For United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, this has to be peace time and not war.
Guterres said that a global ceasefire is the need of the hour with coronavirus being every country's first priority. Coronavirus demands a global ceasefire in war zones so nations can focus on the pandemic as their true enemy.
There have been new infections reported in Syria and Gaza, and this means that a weak health-care system means civilian populations face the highest risk of suffering devastating losses.
He added that those who are doubly vulnerable are refugees and others displaced by violent conflict.
The UN Secretary-General in an appeal that was issued on Monday urged all warring parties across the world to lay down their weapons in support of the bigger battle against COVID-19. He said that we all need to stand up against this common enemy and fight it out together.
He said, "The fury of the virus illustrates the folly of war. That is why today, I am calling for an immediate global ceasefire in all corners of the world. It is time to put armed conflict on lockdown and focus together on the true fight of our lives."
He was stating this in an opinion piece on the UN website. According to Guterres, the virus does not pay heed to faction or faith and it attacks all. The most vulnerable are women and children, people with disabilities, the marginalised and the displaced, pay the highest price.
There are millions of civilians staying in overcrowded refugee camps from Syria to Yemen to Myanmar and these camps lack even basic facilities, leave alone the updated and competitive set ups developed nations have. They don't even have an access to clean water and soap and enough space to keep a safe distance from one another. The UN is planning to initiate a global humanitarian response plan on Wednesday, appealing to wealthier nations to pledge funds to fight the virus in developing countries.
War-ravaged countries have reached a point of complete collapse and their healthcare workers are also targets for any medical emergency.
He added that it is time the sickness of war is put to an end and we together fight the disease. It starts by stopping the fight everywhere. That is what our human family needs, now more than ever.
