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The meeting of the National Security Council presided over by Prime Minister and Chairman of the Council, KP Sharma Oli, reviewed the international, regional and national security situations on Sunday.

The review meeting dwelt on the conflict in the Middle East and its effects on national security, challenges, safety of the people in the region and future strategy.

Member Secretary of the Council, Rameshwor Dangal, informed that the meeting dwelt on challenges to be faced in national security in the wake of international conflicts.

Similarly, the meeting also decided to recommend the Council of Ministers for its policy level approval to purchase arms and ammunition required for Nepal Army for the fiscal year, 2081/82.

A procedure to conduct the meeting, 2081 was endorsed by the meeting attended by Home Minister, Defense Minister, Chief Secretary, Chief of Army Staffs, and Defense Secretary.

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) gained 37.41 points to close at 2,645.36 points on Monday.

Similarly, the sensitive index surged by 3.14 points to close at 472. 95 points.

A total of 10,418,926-unit shares of 307 companies were traded for Rs 5. 34 billion.

Meanwhile, Janaki Finance Company Limited (JFL) and Dolti Power Company Limited (DOLTI) were the top gainers today, with its price surging by 10. 00 percent.

Likewise, Peoples Hydropower Company Limited (PHCL) was the top loser as its price fell by 6.02 percent.

At the end of the day, total market capitalization stood at Rs 4. 20 trillion.

The Tilaganga Institute of Ophthalmology (TIO) will be launching the service of aesthetic oculoplasty (ophthalmic plastic surgery) soon.

At a special seminar on aesthetic oculoplasty organized today, Institute Executive Director Dr Sanduk Ruit spoke about the potentiality of this service in Nepal. He said the service would be launched in near future.

The service will be available at TIO and the Tilganga City Eye Center, Chuchchepati shortly.

According to the noted ophthalmologist, aesthetic oculoplasty is a specialized service which focuses on enriching aesthetic features of eyes and surrounding structures. It is preferred for enhancing facial beauty through surgery or other methods of treatment and therefore luring the public, he said. 

The TIO provides treatment for strabismus, eye twitching, watery eyes, thyroid eye diseases and so on. 

International experts on aesthetic oculoplasty from the Philippines, Malaysia and Singapore gave their presentations in the seminar. As they said, the service should be sought from only experienced and specialized ophthalmologists.

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has said he will not compromise on national interest to remain in power.

Addressing an event ‘Role of former security personnel in national security and development’ organized by the Nepal National Ex-army and Police Association on Sunday, Oli said his government is committed to the protection of national unity and the welfare of the country.

He said, “We can’t give up our national interest for power or for keeping the government afloat”.

Oli recalled that the government had faced blockades in the past and toppled later on. He added, “At that time, we had pledged to return to power through the main gate of Singhadurbar through elections and not through deception, and we did.”

Prime Minister Oli recalled signing of a trade and transit agreement during his previous term when an Indian embargo was in place.

Describing speculations of his decreasing credibility as sponsored, he insisted that he will show how popular he is in the upcoming elections.

Mentioning that his government is implementing the report of the parliamentary committee on co-operative embezzlement, Prime Minister Oli said it is against democratic norms and values to shout slogans on the court premises in favor of a person under investigation.

PM Oli added that he is not biased toward anyone and that everyone should accept court judgments.

Dhilkhel municipality has demanded that the government declare it as a 'crisis-hit zone' following a huge loss amounting to Rs 1 billion due to recent floods and landslides.

A delegation of the people's representatives, including Dhulikhel Mayor Ashok Byanju called on Deputy Prime Minister and Urban Development Minister Prakash Man Singh and Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak demanding to declare Dhulikhel a 'crisis-hit area'.

The delegation submitted a memorandum to DPM Singh and Home Minister Lekhak to draw their attention to declare the municipality a disaster-hit area.

In the third week of October, the federal government had declared 11 out of 13 local governments in Kavre as a crisis-hit zone excluding Dhulikhel and Banepa.

Mayor Byanju shared that he briefed Deputy Prime Minister Singh and Home Minister Lekhak about the situation in Dhulikhel and the role to be played by the government for post-disaster reconstruction and recovery.

According to him, the memorandum has drawn the government attention for the reconstruction of wastewater treatment centers at Thakurigaun, Vandol and Itol of Dhulikhel.

