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It is hard to speak of a war today, amid the many wars the world is witnessing. Each of these wars has more than one manifestation, and more costs and consequences than apparent today. The Palestinian death toll from the war between Israel and Hamas has soared past 25,000, the Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip said Sunday, while the Israeli government appeared far from achieving its goals of crushing the militant group and freeing more than 100 hostages.
However, the relentless war on Gaza is no longer just about Israel and Hamas. It has snowballed into a regional security crisis, pushing West Asia into a state of flux. We saw Iran, facing a heightening internal and external security challenges, moving to strike its enemies in neighbouring countries. On January 16, Iran carried out a surprise attack in Panjgur, a border town in neighbouring Pakistan’s Balochistan, as part of what it termed “retaliatory” attacks in three countries in the region in recent weeks.
Why did Iran carry out these strikes? Our Foreign Affairs Editor Stanly Johny breaks down the development.
More broadly, why are conflicts spreading in West Asia? Who are the key players in this operation and why are they pulling in different directions? What are the apprehensions of a prolonged war for the region and the world? Read this comprehensive take.
The Hindu’s Editorial argued that West Asia needs a new security equilibrium with the Palestine issue at the centre. Read it here.
What is India’s position in this evolving situation? “This is a matter between Iran and Pakistan,” the Ministry of External affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a statement. “Insofar as India is concerned, we have an uncompromising position of zero tolerance towards terrorism. We understand actions that countries take in their self-defence.”
Further, speaking at the Non-Alligned Movement [NAM] summit in Uganda, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said: “We must seek a two-state solution where the Palestinian people can live within secure borders. Our collective endeavours should focus on making this realisable.”
Top 5 stories we are reading this week:
- How will the Iowa caucuses impact US elections? Narayan Lakshman explains
- The geopolitics in the Bangladesh election results by Syed Munir Khasru
- A search for deterrence in the Red Sea by Sarabjeet Singh Parmar
- Crafting a new phase in India-U.K. defence ties by Harsh V. Pant and Kartik Bommakanti
- A revival of the IMEC idea amid choppy geopolitics by M. Kalyanaraman
