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WARS FOR NO REASON


 

What a Holi is the Middle East celebrating! With blood, gunpowder and missiles. Souls being dispatched to hell/heaven continuously as the case may be. This festival of war will not end soon I suppose. Who will be the victor and who will be the vanquished, no one knows? I am not here to speculate.

 

I was a little baby when the 1965 war with Pakistan took place. Parents used to narrate stories. I have no memories of that war but I believe it was bloody. I had no idea then that I would join the Armed Forces one day.

 

Parents also told us stories of ‘Partition’, the way the whole train load of people were killed. The earth was red with blood. Why? I used to question them.

 

The 1962 war with China, I wasn’t born. We picturised the bloodshed when we saw the movie ‘Haqiqat’. As kids we had no idea of how a country was run & how the defence of a country is organised. We didn’t understand the ‘budget’. We just had respect for the people in uniform. Colour did not matter, it could be Olive Green, Blue or White.

 

As time went by, I was about six years old. The 1971 war happened. We, being close to the Amritsar border, did not know that India was liberating Bangladesh. The only memory one has is preparing for black outs, loud air raid sirens being sounded and low flying aircrafts flying overhead.

 

It was later when we started studying Military History that we came to know about WW-I and WW-II also.

 

One had the proud privilege to get the President’s of India’s commission when I joined the Army. Things were peaceful, but we kept training and preparing.

 

Service took me to both the Pakistan and the Chinese border. One was lucky to meet both the Paki Rangers and a Chinese Army delegation during a flag meeting.

 

The world was volatile then. The Russian invasion of Afghanistan, breakup of USSR, split of Yugoslavia, the NATO bombings, the Iran-Iraq war, the Serbian conflict and so many others but our country was generally peaceful. In between we got embroiled in Sri Lanka as IPKF.

 

Then came a time when India got involved in a proxy war, also called the hybrid war, insurgency, terrorism, militancy, etc, supported, financed, trained, and funded by the neighbours. One was involved first hand both in the Srinagar Valley and the Jungles of North East in Nagaland and Manipur. That was not war, they said.

 

Then in recent memory “Operation Desert Storm’ happened. Reading about the operation and watching movies made on the event were very interesting.

 

One read about the Vietnam war too. The Khmer Rouge’ and their tactics under their famous General ‘Von Giap’. That led me to read about many war campaigns and military leaders and their personalities. Patton, Slim, Aukenlick, Goering, Eisenhower, Monty, Zukov, Guderian, Yamamoto, Hitler to name a few. Inspiring, I must say.

 

It was when I saw blood in one of the encounters when the parents of the militant were with us, telling him to surrender and he did not. The result was obvious.

 

We were always taught about the UN and its organs. Peace was their aim. Soldiers became peacekeepers and peacemakers and upheld human rights. Suddenly, the world was at war. For what, no one knew.

 

UN slowly started losing its teeth. It’s tail started to get tucked in between its legs. Today, it is defunct. The organs are failing one by one. Paralysis has set in. Soon, it shall be buried for ever.

 

Then the Ukraine war started. Who was fighting who and why is known too well. Four years on they are still at loggerheads.

 

We were still mourning our loss of soldiers in Kargil and recently we were forced into Op Sindoor. Thank God, it was short and the enemy understood what India could do.

 

While the wounds of Pakistan were still fresh, the Taliban both ‘good and bad’ raised their heads and started giving the Pakis a bloody nose. We in India kept thanking the Gods that we had peace. Thank God Venezuela was bloodless.

 

In between, Israel decided to sort out Hamas and Hezbollah. Gaza was grazed to the ground. Tensions kept rising. Bombs here, drones there, David's Shield and Iron Domes were the talk of town and then an attack on Iran happened.

 

The US decided to take out weapons of mass destruction from Iran. One thing led to another and now the whole Middle East is on fire. The world is suffering.

 

Where is it leading to? What if Iran still makes a Nuclear Bomb and the regime does not change? Will it achieve what it was started for? How many body bags are acceptable on both sides? Will it be WW-III? When will it end? I wonder!!!!!!!

 

JAI HIND
© ® NOEL ELLIS

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