US foreign policy has long framed military intervention as a moral duty: Bush claimed Iraq needed to be freed from Saddam Hussein, Obama argued Libya’s people had to be liberated from Gaddafi and Trump now frames strikes on Iran as ‘liberation’. Yet the reality is devastating. The US–Israeli strikes that killed Iran’s Supreme Leader also reportedly killed schoolgirls and civilians, flagrantly violating international humanitarian law. And the late Supreme Leader had also promoted women’s empowerment, encouraging higher education, professional roles and leadership in science, technology and government. By eliminating him, progress for equality faces a setback, exposing the hypocrisy of ‘liberation’ narratives. True empowerment and justice emerge from societies themselves and not when military force masquerades as moral leadership.
Shafaq Altaf Kazmi
Karachi
