Peaceful Coexistence or Global Annihilation? Reclaiming Humanity Amid the Israeli-Iran Conflict

 By Atty. Arnedo S. Valera

Last night, I had the most terrifying dream I’ve had in over fifty years.

The sky was ablaze with fire stretching across the Middle East, reaching Hawaii and even Alaska. Millions were dead—Iranians, Americans—lying lifeless in the streets of Tehran. Buildings crumbled, chaos reigned, and the world economy collapsed. And humanity? We were mere spectators to the horror unfolding before us. I awoke with tears streaming down my face—not from the dream, but from the grim realization that there are individuals, governments, and institutions shaping a narrative that war is the only solution to the Israeli-Iranian conflict.

I write this not as a policy expert or legal analyst alone, but as a father, a lawyer, a Filipino-American citizen, and a human being who refuses to surrender to the logic of mutual destruction. I ask: Is peaceful coexistence still possible—or have we reached the point of no return? Is annihilation the new normal? Or is there still a sliver of hope for humanity?

The Legal and Political Quagmire

The Israeli-Iranian conflict is as much about legal justifications as it is about political paralysis. Both nations claim the right to self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter. Yet the very same Charter also compels them to seek peaceful dispute resolution. Unfortunately, these obligations are drowned out by hawkish narratives, political maneuvering, and historical trauma.

Israel, surrounded by threats and haunted by existential memories, sees Iran’s nuclear ambitions as a death sentence. Iran, long isolated and demonized, sees resistance as survival. The United States, historically entwined with Israeli security, is now being pulled into a quagmire the American people do not want. A recent poll shows more than 60% of Americans oppose another foreign war. And yet, the machinery of escalation continues.

Where are the peace architects? Where is the moral leadership? Why is silence louder than diplomacy?

The Social Cost: A War on Civility and Civilization

This conflict is not just political—it is deeply personal. It scars societies. In Iran, sanctions and authoritarianism have bred despair. In Israel, trauma and siege mentalities fuel fear. The hatred is generational. And yet, I have seen ordinary Israelis and Iranians defy the boundaries drawn for them. I’ve seen them love, dialogue, dream of peace.

But those voices are suffocated.

When peace is branded as weakness, and war is branded as strength, our very definition of civilization collapses. The social consequences—especially for children, displaced families, and wounded veterans—will echo for generations.

Economic Catastrophe: The War We Cannot Afford

A war between Israel and Iran will not remain regional. The Strait of Hormuz—through which a fifth of the world’s oil passes—would become a death trap. Gas prices would spike. Global markets would plunge. Trade routes would freeze. Tourism would vanish. The domino effect would crash into every economy, rich or poor.

In short: We cannot afford this war. Not in dollars. Not in lives. Not in conscience.

Rejecting the False Choice: It’s Not War or Surrender

I refuse to accept the false binary of “destroy or be destroyed.” History teaches otherwise.

Israel and Egypt were once enemies. Peace prevailed. The Cold War ended not in fire but in negotiation. South Africa transitioned from apartheid through truth, not tanks.

There is a middle ground—but it requires imagination. It requires courage to renounce vengeance. It demands that we listen to those crying for peace over those profiting from war.

Building the Architecture of Peace

Here’s how we reclaim the future:

1. Create a Regional Peace and Security Forum akin to Europe’s OSCE, with real teeth and regional participation from Arab, Turkish, and Asian actors.

2. Revive and expand the Iran Nuclear Deal (JCPOA) with robust international guarantees and timelines for compliance.

3. Promote Track II Diplomacy, where civil society, faith leaders, academics, and artists collaborate outside state channels.

4. Rebuild the cultural bridge—film, poetry, shared history—between Jewish and Persian civilization, which share more in common than we admit.

5. Call for a UN Emergency Peace Envoy empowered to negotiate immediate de-escalation, with support from both Western and neutral powers.

A Cry to Save Our Humanity

I cried in my dream because we should know better. Humanity should know better. With the lessons of Hiroshima, the ashes of Auschwitz, and the ruins of Syria still visible in our memory—why must we walk again toward the abyss?

Let me be clear: This is not about politics. This is about survival.

There will be no victors in a nuclear war. Only shadows.

Let this not be our legacy. Let this be the moment we reimagine peace. Let this be the hour when reason triumphs over revenge.

I may have only one voice—but I raise it, broken and hopeful, to say:

Stop this war. The world wants peace. Let us live, together—or not at all.

Atty. Arnedo S. Valera is the executive director of the Global Migrant Heritage Foundation and managing attorney at Valera & Associates, a US immigration and anti-discrimination law firm for over 32 years. He holds a master’s degree in International Affairs and International Law and Human Rights from Columbia University and was trained at the International Institute of Human Rights in Strasbourg, France. He obtained his Bachelor of Laws from Ateneo de Manila University.  He is an AB-Philosophy Major at the University  of Santo Tomas ( UST). He is a professor at San Beda Graduate School of Law (LLM Program), teaching International Security and Alliances.