For humanity’s sake, Iran-Israel ceasefire must hold

The world heaved a collective sigh of relief when the Iran-Israel war which had been raging dangerously since the night of June 13 came to a stop following the announcement of a ceasefire between the antagonists by President Donald Trump on Monday June 23, 2025.

The war started when Israeli war planes in an operation called “Rising Lion” launched strikes at Iranian nuclear sites, military facilities as well as the assassination of top military figures and nuclear scientists.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, while announcing the strikes, said it was meant to stop Iran from further development in its bid to acquire nuclear weapons.

Reacting to the strike, Iran vowed to retaliate immediately. And within 24 hours of the Israeli attack, Iran in its response named “True Promise” launched hundreds of drones and ballistic missiles striking targets in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Haifa. The barrage of missiles also hit and damaged Israeli military facilities and infrastructure.
In the ensuing days of the war, both sides traded salvos of deadly ordinances which led to global appeals for a ceasefire. As the conflict continued with daily strikes and mounting losses of lives and destruction to the horror and outrage of the global audience, the concern was that the war could engulf the entire Middle East region and possibly even the world should global powers be drawn in.

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The prospect of a nuclear armed Israel deciding to drop a nuclear bomb on Iran in pursuit of its goals, as the conflict wore on, loomed large in the minds of humanity as the catastrophic effects of this event would be unfathomable.
This was what probably informed the decision of President Trump to intervene in the conflict by deploying America’s heavier and much more effective ordnance on the Iranian nuclear facilities, which had reportedly withstood the Israelis. This also paved the way for President Trump to declare the ceasefire which in many ways pulled the world back from the brink of what could possibly have led to World War III.

It is gratifying to note that thus far, the antagonists – Iran and Israel – have agreed to maintain a ceasefire and work towards the restoration of normalcy in their respective countries. We are also happy to note that the tension that had gripped the world over the conflict is subsiding and that diplomatic efforts are now going on to review and tackle the contentious issues that brought about the conflict.

We at the Daily Trust believe, like most people around the world, that the blame for this conflict lies squarely with the Israelis. The unprovoked attack on Iran was without doubt a flagrant and reckless breach of International law. Israel’s action was an irresponsible resort to self help on matters that it had neither the mandate of the United Nations nor that of the countries in the region to do, that is invading Iran.

We particularly note that since its establishment 77 years ago in 1948, the state of Israel has chosen to cherry pick on United Nations resolutions affecting it: implementing those that favours it and ignoring or disavowing those that call on it to observe international laws and conventions. An example of this is the fact that while Israel owes its establishment to the UN resolution that called for two states, one for it and another for Palestine, Israel has studiously denied the latter the right to statehood. As in the present case of the war with Iran, Israel had always chosen the path of war rather than diplomatic dialogue to resolve its issues with neighbouring countries. In this regard, it is instructive that Israel chose to attack Iran while the latter was involved in dialogue with the Americans on the issue of nuclear weapons.

It is equally disheartening that Israel is routinely encouraged along this path of infamy by the US which is expected to be an honest broker. Where previous US presidents had at least chosen to restrain Israel and to insist on dialogue with Iran, President Trump had chosen instead to encourage Israel along the path of belligerence. The result is what we have witnessed in terms of Israel’s acts of unprovoked aggression on Iran nearly leading to a global conflagration.
All said, it is the expectation of the world that the ceasefire between Iran and Israel currently in place will be sustained to enable constructive diplomatic discussions leading to the comprehensive resolution of all the existential issues of the Middle East at the core of which is statehood for the Palestinian people, which can no longer be delayed.
We also hope that the international community, especially the major powers, would take the world back to the diplomacy path instead of growing unilateralism. We, therefore, call for the strengthening of the United Nations to enable it execute its mandate.