Ceasefire: A world on its knees and US on its throat, By Owei Lakemfa

It was too quick. Humanity heaving a sigh of relief on Tuesday, 7 April when a two-week ceasefire in the United States/Israel-Iran war came into effect.

The very next day, one of the most savage attacks in the war took place in Lebanon.

Israel, a sidekick of the US, carried out a series of deadly attacks on Lebanon, killing least 254 persons and injuring over 1,165. All within 24 hours of the ceasefire.

It was pure lunacy. Even the United Nations, UN, despite its characteristic silence in the face of genocide, expressed horror.

Its High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, cried out: “The scale of the killing and destruction in Lebanon today is nothing short of horrific. Such carnage, within hours of agreeing to a ceasefire with Iran, defies belief.”

Even allies of US and Israel, including Qatar and Oman, agreed that the senseless killings in Lebanon are crimes against humanity.

Not unexpectedly, the US justified the carnage with its Vice President JD Vance claiming: “We never made that promise.” But the ceasefire was not about promises, but agreements.

In officially announcing the ceasefire agreement, the Pakistani Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif who mediated it, informed the expectant world: “With the greatest humility, I am pleased to announce that the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States of America, along with their allies, have agreed to an immediate ceasefire everywhere, including Lebanon and elsewhere, EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY. I warmly welcome the sagacious gesture and extend deepest gratitude to the leadership of both countries and invite their delegations to Islamabad on Friday, 10th April 2026, to further negotiate for a conclusive agreement to settle all disputes. Both parties have displayed remarkable wisdom and understanding and have remained constructively engaged in furthering the cause of peace and stability. We earnestly hope that the ‘Islamabad Talks’ succeed in achieving sustainable peace and wish to share more good news in coming days!”

The US and Israel did not dispute this. But rather than the good news Sharif expected, bad news rolled in. First, the renewed massacre in Lebanon, and the Israeli and US leaders threatening to wreck the peace process.

Despite the ceasefire, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu bellowed: “Let me be clear. We still have objectives to complete, and we will achieve them, either through agreement or through renewed fighting.”

As Israel bombed Lebanon in violation of the ceasefire, President Trump announced he hasn’t faith in the ceasefire, so: “All US ships, aircraft, and military personnel…will remain in place in, and around, Iran, until such time as the REAL AGREEMENT reached is fully complied with”. He did not say which agreement is real and which is not or, whether this “real agreement’ exists in the first place. He added: “If for any reason it is not…the ‘Shootin’ Starts,’ bigger, and better, and stronger than anyone has ever seen before.”

As if the world has not experienced enough nightmare, he added ominously: “In the meantime our great Military is Loading Up and Resting, looking forward, actually, to its next Conquest”.

This declaration does not seem to come from a sound mind. What next conquest is he looking for? Perhaps he sees himself as Alexander the Great conquering vast swaths of the world, or Adolf Hitler rolling over Europe.

In the 38-day war that followed the US-Israeli invasion of Iran, at least 2,211 persons were killed and over 22,017 injured across the Middle East, including Israel. These were avoidable deaths. It also led to mass displacement of populations and massive destruction. The world economy was severely affected with the bulk of goods passing through the Strait of Hormuz dropping by 83 percent, and fertilizer by 82 per cent. But it is trade and the Strait the European Union is interested in, not human beings. So, rather than speak out against the invasion and push for a ceasefire, its member countries were pressurising Iran to reopen the strait for passage.

As for many in the social media who were not directly affected, the war was a spectacle. It was like watching an exciting movie. It was about weapons and how much destruction they were causing.

There was the excitement about the search for an American co-pilot who came down on Iranian territory. The speculations and analysis centred around his rescue. The rescue of a human being is good, but the question was: what was he doing on Iranian soil? Simple. He had been sent to bomb the country and kill Iranians. So, bringing down a combat aircraft deployed to do maximum human and infrastructure damage was also good.

In the entire war, Iran in withstanding the unrestrained mass destruction of its facilities and massacre of its leadership and citizens showed how a determined people can withstand the enormous weaponry of perhaps the world’s largest and most sophisticated military. It reminds humanity that the best reaction to bullies is neither pacification nor submission, but resistance.

Despite the savage attacks it was subjected to, Iran did not run to the ceasefire table. Rather, it reviewed the invasion, the casualties and damages, then gave a ten-point condition. These included assurances that the US and Israel would no longer attack it and the imposition of some special tax on the strait which would help pay for the infrastructural damages caused by the war.

The US had dismissed the existence of such conditions, but they surfaced at the negotiations.

Meanwhile, the US brigandage continues. After its invasion of Venezuela and abduction of President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia, it has began feasting on the country as a war booty. While still holding the Maduros hostage, the US, like a highway armed robber, is taking Venezuelan oil. American Chevron is now extracting 250,000 barrels of crude oil daily from Venezuela. It plans to increase this to 400,000.

Trump had before the misadventure in Iran, planned to attack Cuba. He had tightened the blockade noose on the island and frightened countries from supplying it fuel and basic necessities. But courageous countries like Mexico had risen to the challenge by sending Cuba necessary supplies.

Trump had also threatened to seize Greenland even if it meant engaging in an armed conflict with the old US allies in Europe.

He had also assisted Israel carry out genocide in Gaza, then decided to take part of the Palestinian homeland and convert it into a tourism centre. Currently, he is trying to run Gaza through a so-called Board of Peace composed of his cronies like former British Prime Minister, Tony Blair and Jared Kushner, his son in law.

The world is on its knees with the US choking it. A coalition of the willing needs to rescue humanity.

Owei Lakemfa, a former secretary general of African workers, is a human rights activist, journalist and author.