The Greatest Good For The Greatest Numbers

The news that nine members of a family, including women and children, were killed in a US drone attack in Kabul came as a painful shock to all discerning people in the international community. These deaths were, of course, collateral damage when the drones took out a suicide bomber who was sheltering in an explosives laden vehicle along with the unfortunate family. The moot point is whether it was worth killing those nine innocent people in order to take out one suicide bomber? If you look at the whole scenario logically then, if the US drone hadn’t taken out that suicide bomber because it would endanger the said family then, there is no doubt that, the said bomber along with his explosive laden vehicle would have definitely killed hundreds of innocent people.

Unlike a military conflict between two nations where soldiers use their skills and training to openly fight against each other, terrorists hide amidst innocent people and carry out their nefarious activities because they know that if their opponents attack them then there will be collateral damage in the form of civilian casualties which will earn them public sympathy and will be detrimental to the image of their opponents regardless of how morally right their opponents are in the said battle. This has been the modus operandi of terrorists throughout the world be it Palestine, Kashmir, Afghanistan or any other place. These are people who use the pretext of God and religion to justify their actions but have no qualms about killing innocent people in order to achieve their goals. Unfortunately, in this battle between good and evil, three of the biggest supporters for these terrorists are the international media, human rights organizations and the social media.

The electronic and print media are an extremely potent force as they help shape public opinion on any issue. This makes it a powerful weapon in any battle and gives a significant advantage to the team that knows how to exploit such media for their benefit. In this current era, fair and unprejudiced media reporting belongs to the stone age. We rarely ever see any media outlet give a complete and unbiased picture of what is happening. The viewer/reader is subjected to the media house’s interpretation of what is going on regardless of how much it varies from the actual truth. Of course, since media outlets are profit making entities, their main objective is to enhance their Television Rating Points(TRP) or to ensure maximum readership of their printed news. This is only possible if news items are moulded in a manner that makes it interesting for their viewers/readers. This helps increase their revenues and also their ability to sway public opinion. Similarly, the degree of criticism/condemnation by human rights organizations depends on the strategic interests of their financial supporters and not as per what actually transpires at ground zero. The effect of news and opinions, regardless of their veracity, transmitted through social media makes Covid look like a minor fever. Terrorists make full use of these weapons to bolster their insidious aims. These weapons don’t directly support the aims of the terrorists but by emasculating all counter-terrorism forces, they indirectly strengthen all advocates of terrorism.

Nevertheless, the point still remains as to whether it’s justified to accept loss of innocent civilian lives in the process of eliminating terrorists. Personally, I believe that there is no other option. There is this old military adage that in order to negotiate effectively, first take the hostage out of the equation. These innocent civilians form a major, and sometimes only, source of defense for such terrorists. The counter-terrorism forces have to harden their hearts and take out these terrorists regardless of the level of collateral damage. If the forces of terrorism get the message that deaths of innocent civilians is not going to deter the counter-terrorism forces then, sooner or later, they will be forced to abandon this strategy and seek out other alternatives. It’s a heartless ad cruel approach but in order to make the world a safe place, one has to go through with it.

Look, it’s easy for idiotic armchair writers like me to coldly suggest that we turn a blind eye on the deaths of innocent civilians as long as the targeted terrorist(s) is/are neutralized. The pain and agony of the victims and their near and dear ones are unfathomable for those who have not gone through such distress. I mean, the very thought of me or my near and dear ones, going through such an ordeal is unbearable. However “Logic” is an unemotional and cold blooded term. In the current context, the US is currently answerable for the death of nine innocent people. Had they refrained from killing that terrorist, they would have saved the lives of those people but would have the deaths of hundreds of innocent people on their conscience once the suicide bomber fulfilled his mission.

Historically, plebeians have always been compromised for the sake of national interest. Following Jeremy Bentham’s principle of “The Greatest Good For The Greatest Numbers”, for complete success in this war against terror, it’s imperative that the sacrifice of civilian lives should be accepted as another cost of war and should, in no way, impede the annihilation of all terrorists and their supporters worldwide. At the same time, various governments around the world should rein in their respective media and social media networks in order to contain any endeavour to distort the public mindset. I’m a firm believer in freedom of speech but exploiting this freedom to manipulate people and spread hate and enmity is just not acceptable. In my opinion, such an act is tantamount to treason and should be met with harsh penalties. Success in the war against terror will definitely have a painful cost. However, just like you can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs, one has to bite the bitter bullet and endure the pain in order to ensure a peaceful and prosperous future.