Was It a Hungarian Prince Who Was Shot, or the Twin Towers?

Sometimes, partly under the influence of events, fear and anxiety creep into us; we look at the gulf between the world we imagined and the real world, and we cannot help asking: “Where is the world heading?”

Unfortunately, the answer to this question has become very uncertain lately.

On one side, thousands of lives are being lost in the Russia-Ukraine war, which has been going on for almost two years. On the other, the conflicts in the Middle East, shaped for years by blood and tears, flare up again and again.

The latest fighting between Hamas and Israel continues, once again with thousands of innocent people losing their lives. Sometimes military units are bombed, sometimes hospitals, sometimes homes, the safest harbour of civilians. As a result of these attacks, children, women, the elderly, in other words ordinary people, are losing their lives. This human tragedy unfolding before our eyes shakes our consciences and awakens a deep pain within us. Alongside the suffering stand the efforts of those who want to drag the world into new chaos. (Update, October 2026: a ceasefire was declared in Gaza on 10 October 2025; according to the Gaza Health Ministry, the death toll has passed 74,500.)

Will the Fire of Islamophobia That Followed the Twin Towers Attacks Flare Up Again?

The ugly face of war fuels lovelessness and hatred not only there but all over the world. While some wounds in the world have not fully healed, new attempts are being made to reopen them. The Islamophobia and xenophobia that rose rapidly around the world after the Twin Towers attacks of 11 September 2001 had only just begun to cool when they were reignited by the attacks of ISIS terrorists.

Now Hamas’s ruthless killing and torture of innocent civilians, and its boasting about it on social media as if it were the right thing to do, is causing a new wave of Islamophobia.

Seen from the Israeli side, the situation is not very different. The whole world is watching children, women, hospitals, aid organisations and places of worship being bombed. Instead of closing our eyes and remaining indifferent, we must face this reality. Humanity deserves not suffering and death but peace, love and hope.

Rushing Towards a New World War

Speaking of peace and hope, the attitude of world leaders and the press towards what is happening resembles scenes from a horror film more than a source of hope. Leaders who should be urging common sense and dialogue, and the media that shape society, are warmongering and fanning the flames. As states declare support for the rivals of other states they see as their rivals, they cannot fail to see that events are moving step by step towards a world war. The truth they ignore is that nobody can emerge victorious from a possible world war started out of a lust for power and dominance. Only madmen would whistle up a war that will bring nothing but death and destruction.

Some countries backing Israel and others backing Hamas only increases the deaths. Whichever side a country’s leader declares for, the losers are always innocent people. The rivalry between those who openly support Israel and those who defend Hamas is turning innocent people’s lives into hell. It is impossible to understand how tense relations between countries can make people forget human values so easily!

Meanwhile, this tension in the Middle East is sparking large protests around the world. But in some countries these protests are blocked by heavy-handed intervention, as if all of humanity were being silenced.

Can One Rejoice at the Taking of an Innocent Life?

The Turkish dimension of events is, again, the kind that does not surprise us. Shortly after his unrealistic and insincere offer to mediate, Erdoğan declared Israel a terrorist state and announced his support for Hamas, casting suspicion not only on the Republic of Turkey but on all Muslims in the world.

But I suppose Erdoğan will once again not disappoint those who know him. He will make deals that bring him money and prestige and bring our country a new wave of refugees and chaos. In the end Israel, having got what it wanted, will de facto annex Gaza. The US will increase its political support for Israel in return for its services. Erdoğan, for his part, will multiply his prestige as the leader who embraces refugees and the “Ambassador of Peace!” striving to end the war.

At this point, world leaders bear a great responsibility. They must be level-headed, restore calm and stand up for peace. The world needs not more suffering but hope and peace. Instead of warmongering, everything possible must be done to value human life and protect the innocent.

The countries of the world hold one last chance in their hands not to add another dark page to history. Making use of this chance is a shared responsibility for the future of humanity. Now is the time to act if we are to leave future generations a liveable world. Working for peace is humanity’s highest value. I hope world leaders will not be slow to see this value and will take a hopeful step towards the future. The world should be a place that carries people’s hopes, where children grow up in safety and people live in peace. Keeping this hope alive is the responsibility of us all.