A Lebanese conservationist, dedicated to saving sea turtles, lies dead, his life cut short by an Israeli missile. The British NGOs, ever eager to pass moral judgment, have condemned the targeting of civilians. But let us not be too hasty to cluck our tongues.
This is not a simple story of good versus evil, of environmental saints versus military sinners. It is a tragedy of the human condition, a reminder that in the game of nations, the lives of individuals are cheap. The conservationist, a man who spent his days protecting the ancient mariners of the Mediterranean, became a casualty of a conflict that has swallowed the region for decades.
His death is a stain on the conscience of all who value life, but it is also a symptom of a larger disease: the refusal of the international community to enforce the laws of war. The British NGOs, for all their fine words, are like the Pharisees of old, washing their hands while the world burns. We must ask: what is the value of a single life in a region where thousands have perished?
The answer, uncomfortable as it may be, is that it depends on who is counting. The turtle man’s death will be a footnote in the history of the Levant, a brief outcry, and then silence. Meanwhile, the turtles will continue their ancient migrations, oblivious to the folly of men.
Perhaps that is the real tragedy: not that we kill each other, but that we do it with such bored cruelty.