Language, Individual & Society, Volume 16, 2022

Abstract: The paper discusses the inception of just-war theory and the way it has been manipulated over the course of time, to the advantage of the few. The research focuses on the consequence of armed conflicts that undermine the moral aspect linked with jus-bellum justum. Developing its case on Hanif’s latest novel Red Birds, the paper deconstructs the notion of just-war and pre-emptive strikes and focuses on the post-war ramifications that are entirely ignored. The research utilises a fictional narrative to shed light on the fact that United States befittingly wielded its financial and military ascendency to evade the international jurisdictions and to materialise the desired geo-strategic significance in a third-world country. It's witnessed that frequent bombings constitute an everyday survival routine of the characters. The novel transcends the enforced doctrine of warfare to support mankind through its narrators. Momo, Mutt, Mother Dear, and an American war pilot, Ellie, enlighten a liminal space between acceptance and reverberations. The satiric connotations shake the western weltanschauung of appropriation of the Persian-speaking population. The paper intends to give a critical interpretation of asymmetric warfare, war repercussions, and of the absence of post-war responsibility that is adding to the human devastation in the twenty-first century.