Will there be world war? Not this year — we pray

AS seen in online posts, articles and videos, the headline question is worrying more and more people, not only since Russia's invasion of Ukraine two years ago but also with the four-month-old conflict between Israel and Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiya (Hamas or Islamic Resistance Movement).

Last year there was fear that the United States-led North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) would enter the Ukraine conflict, which could then go nuclear if Moscow or NATO, with three nuclear powers, faced defeat. Plus, Beijing could invade Taiwan while Washington fights in Europe.