Blood Lust
History and Why I Refuse to Take Sides in My Country's Meddling in Middle Eastern Affairs
I utterly refuse to take sides in the blood feud between the Israelis, the Palestinians, the Iranians, and the Americans.
Let me clarify: I am neither anti-Israel nor pro-Palestinian, nor am I pro-Israel and anti-Palestinian, anti-Israel nor pro-Iran, pro-Israel and anti-Iran, nor either pro- or- anti-American or any combination thereof. I am a humanist who is utterly disgusted by the killing of innocent people in the name of something as utterly ridiculous as religion. Either/or decisions in the slaughter of human beings between cultures where vengeance is a horror are utterly disgusting to me.
The recent bombings in Iran aimed at alleged nuclear weapons sites were unjustified. Several credible agencies verified that Iran lacked uranium enrichment facilities. Additionally, no radiation was detected at the sites after the U.S. attack, which is unusual for such incidents.
Iran and the United States have a long history of tension. In 1951, the Shah was removed, and Iranians elected Mohammad Mosaddegh as their prime minister. He introduced essential reforms that prioritized the people's interests over those of the Anglo-Persian Oil Company. In 1953, under orders from U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower, the CIA launched "Operation Ajax,” a secret effort to overthrow Mosaddegh. This operation supported pro-Shah factions, supplying them with advanced weapons and tanks. As a result, Mosaddegh was ousted in November 1953, and the Shah was restored to power in Iran.
After regaining his throne, the Shah ruled with strict authority. In 1974, he was diagnosed with stomach cancer and sought medical treatment in the United States, which President Jimmy Carter approved in December 1977. By mid-January 1979, he abdicated and exiled himself to New York. The Islamic Revolutionary Movement, still resentful of American interference in Mosaddegh's overthrow and allowing the Shah to have medical exile in their country, seized the American Embassy in Tehran and held 68 Americans hostage. Despite efforts by U.S. diplomats, the hostages remained until early morning on 20 January 1981. Since then, Americans have harbored animosity toward Iran, with President George W. Bush calling them “the axis of evil.”
Regarding the Israeli and Palestinian conflict, I read about the death and destruction caused in Gaza by both the Israeli army and Hamas. Each side recklessly instills terror in Palestinian civilians caught in a dangerous game of playground politics fueled by anger and blame. Yet neither side dares to pursue a lasting, peaceful resolution. Meanwhile, military superpowers greatly profit from this ongoing bloodshed by supplying weapons while their shareholders gain financially. Furthermore, it is illogical to think that killing individuals who kill others will stop further killings, as history over thousands of years has clearly shown.
This is a centuries-old blood feud between Judaism and Islam that no external force can resolve. The conflict between them has been intense since before the Common Era, around 930 BCE, when the United Kingdom of Israel split in two due to King Rehoboam's mishandling of economic grievances (I Kings 14:22-24). So weakened by centuries of division and conflict, the Babylonians easily conquered both kingdoms between 598 and 587 BCE. Following the Babylonian captivity came the Roman conquest, which began in 64 BCE, along with the destruction of the Jewish state. This process started with the siege at Masada and ended with the destruction of Jerusalem on 8 September 70 CE.
Given the deep roots of their conflict, violence between them is likely to persist indefinitely. In 1947, the United Nations divided much of what was then called Palestine to establish a Jewish homeland based on biblical claims and a selective history. Sadly, a Palestinian state was not formed at that time, and violence has continued between the two sides ever since. Over nearly eighty years, many nations have made efforts to broker peace, but all attempts have failed, leaving a resolution still unattainable.
Israel must recognize that it is an island of Judaism surrounded by a vast ocean of Islam. Its government views countries like Iran and Saudi Arabia as potential threats and has built up a substantial arsenal of defense weapons in case of a jihad declaration. Despite the risk of catastrophic consequences for all, Israel continues to buy and develop more weapons and has avoided negotiations. They justify their actions as a need to defend against a second Holocaust, yet their actions seem to cause suffering to their Muslim neighbors. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has explicitly expressed his aim to erase the Palestinians and claim their land for Israel.
Palestinians, especially Hamas, must acknowledge that Israel enjoys strong backing from the United States. If it comes to a choice in a conflict, the US will support Israel. This alliance is more rooted in religious beliefs than strategic military interests. In Christianity, the land now called Israel is seen as the Holy Land, leading the US to defend Israel so its citizens can access these sacred sites. Moreover, a sizable Jewish community in the US is politically active and influential in public opinion and finances, which can sway Congress to support Israel. While Palestinians condemn Israel's violence and continue retaliating, they only escalate their enemies’ anger, and the killing of their people continues unabated.
I love my country, and the ideals in its Constitution are sacred to me. I respect it so much that I will speak out loudly when I see it violating the principles on which it was founded. How can anyone truly admire their country without challenging those who try to undermine its core values for personal benefit? The United States has erred in meddling in Middle Eastern affairs.
The corporate-owned American media must stop taking sides in the recent events that led Israel to declare war on the Palestinian people, not just Hamas, as well as the preemptive attacks on Iran by Israel and the U.S. They are actively shaping public opinion with biased coverage that evokes sympathy, often referencing the Holocaust. To avoid claims that I am a Holocaust denier, I am a historian who has studied this event thoroughly and am deeply horrified by it. Nonetheless, history does not justify killing innocents today. As Mahatma Gandhi said, “An eye for an eye only makes the whole world blind.”
Honestly, I don't care which side started it or how long ago. My stance is clear: The violence committed by all sides needs to stop now!
Should this bloodlust continue, the final result will be the complete annihilation of all sides. No outside party can be an effective intermediary in these matters, for any diplomat who engages in this endeavor will inevitably be accused of choosing one side over the other. The sole way a lasting peace between these two warring sides can be achieved is for them to set aside their hatred, initiate a ceasefire, and engage in an honest and respectful dialogue, whose outcome will be a committed and lasting peace. Nothing short of this goal will accomplish the end of the slaughter of innocent human beings.
This is why I utterly refuse to take sides, for it is an atrocious exercise in genocide and self-extermination with no end in sight. I sincerely weep for the lives lost in the crossfire made by others with nothing but hate and vengeance on their minds, for they are the ones who will pay the ultimate price for this blood feud.