The Middle East Crisis the World is Failing to Stop.

Photo by Kai Muro on unsplash.com

As the situation deteriorates in the Middle East, the humanitarian situation is no longer just the region’s problem, but the world’s problem. Yet, as the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has repeatedly warned, and as UN News has reported, the international response to the crisis has been woefully inadequate. The crisis is centered around Iran and Israel, but its effects are spreading across neighboring countries such as Lebanon and beyond. 

In the region, millions of people are forced to leave their homes and live in temporary accommodations without access to food, clean water, or medical care. The situation, as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has pointed out, is overwhelming the current infrastructure, which is already on the brink of collapse. In other words, the people are dependent on the kind of inadequate support they are receiving.

However, the situation has worsened because of the damage to the region’s infrastructure. This includes hospitals, access to clean water, and transport routes. While these issues are a result of the war, they only make things worse, not better, and create more challenges in finding a solution.

The human cost, however, continues to escalate, with over 1,300 killed and over 7,000 injured, including young children, according to Iran’s ambassador to the UN in Geneva, Ali Bahreini, who went on to say, “The international community must not remain silent.” The conflict, currently in its third week, has already reached nearly a dozen countries, further destabilizing a volatile region.

Tensions in the region continue to heighten international differences. Speaking on behalf of the Gulf Cooperation Council and Jordan, Bahrain’s ambassador, Abdullah Abdulatif Abdullah, strongly condemned Iran’s strikes, saying they target civilians and critical infrastructure, and therefore cannot be justified under international law, citing the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 2817, with 136 UN Member States supporting it. However, other nations, such as the Philippines, say such a normalization of violence has devastating effects, especially on civilians.

What is striking, however, is the disconnect between the need and the provision. As reported by Reuters, humanitarian groups have received only a fraction of the funds that are required to effectively respond to the situation. The problem is not just logistical; rather, it is a lack of sense of urgency at a global level. While military action is mobilized quickly, humanitarian action seems to still struggle to find its place and garner support.

This is not a new phenomenon. The international community has been warned time and time again about the need to take action, and yet the same crises continue to emerge and play out in the same way. The result is, and continues to be, predictable: a crisis that results in preventable suffering on a massive scale. The people who suffer the most are civilians, especially children and those who are forced to flee, while the response and actions at a political level continue to lag behind the reality on the ground.

The consequences of this crisis are far from contained within this region. The effects are felt on a global level, and to continue to turn a blind eye to this situation is to make it harder and costlier to deal with later on.

The situation in the Middle East shows that being aware is not enough. The world has the resources and experience to respond better, but actions have not matched the urgency of the crisis. Until this changes, the gap between what can be done and what is actually happening will keep costing lives.

written by Megi Likmeta