Leaping into the unknown

Apropos to nothing, here goes. I write this with a heavy heart as what we've witnessed in the past 100 days and counting, the mounting death toll in Gaza due to a "war of self defence" which has surpassed 30,000 Palestinian lives being taken and over double that number severely injured or even maimed for life, with the internal invisible mental scars from the trauma endured even more catastrophic if that were even possible to imagine. Over 1.85 million of the approximately 2.3 civilians that inhabit the 365?km2 strip of land which runs abreast the Mediterranean Sea, have been forcefully internally displaced and made effectively homeless in the space of the past 3 months due to the relentless and indiscriminate bombing campaign mainly by air, also by land and sea by the Israeli military on the orders of its government. Vital resources necessary for survival like water, food, medicine and healthcare services, electricity and access to communication within the territory and with the outside world have been severely curtailed and blocked inhumanely by this very same government which is backed unconditionally by those of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, the European Union and their western allies in the global north.

For those who deal in facts with relevant context to understand the history of the region and the events that have led us to this particular moment in time, which is most rational, logical, impartial and objective minded observers who do not react on emotion alone, allowing a clouding of their judgement and senses to be overwhelmed like it so often happens to some in the "fog of war" by the barrage of "information" that is flooding our social and traditional media spaces and platforms at such an unprecedentedly rapid pace and of such an expansive scope, it becomes almost impossible to attempt to process any of it appropriately in a timely and objective fashion but rather requires one to "react" to these breaking news stories almost instantaneously. Such are the times and world we live in. Or so it may seem, to some.

Here's an alternative perspective on that. We do not need to be reacting to every single sensational accusation or outrageous claim by any party directly or even indirectly involved in this theatre of chaos, as it does not serve any useful purpose nor does it tangibly help alleviate the condition of those suffering the most due to the actions and policies of these powerful state actors and other non state players engaged in battles being fought physically on the ground and in other arenas both virtual and real. We can and must support and show solidarity with the actions of those like the government of South Africa at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) during the previous week, of which a verdict has not been rendered to date; yet the ramifications of these bold steps taken will reverberate through time for many more decades to come and could very well end up being a watershed moment in the modern history of human civilisation.

We wait, hoping and praying that impartiality and fairness leading to justice will ultimately prevail. Whatever may come, the world will never be the same again. Not after what we have witnessed in the past 100 days and counting. We cannot stay complacent and unshaken by what is ongoing. The status quo can not be allowed to stand. Not when this moment in history demands that it be irrevocably changed and replaced with that which is better.

For the sake of our souls.

For humanity.