While the world’s attention is focused on the passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz, there is another vital “economic resource” that the war is seriously jeopardizing: the labor of nearly 40 million foreign workers, who make up the majority of the population in many local cities. A prolonged crisis, with a massive wave of returns, would also have serious consequences for the countries of origin in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and other Arab nations.

While Israel has begun a ground operation in southern Lebanon, Fathers Shinto and Binoy spoke to AsiaNews about their presence, along with the Missionaries of Charity, among the people most affected by the conflict. In the silence before the Blessed Sacrament, "the noise of the war fades away” for the peace that “only Christ can give.” A man in need is helped.

The Patriarch of Jerusalem’s address at a webinar organised by the Oasis Foundation. “We have seen in these decades of conflict what violence has produced: only further fear, resentment and hatred. We know that Leo XIV’s appeals will fall on deaf ears, but we must continue to speak the truth. Information is a weapon in this conflict. Gaza has been forgotten, yet the situation remains dire. In the West Bank, there are almost daily attacks by settlers on Palestinians'.

The Jaffa-born priest describes a situation of apprehension and crisis, but experienced “with great human dignity”. The crisis triggered by war is not something "distant” as people have to live with “caution, fear, and prayer." The conflict touches "deep sensitivities" in the region. In his appeal to AsiaNews readers, he says that every war "is a wound to humanity”.

Despite growing fears, people are refusing to leave their homes as requested by the State of Israel. The Bishop of Batroun criticises (without naming it) Hezbollah for deliberately ‘drawing’ Israeli fire onto homes and fields now at risk of invasion. Criticism is also levelled at the Beirut government for an overly servile and passive stance. An activist tells AsiaNews: “If we leave, the South is lost”.

Iran is blocking with missiles and mines the strait through which 20 per cent of global crude oil transits. After China, India and Bangladesh are trying to get Iran’s approval for their ships to avert a crisis. According to EIA data, up to 82 per cent of oil going through Hormuz reach Asian markets. Starting 16 March, Tokyo intends to release part of its oil reserves on its own.