By: Susanto
Chairman of the Regional Leadership Council, International Journalists Association (ASWIN) – Banten, Indonesia
Tangerang, Tuesday, June 17, 2025 — The world has once again been shaken by the dramatic rhetoric of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Following a large-scale military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities, Netanyahu boldly stated that if Israel were to fall, the world would collapse with it. He called his country a “fortress of democracy and global stability.”
Such statements may sound sweet on the diplomatic stage—but they are toxic in reality. This is not a warning; it is well-crafted propaganda.
Netanyahu cloaks military aggression in the garb of democracy. He sells fear to the world, as if the downfall of Israel would mean the collapse of civilization itself. But behind the claim of “protecting the world,” what we see is a unilateral attack on a sovereign nation—an act that escalates rather than prevents conflict.
How can democracy be used as a shield to justify violence? How can a state that continues to occupy Palestine, restricts the civil rights of minority populations, and defies international resolutions claim to be a guardian of democratic values?
This is not the first time Israel has distorted facts to shape public opinion. The narrative of “self-defense” is often used as a pretext for launching first strikes. In the latest offensive dubbed Operation Rising Lion, the targets were strategic infrastructures in Iran—not a response, but a provocation.
The world must open its eyes. Netanyahu’s rhetoric is a textbook example of fear-based politics. He seeks to maintain unwavering support from the West—especially the United States—by portraying Israel as the last bastion against “totalitarian forces.” Yet at home, his policies grow increasingly authoritarian.
The erosion of judicial independence, suppression of critical journalists, criminalization of activism, and the institutionalization of apartheid policies against Palestinians all point toward a disturbing drift away from democratic norms.
If the world continues to submit to this one-sided narrative, then we are all victims—not just the people of Palestine, not just the citizens of Iran, but all of humanity longing for genuine peace and justice.
Global security cannot be built on unilateral domination. Democracy does not grow from the barrel of a gun. And stability cannot be sustained on the ruins of other nations.
Israel has the right to self-defense. But the world also has a moral obligation to uphold justice—and to reject any manipulation of narratives that suppress the truth and betray our shared human values.
Editor: Abahroy
Editorial Team: Aswinnews.com
