Trump and the Mirage of Change

There is a feeling drifting across the Muslim world, an illusion as old as it is fragile, that a leader from outside will emerge to deliver justice and peace, that the arrival of Donald Trump in office will spell an end to long-standing conflicts and unmet promises. Many believe he might halt the firestorm in Gaza and spark a cascade of peaceful resolutions worldwide. But these hopes, vivid, compelling, and achingly human, may be but dreams that dim under closer scrutiny. 

In truth, Trump’s stance is clear: he has shown unwavering support for Israel, a fervor that eclipses even his predecessors. Any hope that he might wield his power to end the bloodshed in Gaza should be tempered by his record and priorities. What seems likely instead is a future where U.S.-backed Israeli power continues to grow unchecked, where Israel’s influence becomes even more unyielding, and where lives in Gaza may be treated as mere statistics in the pursuit of “counterterrorism” and regional dominance. Policies like these may not lead to surgical strikes or precise resolutions but could devastate entire communities, the way a reckless surgeon would remove an entire limb to cure a minor affliction. Innocent lives become casualties in the shadows of skyscrapers and rubble alike, with each explosion echoing a disregard for life masked as the elimination of so-called threats. 

Some PTI supporters in Pakistan, meanwhile, harbor similar illusions, envisioning a potential alignment between Trump’s administration and Imran Khan’s possible return to power. They hope, in hushed conversations and spirited gatherings, that Trump might nudge the Pakistani government to release Khan from jail, setting the stage for a new era of leadership under his wing. Yet, if Trump were to support Khan’s ascent, it would be no act of pure alliance or kinship. History shows us, repeatedly, that American interference in Pakistan has always been aligned with American interests. If Khan rises with Trump’s backing, there would be a price. Perhaps Pakistan would be asked to abandon its nuclear arsenal, to halt the CPEC project, to shift its alliances or soften its stance toward Israel. Such expectations would not come empty-handed but would demand sacrifices that cut deep. 

There is a beauty in Imran Khan’s oratory that stirs the hearts of Pakistanis, his words of unity, his Quranic verses, his calls for the Muslim Ummah’s solidarity. Yet, have these gestures brought any substantial change? The world, as it stands, answers not to speeches but to power. Today, nations move not for sentiment but for survival, guided by knowledge, wealth, and might. As the saying goes, “A bird with broken wings cannot fly.” And the Muslim world, with its fractured alliances and faded ambitions, remains grounded, unable to lift itself to a place of strength or respect. We are a people too often enchanted by words when the world respects only those who back words with action.

Muslims everywhere must abandon these illusions, these hopes that another leader will lift us from our struggles. The reality is unyielding and unkind: without strength, without resources, and without unity, we remain mere pawns, waiting for deliverance that will never come. As long as we await salvation from afar, we will find ourselves subject to the whims of powers that do not see us as equals but as chess pieces, to be moved, sacrificed, or removed as they see fit. 

Imagine for a moment if the Muslim world would turn inward, finding strength not in revenge but in resilience, not in anger but in unity. Picture a union like NATO, a coalition bound not by a common enemy but by a shared vision for security and prosperity. A coalition that seeks solutions within, that provides support from within, that speaks not as fractured voices but as a united force, a single powerful entity on the global stage. Until such unity exists, we remain vulnerable, the sand that slips through fingers, never grasped, always lost. 

No leader from afar will grant us dignity. Dignity must be earned, and only by building, by strengthening, and by uniting will we find it. We may find pride in our leaders’ speeches, in their words at the United Nations, in their calls for unity, but words alone are fleeting, a faint echo lost in the vastness of a world that moves to the rhythm of power. We must cast aside our dreams of being saved and take up the tools to shape our own future. In the end, our survival, our dignity, our voice, these lie within our grasp, not in the hands of those who would shape our destiny to serve their own. 

Until we realize this truth, we remain but a footnote, a distant echo in the grand halls of power, an echo not strong enough to shape our own destiny. Like a fool who builds his house upon sand, we have, for too long, laid the foundations of our future on shifting illusions, hoping that strength will arrive from across the seas or from those whose hands are already tied to interests far removed from our own. But the tides rise, and the winds shift, and with every storm, our fragile hopes are washed away, leaving us in a cycle of dependence that binds us to dreams rather than reality. 

Let us abandon these illusions, for they are no more than shadows, faint wisps of comfort that dissolve in the unforgiving light of day. It is time to lay down the dreams of saviors and to take up the hard, enduring labor of building strength from within. If we wish to stand among those who shape the world, we must rise not with hollow aspirations, not with borrowed might, but with the strength forged in the fires of self-reliance, unity, and resolve.

The path before us is neither smooth nor simple, but it is the only one that leads to true dignity. Let us be the architects of our own foundation, casting aside the mirages and planting our feet firmly on the bedrock of purpose. Only then, when we find the courage to seize our fate with our own hands, will we transcend the role of silent spectators and become voices that matter, a people who move not by the whims of others but by the force of our own will. And only then will we truly stand, not as a distant echo, but as an enduring presence in the ever-turning tide of history.

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