Our world is on fire

Never in the recent history of the world have we seen so much devastation taking place in the past five years alone. It’s as if we all woke up one morning to the reality of a nightmare – catastrophes, calamities and conflicts that have set the world on fire.

When news first came out in December 2019 about a mysterious respiratory illness that was afflicting the residents of Wuhan in China, no one could have imagined that this would result in a nightmare that would kill tens of millions of people worldwide without a single bullet being fired.

Caused by a virus named SARS-CoV-2, the Covid-19 pandemic upended the lives of people across the globe, not caring whether you’re rich or poor, utterly disregarding age, gender, race or religion. The pandemic’s impact has been overwhelming, with over 771 million cases of infection recorded to date, while the death toll associated with Covid-19 is estimated at close to 30 million. While the World Health Organization has declared an end to Covid-19 as a global health emergency last May, there are still new cases of infection today, with scientists wary about virus mutations.

People lost jobs as a lot of businesses closed. And just as many countries were starting to see a glimmer of hope in recovering from the economic ramifications of the pandemic, the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February last year set it all back, with millions displaced and experts warning that two decades worth of economic progress would be lost with the conflict dragging on.

As a United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs article had described it, the war in Ukraine will leave “lasting scars” on the global economy. President Marcos, in calling for a peaceful resolution to the conflict, warned that the effects would be “so far-reaching and profound to the detriment of the many economies and the food supply of everyone in the world.”

Today climate change is upon us – with heatwaves, floods, wildfires, hurricanes, storms and typhoons increasing in frequency and intensity. In July, temperatures rose to record high proportions of over 110 degrees Fahrenheit across three continents – North America, Europe and parts of Asia – to the point that climate experts likened the heat to a giant pizza oven. But while some nations experienced hellish heat, other countries were battered by heavy rains and strong typhoons that caused devastating floods and displaced hundreds of thousands, among them the Philippines.

And now, the raging Israel-Hamas war that began on Oct. 7 when the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched a horrific attack on Israeli communities near the Gaza Strip, resulting in the death of at least 1,300 Israelis that include women, children and the elderly, while hundreds of soldiers and civilians, including foreigners who took part in the Supernova music festival in the Negev desert, were taken to Gaza as hostages. In response to the horrific massacre, Israel launched air strikes that has also resulted in the death of over 1,300 people.

It was heart-wrenching to see photos of the slain, especially that of an infant whose body was covered in blood – victim of the brutal assault launched by Hamas. Among those killed are three overseas Filipino workers, one of them a nurse named Angeline Aguirre who refused to leave her elderly patient behind when the Hamas militants attacked Kibbutz Kfar Gaza.

In a post on X, Jerusalem deputy mayor Fleur Hassan-Nahoum paid tribute to the heroism of Angeline. “Despite having a chance to flee the Hamas terror attacks, Angeline showed unbelievable humanity and loyalty by remaining by Nira’s side during the violence, resulting in both of them being brutally murdered by Hamas,” Hassan-Nahoum shared.

Angeline embodies the kind of dedication that OFWs put into their work – even to the point of sacrificing their lives – unique in many ways for Filipinos and a trait much appreciated all over the world.

Admitting that it was a “most difficult phone call” to make, President Marcos assured families of the slain OFWs of his utmost support and directed the Department of Foreign Affairs to look for the three that remain missing, and to work on exit options for Filipinos seeking repatriation from Gaza.

Not surprisingly, the world is looking at the United States and expecting it to play a major role in helping de-escalate the conflict, with State Secretary Antony Blinken assuring Israel of unwavering US support and traveling to countries in the region – Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Bahrain – for ways to release American and other hostages and prevent the conflict from further spreading.

But the world is concerned about how the United States would help deter the conflict from spreading due to the political situation, as the House has yet to elect a new Speaker and the budget is once again uncertain with the temporary stopgap running out on Nov. 17. The US domestic political situation combined with the two major worldwide conflicts taking place simultaneously are making countries uneasy because a distracted US could encourage some countries in making aggressive moves, particularly in the Indo Pacific region.

The conflict has triggered student protests from pro-Israel and pro-Palestine sympathizers, with universities across cities in the US becoming flashpoints. Street demonstrations from opposing sides of sympathizers have also started in Rome, Barcelona, Brasilia, Buenos Aires, Vancouver, Paris, Pakistan – with fears that this could increase in intensity, putting people on edge that the situation would be exploited by terrorist groups.

It is said that “violence spawns more violence,” which only means we can expect more future violence. As Christians, we can only hope and pray for God’s mercy.

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