Byanju further shared that the government's attention has also been drawn to facilitate the loss of Dhulikhel drinking water, Kavre integrated drinking water, roads, schools and other structures.

It may be noted that a meeting of the District Disaster Management Committee held recently has decided to declare the entire Kavrepalanchowk as crisis-hit.

According to preliminary data from the municipal office, 64 houses have been completely damaged and 572 houses partially damaged.

Meanwhile, Dhulikhel Municipality has demanded the German government to rebuild the Dhulikhel Drinking Water Project. The municipality made the proposal after meeting German Ambassador to Nepal Dr Thomas Prinz on Saturday.

It is estimated that Rs 35.1 million will be spent to rebuild the drinking water project, which has been in operation for nearly three decades.

During the meeting, Ambassador Prinz pledged to extend all possible support for the reconstruction of drinking water, mayor Byanju said.  

The Judicial Council has recommended the names of Chief Returning Officers and Returning Officers to conduct the by-election scheduled to take place on December 1.

The Council has recommended the names to the Election Commission to appoint them as Chief Returning Officers in 31 districts.

Likewise, the Council has recommended Kathmandu District Court Judge Ram Prasad Sharma as the Justice of newly-constituted Consumer Court and Gyanendra Raj Regmi as its member.

The district court judges have been recommended as Chief Returning Officers for by-election.

The Council has recommended Returning Officers for by-election to be held in six local government units.

Nepal's swashbuckling performance in the ongoing SAFF Women Championship secured their entry to the final.

Nepal defeated India in the semifinal, securing the berth to the final on Sunday.

Nepal won 4-2 in the tiebreaker.

In the match played at Dasharath Stadium, Tripureshwor, none of the team made a goal in the first half, while they had 1-1 in the second half.

Sabitra Bhandari 'Samba' scored a goal for Nepal as soon as the second half began.

Nepal will lock their horns with Bangladesh in the final.

Bangladesh had entered the final by defeating Bhutan on Sunday itself. Bangladesh defeated Bhutan 7-1 in the semifinal.

The continuous conflict between Israel and Iran has serious geopolitical, military, and humanitarian consequences and has emerged as one of the Middle East’s instability and critical conflicts. In recent years, this conflict which has its roots in decades of hatred and ideological conflicts has become worse to a disastrous level. The cycle of bloodshed has been increased by Iran’s Oct 2024 launch of more than 180 ballistic missiles toward Israel, which has carried both countries and their allies into a destructive cycle. 

Questions concerning the direction of this conflict and the world at large shade big as everyone watches with eagerness. We need to examine the historical background of Israel and Iran’s relationship in order to understand the present conflict between them. It may surprise you to learn that Israel and Iran were not always enemies. Both countries had friendly connections before the Iranian Revolution in 1979. Iran recognized Israel and supplied it with oil throughout the Arab-Israeli wars during Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi’s secular reign. However, the dynamics of their relationship had been drastically changed by the 1979 Iranian revolution. 

After the revolution, Iran became an Islamic Republic and Ayatollah Khomeini came to power. As a result of this change, Iran adopted an anti-Israel and anti-Western foreign policy. Iran started backing anti-Israel militant organizations like Hezbollah and Hamas that called for the annihilation of Israel after Khomeini declared Israel to be an illegitimate state. This was the start of a long-running hostility that has had a significant impact on the region’s geopolitics. Since then, both nations have been fighting a proxy war through middlemen like Hamas and Hezbollah. 

However, Israel has been focusing on stopping Iran from getting nuclear weapons, frequently using illicit methods such as the murder of Iranian nuclear scientists. Iran perceives Israel as a tool of Western hegemony in the Middle East, while Israel considers a nuclear-armed Iran as a mortal danger. These conflicts continue to grow worse over time. When Iran fired more than 180 ballistic missiles at Israel in Oct 2024, the conflict escalated to another level. Israel’s killings of important Hamas and Hezbollah leaders prompted this retribution. Although various of the missiles were stopped by Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system, the attacks, which targeted Israeli communities and military infrastructure, caused extensive damage and casualties. 

