Wasim Alshrabe
Russia invaded parts of Ukraine, directed militarily against the regime in Kyiv. Far from delving into the reasons promoted by Russia or by the West, it remains that the victims who were most affected by this invasion are civilians, but can the damage that occurred to civilians in Ukraine be compared with the damage that occurred to civilians in Yemen Or Libya or Syria?
The damage caused to civilians in Ukraine can never be compared to what was inflicted on their counterparts in Yemen, for example, which the United Nations declared it the worst humanitarian disaster on the planet several years ago, or Syria or Libya. Nevertheless, the West mobilized its energies and harnessed its diplomatic and military capabilities to support Ukraine less than a week after its invasion, while Leaving millions of civilians in Arab and African countries to face a tragic fate.
Some voices might say that the West has the right to move its diplomacy, its media and military equipment to protect its interests that are threatened by Russia, while Arab and African countries such as Tigray do not touch its interests, and despite the pragmatism of this logic that deviates from the moral pattern, if we accept it, we must say that the West is not The owner of the international institutions that mobilizes for his own interests, on top of which is the International Criminal Court and the United Nations organs.
While the International Criminal Court and the public prosecutions in several European countries moved to open investigations into the crimes committed by Russia in Ukraine after few days days, we see it closing its eyes on the tragedies of the Arab and African peoples such as Yemen, Syria, Libya and the Tigray region, which extends their tragedies for years and may extend to other years, This is despite the strenuous efforts that have been made to achieve justice for these peoples and alleviate their suffering somewhat.
In the year 2018, the International Action Group for Peace in Libya was established, and its first goals were to activate the role of the International Criminal Court to achieve justice for the Libyan people, but the arrest warrants did not reach but only Mahmoud Al-Warfalli, one of Khalifa Haftar’s men, who was killed by Haftar’s men, and the ICC refrained from addressing Haftar himself In a surprising context.
The International Action Group for Peace in Libya was remarkably active in the international community to the point that it prompted the former Libyan Prime Minister Omar Al-Hassi, along with a number of professors of international law and political science, as well as members of the European Parliament to nominate Mr. Mahmoud Refaat, the founder of the group, for the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts By delivering aid to civilians in besieged cities, as well as his international efforts.
In the following year 2019, the Humanitarian Action Group for Yemen was established with the aim of activating the role of the international community to bring peace, prosecute perpetrators of crimes against humanity in Yemen and deliver humanitarian aid to civilians in Yemen. Other parliamentarians to nominate the group’s founder and president, Mr. Mahmoud Refaat, for the Nobel Peace Prize, for his efforts to bring peace to Yemen and his efforts to deliver humanitarian aid, especially food and medicine, to the besieged civilians.
The whole scene may be summed up in the Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s receiving the Nobel Peace Prize, and the prize committee announced his award in October 2020 for spreading democracy while he had canceled the elections and installed himself as emperor a night before it in September 2020. Among the crimes against humanity that the international community turns a blind eye to, just as it turns a blind eye to the tragedies of the Arab peoples in Yemen, Libya and Syria.
