Brazen justifications, from Hiroshima to Gaza

In the summer of 1945, with World War II ending in the West following Nazi Germany’s defeat, the Empire of Japan, the last stronghold of the Axis powers, had lost most of its military and defensive capabilities, leaving it with little choice but to surrender to the Allies. Despite this, the US government, in a reckless move supposedly aimed at quickly ending the war and establishing peace, dropped atomic bombs on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6 and 9, just three days apart, massacring over 220,000 innocent people. It was evident that the US’s sole purpose in this inhumane and criminal act was to flaunt its unrivaled power through the terrifying nuclear weapon to the world, particularly to its long-time rival, the Soviet Union.

However, this show of power was wrapped in claims of moral and humanitarian reasoning. President Harry Truman, who had ordered the use of the atomic bomb as soon as it was available, went to great lengths to justify his decision. He declared that the world would remember the first atomic bomb as having been used on Hiroshima, which he described as “a military base.” Truman argued that the bombings were intended to minimize civilian casualties in the initial attack. This justification was later challenged by various American writers and military experts, who argued that Truman’s claims were misleading. Mark Weber, in “The Atomic Bombing of Japan Was Not Necessary,” dismissed Truman’s statement as “nonsense,” pointing out that “almost all of the victims were civilians” (119). The 1946 US strategic bombing assessment also revealed that Hiroshima and Nagasaki were targeted due to their high concentration of activity and population. If the aim of the bombings was to showcase the new weapon’s power, it could have been done by hitting a remote military base rather than a major city. While the bombing of Hiroshima might be seen as justifiable, defending the bombing of Nagasaki is much more difficult. Similarly, Douglas MacArthur, commander of US Army forces in the Pacific, presented multiple arguments before his death suggesting that the atomic bombings were unnecessary. He stated, “My staff was unanimous in believing that Japan was on the point of collapse and surrender” (qtd. in Weber 121). General Curtis LeMay, who pioneered precision bombing of Germany and Japan and later became Air Force chief of staff, succinctly remarked, “The atomic bomb had nothing to do with the end of the war” (qtd. in Weber 121).

Certainly, the US’s troubling record of crimes against humanity, cloaked in the guise of human rights and ethical concerns, did not end with the atomic bombings of Japan. Over the past 80 years, the pattern of waging war under the pretense of peace and committing crimes against humanity while claiming to defend human rights has been a central part of America’s ruthless foreign policy. From military interventions and numerous small and large-scale wars around the world, resulting in the deaths of millions of civilians in Korea and Vietnam under the banner of defending freedom and countering communism, to wars in Afghanistan, Libya, and Iraq under the guise of fighting terrorism, dictatorship, and weapons of mass destruction, and establishing democracy — these are just some examples of the crimes committed under the pretense of defending peace and human rights.

This pattern continues with the US’s blatant justifications for what is happening in Gaza today. The US provides unwavering support to the Israeli regime, which is responsible for targeting civilians with destructive weapons and heavy bombs. It vetoes ceasefire resolutions in the Security Council and supports the killing of Palestinian women and children while claiming to defend Israel’s right to self-defense. The harsh irony is that, following the massacre of nearly 40,000 people in Gaza (most of whom are women and children), the destruction of much of the region, and the gradual starvation and death of two million defenseless Gaza residents due to hunger and thirst, there remains a shameless insistence that the US’s principles on crimes against humanity and genocide have not been violated. The Israeli government is said to be committed to protecting civilians, and the claim that most Gaza casualties are Hamas fighters is repeated in Western media to justify the brutal actions of the Israeli regime.

The gap between the actions and rhetoric of the US and international organizations in addressing such crimes has been clear to the world’s nations, especially Muslim nations, for many years. This has paved a clear path for them. This path calls for Muslims to oppose these actions politically and economically and to challenge misleading media and ideological narratives. The Leader of Islamic Revolution has outlined a clear course of action for the Islamic Ummah:

The task that should be carried out is to confront those people who are committing this great historical oppression, who are the perpetrators of this genocide and who are displaying this shamelessness and brazenness in committing crimes and murdering people. One really becomes surprised at their shamelessness in giving reasons for killing civilians. They are so shameless. They try to justify killing little, innocent and oppressed children. They are totally shameless and impudent.

Those who are committing these crimes are psychopaths. They are the perpetrators of these crimes, but they are not the only people who play a part in them. Today, anyone who supports the Zionists — including the officials of arrogant countries such as America, England and the like and international organizations such as the United Nations and other such organizations which support the Zionists with their silence, opinions and unreasonable statements — are an accessory to this crime.

The entire world of Islam, all Islamic governments and all Muslim nations are responsible for opposing and confronting them. They should condemn them and express their hatred of the Zionists. They should criticize those who adopt this position [of supporting the Zionists]. This is a communal responsibility. Everyone should isolate them and if they can, they should confront them through economic and political means. This is the responsibility of the Islamic Ummah.

The US’s relatively brief history is marked by a pattern of oppression and crimes against humanity. It ranges from the genocide of Native Americans, who were the land’s original inhabitants and fell victim to European settlers’ greed, to the enslavement and killing of Black people. It includes direct invasions of independent nations, orchestrating coups to topple legitimate governments, supporting tyrannical regimes that serve its interests, and suppressing popular movements. This pattern extends to backing Israeli state terrorism, including land grabs and the killing of Palestinians. From Hiroshima to Gaza, these actions have been brazenly justified and sanitized by imperialist propaganda under the pretenses of peace, humanitarianism, human rights, and democracy. It’s time for the Muslim world and the global community to assess countries like the US based on their actual actions, rather than their rhetoric, and decide how to engage with them.

References:

Weber, Mark. “The Atomic Bombing of Japan Was Not Necessary.” The Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, edited by Sylvia Engdahl, Gale, 2011, pp. 113-121.