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Israel reacted quickly and harshly, directing airstrikes against Iranian forces. The war quickly spread throughout the region, attracting Hezbollah, which attacked Israeli targets in southern Lebanon. In response, Israeli troops increased their strikes in Gaza, the West Bank, Syria, and Iraq while executing ground operations along the Israel-Lebanon border. Air and naval forces are engaged in a regional struggle for supremacy along several fronts in the conflict. Despite its longstanding involvement, the United Nations Security Council’s (UNSC) attempts to mediate and settle the tensions between Israel and Iran have frequently been failed by the geopolitical interests of its permanent members.  

In order to resolve tied issues, the UNSC has approved a number of resolutions. For example, Resolution 1701 in 2006 tried to end the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, while Resolution 2231 in 2015 supported the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also referred to as the Iran nuclear agreement. However, the Israel-Iran dispute has caused significant division inside the UNSC. As a strong supporter of Israel, the United States has backed resolutions that seek to limit Iran’s regional influence. 

On the other hand, resolutions that are detrimental to Tehran have frequently been rejected by China and Russia, both of whom have strong relations to Iran. No real progress has been made in the Security Council’s attempts to resolve the crisis because of this split. The UNSC has demanded a cease-fire in the most recent escalation, but neither Israel nor Iran seem prepared to back down. Nepal is the only nation that has been conspicuously silent during this international confrontation. Nepal, which has been a member of the UN since 1955, has historically avoided taking sides in international disputes by pursuing a non-alignment foreign policy. 

Nepal’s long standing adherence to neutrality and peace serves as the foundation for this position. Nepal’s foreign policy has always been careful to strike a balance given its strategic location between two regional giants, India and China. Nepal also has close commercial relations with the Middle East. Gulf countries like Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, with which Nepal maintains diplomatic ties, employ hundreds of thousands of Nepali workers. 

Nepal’s commercial ties with the area could be difficult and the livelihoods of these workers put at risk if it takes an aggressive position on the Israel-Iran conflict. Nepal is afraid to get involved in international wars in part because of its own internal problems, such as governance and economic recovery. The region’s civilian populations have suffered greatly as a result of the Israel-Iran conflict. The most recent wave of violence has murdered almost 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza alone. Hezbollah has been attacking the area around the northern border with Lebanon, which has resulted in the displacement of thousands of Israelis. 

Many people lack access to basic essentials including food, water, and medical care, making the humanitarian crisis dire. The conflict’s effects on the economy are also world. Due to the conflict’s threat to interrupt the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial chokepoint for the world’s oil trade, the price of oil has increased by five percent. Rising energy prices are worsening the effects of inflation, which are already an issue for many economies healing from the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Major world powers including the US, Russia, and China have become involved in the conflict, which has raised concerns about a wider regional or possibly global conflict. The war between Iran-supported Hezbollah and Israel grew worse dramatically yesterday. Hezbollah commanders in Beirut were the target of major attacks by Israeli troops, which caused significant damage and casualties. 

Israel said Iran launched a missile attack on its military bases, which prompted this escalation. Ayatollah Khamenei, the supreme leader of Iran, threatened dire consequences if Israel’s military actions continued in a rare public declaration. Four soldiers were killed in a drone attack on an Israeli army camp by Hezbollah in retaliation. The continuous violence has resulted in nearly 2,000 casualties in the last two weeks, according to the Lebanese authorities. Both sides are getting ready for more conflicts, and the situation is still extremely unstable. 

Notwithstanding continuous international efforts to negotiate and de-escalate the conflict, a peaceful resolution is difficult due to the parties' continuing disagreements and strategic objectives. The Israel-Iran conflict acts as a harsh reminder of the world’s uncertain state of peace and security. The Middle East and the entire world are at risk as the conflict escalates. Major nations like China, Russia, and the United States are involved, which makes a peaceful outcome less probable. The situation does not appear to be de-escalating, and the United Nations is still divided despite its attempts. 

Nepal has a historical foreign policy perspective on which is shown in its neutrality and non-alignment in the conflict. But the entire globe is at a turning point. There is an urgent need for diplomatic involvement and a long-term peace process to stop more deaths and heal an area that has already suffered too much. The future of global order will be shaped by how the entire world handles the current situation, and the risks are extremely high. In these unpredictable and dangerous illustrations, one thing is clear: the globe is on edge, and where it goes from here depends on leaders’ decisions and diplomacy’s ability to map a road toward peace.

Prabin Kumar Yadav

BA LLB 

Kathmandu School of Law