GLOBALLY, 2024 WAS MARKED BY INTENSIFYING CONFLICTS WITH NO END IN SIGHT

A year back when we entered the New Year 2024, we all hoped that the year would bring an end to the
conflicts around the world and reduce the threat of nuclear weapons, even though this hope was filled with fear and skepticism. Despite the global voice for peace, truce in any of the conflict zones seems remote at the end of the year.

Whereas people in relatively peaceful regions celebrated Christmas and the onset of New Year, children in Gaza have little hope in store for them. They have virtually forgotten what all these festivities of Christmas or Eid even mean! They only wish an end to Israeli aggression and the brutal killings of their kith and kin, friends and companions. They wish to go to school and to the playground.

Sitting far away from the war zone in Gaza, it is beyond comprehension how they are always living in fear at this tender age. They are homeless, without required food and even water for no fault of theirs. In the similar way, families of the Israeli hostages have been living in extreme stress.

It is a strange way of life; the Jews were persecuted by the Nazis in concentration camps, but now the
Zionists are using the same tactics, spreading hatred against the Palestinians, killing them with impunity, completely ignoring their human rights and the calls for ceasefire by the countries of the world and the United Nations.

The International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court have indicted Israel for committing
genocide in Gaza, but the Zionist regime is not bothered. Barring the US and few western countries, the
entire world is yearning for peace in the Middle East.

Yet, the Nakba of 1948 is being repeated. This time the world is watching the dance of death on screens. Bombardments have displaced over 1.5 million people, severely restricting access to clean water, medical care, and shelter, resulting in thousands of preventable deaths. Nearly 14 million people of Syria have been
displaced.

There were deaths in Lebanon from Israeli strikes. The situation in Ukraine is no better. Nearly 24.6 million people now require urgent humanitarian aid, and over 6.3 million are internally displaced, many facing life-threatening shortages of essential medicines and food. Those living as refugees in the neighbouring countries are facing extreme difficulties.

There have been repeated threats of use of nuclear weapons. The danger to the nuclear power plants is not yet over. Several countries in Africa are involved in internal conflicts and they are facing serious food crises as a result of the Russia-Ukraine war. Nearly half of the Sudanese population is almost starving. The on-going conflicts in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, the Central African Republic (CAR), the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Mali, Mozambique, Nigeria, Senegal, Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan are issues of grave concern.

The countries need immediate respite from wars and humanitarian aid. In these major conflicts in Ukraine or the Middle-East, there is explicit involvement of outside parties. The military industrial complex is making huge profits at the cost of innocent lives. NATO is directly involved in the Russia-Ukraine war, while the US has direct involvement in the Middle- East along with western countries.

Israel has taken over a large part of Golan Heights in Syria. There are reports of the burning of Christmas trees in Syria, a country which was known for its secular credentials. The US, who had called the present rulers of Syria as terrorists is now all out to establish diplomatic ties with them.

Conflicting statements made by the prospective Trump administration are full of uncertainty. It is to be seen which direction the Trump administration will take. Trump is unpredictable. Will he try to get the
Panama Canal under US-control, adding to the tensions in the American continent?

Trump has not taken a firm stand on Israeli aggression. It is he who had broken the deal with Iran. Now
Israel is openly calling Iran a staunch enemy. There have been missile exchanges between Iran and Israel. It is to be seen what shape politics takes place in Trump’s era.

South Asia too is witnessing uncertain times. Even though the Sri Lankan situation has given some sense of relief, but rise of fundamentalism in Pakistan, India and Bangladesh is worrying. The peace movement has a tough time ahead. Various groups must unite nationally as well as internationally to counter the forces promoting arms race.

We have to impress upon the nuclear weapons possessing countries to join the Treaty on the Prohibition
of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) which was passed by the UN General Assembly in July 2017 and save the world from catastrophe.