The current post-World War II global order is on the brink of collapse as our society is faced with an unprecedented number of horrific, simultaneous crises. The establishment of multilateral organisations such as the League of Nations and the United Nations after the horrors of the two World Wars ignited hope of mutual respect among nations and collective efforts to prevent such catastrophes in the future. Today, this hope is fading, and trust in the United Nations is significantly decreasing.
In his opening remarks of the 79th session of the General Assembly, UN Secretary-General António Guterres calls the current whirlwind “an age of impunity everywhere.” From the Middle East to the heart of Europe and beyond, genocides and wars spread like wildfire, with no end in sight. The United Nations (UN) is unable to uphold its core principle and main purpose: maintaining international peace and security. The organisation’s impotence and failure to utilise all of its resources to restore peace in the Middle East leaves not only the general public but also civil servants desperate. Former UN diplomat Craig Mokhiber recounts that the institution has faced genocides under difficult circumstances before, for example, in Bosnia and Rwanda. But never before has the world collectively borne witness to a genocide unfolding in real time, seemingly powerless to intervene. The current deadlock of the Security Council and its failure to call for a ceasefire in Gaza due to the US vetoes has opened a new chapter of immunity to the most despicable crimes against humanity. This matter has been set apart from previous ones through the unprecedented live broadcast of the unfolding catastrophe, which provides evidence for the courts in The Hague.
At least 44.249 Palestinians have been killed since October 2023, 70% of whom are women and children, with tens of thousands more presumed dead beneath the rubble. International aid workers who have been operating under the most difficult circumstances for decades report that they have never seen anything like the horrors they witnessed in Gaza. UNICEF spokesperson James Elder repeatedly calls Israel’s war on Palestine “a war on children.” A newly issued report from the UN Office of the High Commissioner confirms this and reveals that more five to nine-year-olds have been killed in Israel’s relentless bombings of residential buildings than any other age group in Gaza. No one is being spared as Israel continues to deploy massive 2.000-pound bombs on the strip and uses starvation as a weapon of war for the 14th consecutive month.
Israel has killed the highest number of UN personnel in the history of the United Nations. Since October 2023, more journalists and media workers have been murdered than in any other year since documentation, setting the highest record of journalist fatalities. Doctors, nurses and medical personnel have been abducted from hospitals and tortured to death, including sexual violence. The Israeli human rights organisation B’Tselem describes the prison system that Palestinians are forcibly thrown into as “hell”. Similarly, António Guterres describes the inferno unleashed on Gaza “hell on earth” and portrays the escalating situation as nothing less than apocalyptic. The entire Gaza Strip has been rendered unlivable: Residential buildings, UN shelters, schools, mosques, universities, churches, hospitals, and medical facilities have been levelled to the ground and remain under constant attack. More than 1.9 million people have been displaced with no safe place to go, leaving the entire population trapped under bombs. This proliferation of unpunished war crimes has already expanded to Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and Iran, further exacerbating an immensely precarious situation and heightening the risk of regional war. The speed and scale of these atrocities puts hundreds of millions at risk and it cements the situation increasingly as irreversible.
In the latest attempt to advocate for an immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire, the Security Council saw the United States block the resolution for the fourth time since hostilities began, remaining the sole member state preventing its adoption and opposing a mere ceasefire. The United States’ recent veto represents the 49th instance in which the US has utilised its power in the Security Council to shield Israel from accountability. In addition to the provision of at least USD 14 billion in military aid since the beginning of the full-fledged war on Gaza, the United States has been Israel’s strongest diplomatic ally within the organisation. Even when UN resolutions are successfully adopted, member states are the ones responsible to enforce them and abide by them. As long as certain governments refuse to mobilise for an immediate ceasefire and an end to the destructive occupation and siege on Gaza, even the most sophisticated resolutions, laws, and rulings fail to alleviate the suffering on the ground.
The lack of consequences and the utter disregard for human life signal a perilous shift for the global rule-based order. Israel’s overt violation of international law may have enduring consequences for the world as we know it. Since October 2023, diplomats and NGO workers incessantly warn of a total collapse of our post-World War II order if the international community does not come together to collectively stop the carnage. The systematic dehumanisation of Palestinians has persisted for decades, ultimately paving the way for the unprecedented catastrophe in the region today. Western democracies have long esteemed themselves as staunch defenders of human rights and the rule of law. However, it is the weaponry, resources, and diplomatic protection provided by Western governments that enable Israel to commit one of the most brutal genocides of the century. The pledge to never repeat the horrors of the two World Wars cannot exclude Palestinians, who are currently subjected to the unimaginable.
Israel’s extermination rampage has shocked the world and awakened large parts of the global society to the immense suffering of Palestinians and the history of the occupation. Now, it is up to the individual governments to put aside their national interests, prioritise human rights and international law, and demonstrate multilateralism. At this moment, none of Israel’s ally countries are signalling to turn ship despite immense pressure from the general public. Social movements worldwide have shown enormous dedication and support for Palestinian rights and firmly demand arms embargoes, sanctions, and an end to the occupation. Allowing crimes against humanity to occur in one place may set a new global precedent for the future. Before the situation threatens to spill further across borders and out of control, we must restore the effective functioning of the United Nations. It is decisive to reinforce adherence to the rule of law because the alternative might be nothing less than a total collapse of the post-World War II international system.