The Gulf Crisis and New World Order — Page 137
The Gulf Crisis & The New World Order TIIE CURRENT INTERNATIONAL SITUATION After this brief clarification, I revert to the world situation in the perspective of the Kuwait - Iraq issue, about which I have spoken in many sermons, with the exception of the last two. There are but a few days remaining now, as evidenced by the flurry of peace-making activity that is being observed. My eventual word of advice would follow the same course as my initial exhortation did, i. e. calling attention to the teaching of Islam. I had called upon the nations of the world to let this issue remain an "Islamic issue": to be resolved by the mutual efforts of the Muslim world. The Arab-world may try to resolve it but it would be inherently wrong to approach it as an" Arab issue". But unfortunately, the efforts directed towards this end are woefully belated. Now the major powers have started to view it as more of an Arab-issue than a global-issue, but as for its being an Islamic-issue, the matter was given a thought in a forei gn -ministers conference in Pakistan. Pakistan took the position that Muslim countries should direct their collective energy to resolve this matter. But this initiative has apparently come so late that it is likely to remain ineffectual. The present situation is that the U. S. and Britain are the leaders of that group of nations which is bent upon crushing Iraq with full might. It is under their leadership and supervision that the trumpets of war are sounding. It is being repeatedly asserted that Iraq's destruction is essential if the rest of the world is to be saved. That is to say, if Iraq stays unharmed as it is, then not only the peace of the rest of the world will be jeopardized, but the very existence of the world will be threatened. This view is being vociferously touted before the world. The summary of this standpoint, which is voiced in various interviews as well as reported by the print-media, is that look, how heinous are the crimes perpetrated by Iraq against Kuwait; bow can the world opinion ignore these crimes? What right of existence do these perpetrators have, who killed, plundered and torched the houses? If the comity of nations does not march in unison against such atrocities today, and punish the culprit, then a Pandora's box of future atrocities will be opened, and no one will be able to stem the tide of potential transgressions. The Iraqi viewpoint, as opposed to this, is that the West is talking of lofty principles and high morals, and is conveniently forgetting the 137