FOLLOWING the threat of United States (US) President Donald Trump to bring "hell" to Iran, a former president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) is calling on Americans to help stop their leader.
In a social media post, Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David asked Americans to stop Trump from repeating the events of World War II (WWII) in 1945.
"If your emperor unleashes weapons of mass destruction, do not say: 'It was not us.' History will not accept that excuse. And neither will God. You have crossed this line before. Hiroshima. Nagasaki," said David.
"Dear America, this is your moment. Not your President's. Yours. Only you have the power now to stop what must not be unleashed. Refuse what must never be justified," he added.
David said such actions are never justifiable as these will only bring more hardships not just to Iranians but to the rest of the world.
"Do you see what the world is enduring because of this path? Nations destabilized. Economies collapsing. The poor crushed. Children deprived of a future. Creation itself groaning in pain," said the Cardinal.
He said failure to stop Trump can be deemed as a "moral failure" on the part of Americans from the point of view of the world.
"When power is used without restraint, when war is chosen without listening, when destruction is justified as strength, that is not leadership. That is moral failure," said David.
Last Sunday, Trump set a deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz on or before Tuesday at 8 p.m. (US time).
Trump said Iran must reopen the Strait of Hormuz or else "you’ll be living in hell." (Anton Banal/SunStar Philippines)