Dreaming of peace

The world is focused on the mismanaged withdrawal of the US from Afghanistan, the cowardly exit of Ashraf Ghani and the swift takeover by the Afghan Taliban. US President Biden is facing severe criticism, the Taliban are trying to deal with this unexpected victory, and many Afghans are trying to escape the country. It is chaos all around.

The war in Afghanistan was just one part of the larger ‘war on terror’ launched by the then US president George W Bush, almost immediately and hastily after 9/11. The total economic cost of $6.4 trillion to the US is only a minute fraction of that paid by humanity in terms of misery, loss of life, property and dignity.

This is a humble attempt to tell this story through whatever data I could find, recognizing that numbers don’t tell the whole story. The numbers and figures here are taken from various sources including the website of the Watson Institute at Brown University and the United Nations Human Rights Office, mostly updated as of November 2020. They are all approximate numbers.

The ‘war on terror’ was conducted by the US and its allies in 85 countries, spanning four continents – Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America – and not, as is commonly believed, in just Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Syria and Libya. These activities include US boots on the ground, direct air strikes and drone attacks as well as US special forces training the host country to participate in counter terrorism missions.

The monetary cost to the US is around $6.4 trillion. No one has calculated the economic losses suffered by other countries affected by the war.

The total number of people killed in the ‘war on terror’ is over 800,000. Of this, Pakistan lost 70,000, Afghanistan 150,000, Iraq 300,000, Syria 179,000, Yemen 90,000 and 7000 US soldiers. This includes 335,000 civilians – including journalists, contractors, humanitarian workers etc. Many of them were killed in their homes, markets or just going about their daily life. They were killed by bombs, explosive devices, mines or kidnapped and executed for revenge or money. Many will suffer protracted death due to injuries of war.

But no one really knows the exact death toll from this war. According to the UN Human Rights office, 200 mass graves were found in Iraq with an estimated 6,000 to 12,000 bodies. There is no count of missing persons or people who died as a result of side effects of war like lack of food, safe living environment, crumbling infrastructure or lack of access to healthcare.

In every war the number of wounded is much higher than those who are killed. Burns, broken bones, loss of limb, sight or hearing, brain and nerve injuries and paralysis are common, permanently affecting the lives of not just the injured but society as a whole. The economic, social and psychological costs of these disabilities are very high and immeasurable.

By a conservative estimate, 37million to 60 million people (more than the total population of many countries) became refugees, seeking safety in another country, or were internally displaced, a number exceeded only by WW11 since the beginning of the 20th century. Most of these people belong to Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Yemen and Somalia. Even if some of them came back, they did not have homes or a safe environment, let alone jobs or economic security.

Degradation of the environment as a result of greenhouse gas emissions due to defence activity has not received much public or media attention. Human rights were another casualty of this war. Images from Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay will haunt us forever, but there were human rights violations on all sides.

The emotional and psychological impacts of war have been well recognized. American veterans of war have much higher incidence of substance abuse, depression and other mental illnesses. Over 30,000 service members and veterans of post 9/11 wars have committed suicide. But we don’t know how many people in other countries are faring in this area, what kind of internal demons they are facing, how many have committed suicide, what is happening to families who have lost a loved one or the main bread winner.

No one knows how many have been pushed below the poverty line. We know that stress and poverty is a lethal combination for peace and happiness of mind. How are these people coping with it, knowing that most of these places lack even a basic healthcare structure let alone psychiatrists and mental health experts? Has it increased violence against women and children? Has it created conflict among family members? These numbers are needed to fully grasp the devastation caused by this ‘war on terror’.

And then there are future costs of this war, monetary as well as non-monetary. Broken infrastructure, broken bodies and broken spirits will surely haunt those affected by the war, directly or indirectly, for years to come. Just the healthcare costs of those injured and the loss of national income due to disabilities will be in the billions. And how will the children who grew up in this violence, who saw their parents killed, experienced loss of love and security cope with it? What kind of adults will they become?

Those born at the beginning of war are adults now. It is almost a given that many have joined the ranks of so-called terrorists, if for no other reason than to just survive. But then we don’t know. No one is keeping records. No one really cares beyond writing research papers. Rebuilding infrastructure needs money but rebuilding lives is more complex and many times more difficult. The extent of this devastation will perhaps never be known.

But the scariest thought is that I don’t think this is the end of war yet. The US has announced the freezing of Afghanistan’s $9.5 billion assets. We are witnessing increasing terrorist activity in Pakistan, an indication that the war will continue in another form and on another level. I believe the only way to eliminate war altogether is to replace this world order, where profit is the supreme motive, with one that is more humane.

The writer is a freelance contributor.

Email: shahnazk@gmail.com

Twitter: @shahnazsk