” in the Gaza Strip, that is, Hamas, and reports from CNN are that missiles launched towards the Israeli border by Hamas were Iranian missiles smuggled through Sudan to the Strip.

The UN’s structure, especially in the Security Council, is proving more and more untenable. Deadlock between Russia and China on one side, and the USA on the other, has made it impossible for the UN to be effective in Syria. And now in Israel, we hear nothing but hollow cries for peace echoing from the UN. Something needs to be done soon, for if the conflicts in both countries turn into trans-border war, it would no longer be a Middle East problem but a global one. We all have a lot to lose.

Kemoy Lindsay

Kemoy.a.lindsay@gmail.com