Islamabad – When a hunter enters the forest, he is rarely alone. Behind him, he marched the beaters, stirring dust, throwing stones, and pushing their prey from freedom onto a single deadly path. The prey is exhausted and terrifying, and the prey stumbles in front of the hunter’s feet, and a blow ends its life.
Today, across Western Asia, that ancient drama is being performed again, but this time only in blood. Hunters are Israel and the United States. Beaters are the local rulers and world powers that create noise, destroy the terrain, and drive people to traps other than death. As usual, it was not the hunters and beaters who paid the price, but the prey: ordinary men, women, and children were crushed under fire and fear.
This is not a new game. Forty years ago, the Iran-Iraq war began like this. Saddam Hussein was advanced by the United States and its western allies, and the Persian Gulf countries poured money and the entire region was burning. Millions have died, Iran has been quarantined under sanctions, and Iraq has been returned to Kura Rub. The scars still pass through Western Asia’s history.
This pattern was repeated in Syria, Yemen and Lebanon. Sometimes extremist groups were pushed straight ahead, and sometimes denominational rifts were intentionally enlarged. Houses fell, generations were uprooted, while profits flowed to weapons dealers and powerful states looking from afar.
Gaza is the latest stage. Air strikes and ground attacks were inevitable in both homes, hospitals and refugee camps. Thousands of children were buried under the tiled rub, and millions of children were forced into the streets. But the global narrative was manipulated. Gaza was portrayed as a danger, and Iran was portrayed as a threat. Washington gave Israel a blank check, but some Muslims offered diplomatic cover by signing President Trump’s so-called peace plan.
After Israel struck Qatar, the world saw it temporarily for what it was, due to its illicit and aggressive state. For a while, the Muslim country seemed ready to meet, and public opinion leaned against Tel Aviv. Within a few days, Trump and Netanyahu turned vulnerability into strength. With the support of certain Muslim capitals, Israel was diplomatically protected. It was no longer an oppressor. Suddenly, those who resisted it were branded as criminals.
The treaty itself was a deception. The release of prisoners, ceasefires and promises of humanitarian assistance came to light, but the real problems were buried. What about the Palestinian state? Why were Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa paid aside? Why were there no restrictions on the expansion of the settlement?
Standing on the corpses of hungry children, does the architect of this order consider 66,000 dead Palestinians as merely secondary damages? The plan was merely a theatre, casting Israel as a peace director while absorbing Palestinian resistance from the political map.
The coldest element is Hamas trap set. If it fights, Israeli atrocities will be exempt from self-defense. When it puts its arms, Palestinian resistance dies. By supporting diplomatic covers, some Muslims have turned their backs on history, forgetting how often such promises have led to betrayal alone.
But Israel’s true quarry has always been Iran. That opponent is being targeted. First Hezbollah, then Hamas, then Yemeni Houtis and Syria left in abandoned. All parts of the same strategy are designed to weaken and isolate Tehran. Amidst the noise, Israel attacked Iran directly. Bombing attacks on Tehran and other cities showed that hunters no longer rely solely on beaters. It was ready to openly fire. Iran responded with a missile strike to assert its existence and resolution. But the harsh truth remains. The game of fear and hunger continues, playing under new names and slogans, whose victims are always innocent.
History tells us, and history rarely lies. The strength of the nation lies in its thirst for justice. That thirst creates collective equity, and fairness brings stability and security. But today, justice is owned by the cries of power. The roe is so loud that the cry of the oppressed is barely heard.
The drums are pounding again in West Asia. The roar of Mite fills justice, but Gaza children are unheard of, and Iranian resistance is trapped in the storm. But history also shows that screams will last forever. All drum beats end. Hunters move in search of their next prey, and one day the beaters themselves may find that they are quarries.