Civil war is a dangerous place for civilians. They tend to be the meat in the sandwich when opposing forces do battle and in recent times they have been a propaganda tool to solicit public opinion.
This happened recently in the Gaza strip. Hamas fired rockets into Israel and the Israeli army responded with artillery and air strikes. Hamas sited it's rockets where civilians were massed - and the returning fire killed and maimed hundreds.
It is happening right now in Sri Lanka. The Tamil Tigers are on their last legs, but they are fighting a losing survival battle min a tiny coastal enclave. Trapped civilians are being used as a shield - and given the fanatic element of the Tiger's leadership there is little chance that reason will prevail.
A similar scenario is developing in Pakistan. The Pakistani army - long the real force in that country - now has no alternative other than to fight the Taliban or see this Islamic country fall to a fundamentalist regime.
Inaction has allowed the Taliban to consolidate it's hold on the Swat valley. A deal was signed allowing the imposition of Sharia law in exchange for the insurgents laying down their arms. This was immediately broken by the fundamentalists - who then surged towards the capital.
The Swat valley is a heavily populated area and with cynical disregard for casualties, the Taliban are using this population to blunt the army attack. The chances are high that the toll from this crucial battle will be mounting civilian dead.
At stake in Pakistan is that country's nuclear arsenal. The world's worst fear is that nuclear weapons could fall into the hands of religious fanatics who vow that all others will either embrace their religion - or die !
The fate of civilians are merely pawns in a massive power game, being used as a propaganda weapon to manipulate public opinion. If the world falls for this ploy - a much bigger loss of life may occur if fanatics achieve control of nuclear weapons - and the means to deliver them to world targets !
No comments:
Post a Comment