Gulf War: Bombing Won't Make Iran Surrender

It is time for India to step up and get Russia, China and Europe to agree to a joint appeal to all combatants. Time is of essence, tomorrow may be too late, asserts Colonel Anil A Athale, former head of the history division, ministry of defence.

The biggest lesson of history is that mankind learns no lesson from it. Else how and why would the US and Israel expect Iran to fold up and surrender due to bombing of its military bases?

The US carried out bombing of North Vietnam (Operation Rolling Thunder) from 1965 to 1968 and dropped nearly 50,000 tonnes of bombs on various targets in Vietnam.

Under Operation Menu the US dropped 2.7 million tonnes of bombs on Cambodia between 1970 and 1973. Cambodia has the distinction of being the most bombed country in the world.

Neither Vietnam nor Cambodia surrendered despite this inhuman act. It was the US that beat a hasty retreat.

During World War II that lasted six years, the total tonnage of bombs dropped was 2 million (including the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki).

In 1944 Nazi Germany was bombed day and night. Statistics later revealed that German war production reached its peak in 1944 since most of it had moved underground.

The two lessons that one ought to learn are aerial bombing does not lead to surrender and war production does not get affected if the country is prepared beforehand, as Iran obviously is.

In the third week of this senseless war, all sides are now threatening to destroy the oil and gas resources in the Middle East. The oil and gas was formed millions of years ago due to a geological process and is an asset of all of mankind.

Neither the Arabs nor the Iranians created it. As the current occupants of that land mass they certainly have the right to enjoy nature's bounty, but they have no right to destroy this heritage of mankind.

Global Boycott

The current deadlines game being played by the US and Iran to begin the targeting of oil installations is against humanity's interest.

If these countries do not stop this madness, it is time the rest of the world unites and impose economic and travel sanctions on the combatants. It is worth pondering if the greatest superpower can survive a global boycott!

The US and Israel did start with moral high ground when Iran, foolishly according to me, made the destruction of Israel as its national goal.

Hidden behind this was the grandiose idea to become the leader of the Islamic Ummah. The delusional ayatollahs of Iran should have long realised that the vast Sunni Islamic world will not accept a Shia country leading them.

In pursuit of an unattainable goal, Iran's mullahs have brought a disaster upon their country.

The policy of export of the Iranian revolution was doomed to failure and has earned Iran Arab enmity.

Iran No Existential Threat

Israel did have logic on its side at the start of the conflict when it claimed an existential threat to it from Iran.

But after three weeks of a brutal bombing campaign, Iran no longer poses an existential threat to Israel.

Instead, it is Israel and the US that now threaten the very existence of Iran, an ancient civilisational state, at par with Egypt, India and China.

Confronted with the threat of extinction and calls for total surrender, Iran is now fighting back like Cambodia or Vietnam did in the 1970s.

With a mentally unstable president, the US today poses the greatest threat to the world economy and peace.

The only way out of this quagmire is for the world, Asia, Europe and Africa to unite and issue an ultimatum to the countries involved in this war to cease hostilities and stop destroying mankind's natural resources.

It is time for India to step up and get Russia, China and Europe to agree to a joint appeal to all combatants. Time is of essence, tomorrow may be too late.

• THE MIDDLE EAST CONFLICT

These are Colonel Anil A Athale's personal views.
You can read Colonel Athale's earlier columns here.

Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff