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Oct. 7 will mark one year since the start of fighting in the Palestinian territory of Gaza, and the fighting has not subsided, but instead, has continued to escalate. The situation has become increasingly critical.
Every possible effort must be made to avoid a situation in which the Middle East will fall into an all-out war.
Iran attacked Israel with ballistic missiles. Most of the more than 180 missiles fired toward Israel were intercepted by the Israeli military and U.S. forces deployed in the Middle East.
Iran claimed that the missile attacks were in retaliation for Israel’s successive killings of leaders of anti-Israeli groups Tehran supports.
In July, the supreme leader of the Islamist group Hamas in Gaza was assassinated in Tehran, and Iran had declared it would retaliate against Israel, but had not yet done so. It probably intended to find out the outcome of the Gaza ceasefire negotiations, mediated by the United States and other countries.
However, negotiations have not made progress, and in September, the leader of Hezbollah, a Shiite Islamist group in Lebanon that collaborates with Hamas, was killed in an Israeli airstrike. This prompted Iran to attack Israel.
While the fighting in Gaza continues, Israel has also carried out operations in Iran and Lebanon under the guise of self-defense and started new fights, which have undoubtedly aggravated the situation.
First of all, it is imperative to reach a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, the root of the crisis. In particular, the United States, which continues to provide military support to Israel, bears a heavy responsibility.
Although the Gaza conflict began with Hamas’ cross-border attacks, Israel’s counteroffensives have gone far beyond the scope of self-defense. In one year, more than 41,000 people, including women and children, have been killed.
The Gaza conflict and the spread of fighting to neighboring areas have had a negative impact, not only on the Middle East, but also on the world as a whole.
The Houthis, an armed rebel group in Yemen that collaborates with Hamas, have been attacking ships and other vessels associated with Israel in the Red Sea, an international logistics route. They have also seized a merchant ship operated by Nippon Yusen Kaisha.
On top of that, if the confrontation between Iran and Israel intensifies and develops into a war between the nations, the situation will become critical. This would affect the navigation in the Persian Gulf, the main artery for crude oil transportation to countries around the world, and also would deliver a major blow to the global economy.
As Japan depends on the Middle East for 90% of its crude oil imports, the stability of the Middle East is of vital importance. Japan must work closely with the United States, European nations and other countries to urge all parties concerned to stop fighting.
