From Israel’s genocide in Occupied Palestine, their invasion of Lebanon, their hostilities in Syria, and now the joint US-Israeli attacks on Iran – the scale and breadth of violence across West Asia is deeply alarming and terrifying. It is not only a crisis of war, but environmental destruction without accountability. Beyond the immediate human cost, what is perhaps most concerning is the growing normalisation of such actions, especially genocide, and the apparent impunity in which they are carried out. Earlier this month, the United States president, Donald Trump, threatened to wipe out Iran’s civilisation overnight – yet this alarming statement failed to provoke the level of outrage or response it warranted. This is hardly surprising, given the precedent set by the same tactics employed in Gaza, carried out with near-total backing and funding from Western governments.
We are witnessing not just isolated escalations but a pattern of unchecked militarism, impunity, and systematic erosion of both human rights and ecological systems.
From Palestine to Iran, lives are being shattered, large numbers of communities forcibly displaced, and families torn apart.
Lands are being rendered uninhabitable, because war is no longer confined to battlefields; it has extended to water systems, agricultural land, the air we breathe, and critical civilian infrastructure.
In the recent illegal attack on Iran and the continuous attacks on Lebanon, we’re witnessing this with devastating consequences, including thousands of casualties. Civilian spaces such as homes, schools, and hospitals have repeatedly come under fire by the Israeli Occupation. The targeting of essential infrastructure and the weaponisation of resources critical to human survival used to be considered a red line – now it has become yet another acceptable tactic of war.
The genocide of Palestinians continues out of the global spotlight
Under the spectre of war, the longstanding torment of Palestinians continues unabated while the news cycle is focused elsewhere. In Gaza, Israeli authorities have shut all crossings, including Rafah, halted humanitarian movement in and around areas where their troops are still stationed, and delayed the planned rotations of international humanitarian personnel. Medical evacuations and the return of people to Gaza have also been put on hold. Meanwhile, in the West Bank, Israeli forces have kept most checkpoints closed, significantly restricting movement between Palestinian cities and governorates. As a result, people’s ability to reach their workplaces, access essential services, and carry out humanitarian activities has been severely affected. On top of that, people across the West Bank have faced falling debris over civilian areas due to missile launches and interceptor fire, while residential areas in Gaza have continued to experience strikes from the air, land, and sea. All the while, Israel has continued to sharply expand its settlements, raids and dispossession of the Palestinian people in the West Bank.
These actions are not isolated incidents but are part of a sustained system of occupation, impunity, and militarised domination of the region of West Asia that has devastated Palestine and other nations in the region.
Environmental justice is inseparable from struggles for human rights and self-determination.
War itself is one of the most destructive forces for the environment. It contaminates the soil, destroys natural food sources, and poisons the air because it has no respect for the essential systems that sustain human life. In Palestine, settlement expansion, military infrastructure, and repeated bombardment have devastated ecosystems and agricultural livelihoods, contributing to ecocide. From the destruction of olive groves and farmland to the contamination of soil and water, environmental harm has become a tool of dispossession.
In the context of the conflict with Iran, we are already seeing the weaponisation of water sources. The air strikes on fuel depots have also left the air in Tehran polluted with toxic smoke, which had made it difficult for some to breathe. These incidents all contribute to accelerating the global climate emergency we are already in.
The Strait of Hormuz, a critical maritime chokepoint, is also facing severe environmental risks from potential oil spills caused by attacks on tankers. This could threaten fragile coral reefs, mangroves, and seagrass. The marine ecosystem now sits squarely in the line of fire, as escalating naval deployments and attempts to control tanker traffic turn these already stressed waters into a frontline of geopolitical confrontation.
Everyone must recognise that what is unfolding is not an isolated crisis but part of a historical, broader and dangerous pattern of imperial domination and unchecked militarisation that devastates entire populations and ravages the environment.
The international community’s response has been insufficient.
What is currently taking place is not simply a regional conflict but a warning: From the bombing of cities to the contamination of soil and water, from the displacement of families to the long-term ecological destruction left in the wake of war, imperialist militarism leaves scars that endure for generations.
Lasting regional security and stability will not come through bombardment, invasions, the assasination of political heads, or the expansion of military alliances. It will come through accountability under international law, the protection of civilian life, respect for sovereignty, and a genuine commitment to demilitarisation. The current path will only further destabilise West Asia and risk repeating the terrors that were inflicted on Iraq and Afghanistan on an even larger scale. Further, the cascading violence in West Asia is spilling over into an acute food and energy crisis felt worldwide.
Governments that continue to supply arms to the illegal Israeli Occupation, provide political cover, and facilitate US imperialist ambitions over humanitarian concerns, not only bear responsibility for the continuation of this violence, but are equally complicit. They will also be accountable for the eventual devastating impact it will have globally.
The US and the Israel Occupation must cease their unlawful and illegal attacks.
The violations and attacks on the Occupied Palestinian territories, Iran, Lebanon, and the rest of the region must end immediately. The terms of the ceasefires – on all three fronts – must be upheld unconditionally, and the uninterrupted delivery of aid and safe evacuations must be allowed to continue.
All governments and institutions must move beyond rhetoric and take urgent, concrete measures to:
- Immediately divest from war economies,
- Enforce international law without exception,
- Prioritise environmental restoration to walk the world back from the precipice of destruction, and
- Commit to and respect diplomatic solutions that prevent further escalations.
A broader shift is needed to move forward
People across the globe will continue to organise, protest, educate, and apply sustained economic and political pressure to demand accountability, but world leaders must listen to their people and not to the vested interests that profit from endless war. Heads of state like Spain’s Pedro Sanchez, Colombia’s Gustavo Petro, and Brazil’s Lula have begun to reflect on this urgency and challenge the status quo, despite intense political pressure and threats.
But isolated voices and words of condemnation alone are not enough. A broader shift is needed to prioritise peace, human dignity, climate stability, and ecological survival over war, profit, and imperialist ambitions.
This is a decisive moment. The risk of a wider regional war is no longer hypothetical, and the consequences – both humanitarian and environmental – will not be contained by borders in West Asia. What is needed now is decisive, principled action to halt the violence and violent political ambitions, and chart a course toward a more just and sustainable future. History has taught us the cost of inaction – we cannot afford to repeat it.
Written by Kelly Anissa, Sahabat Alam Malaysia/Friends of the Earth Asia Pacific
