The satellite completes another orbit of the Earth. As it passes over TigrayA region home to the Tigrayan people in northern Ethiopia. it takes a photo - this time the lights of the region are slightly more dimmed than before. 

Again and again it repeats its relentless journey. Each time, the satellite shows an ever darkening area. By August 2022 the region is in a virtual blackout. 

For nearly two years, Tigray has been at the centre of a brutal conflict.¹ As many as half a million are dead; many more have been left without access to electricity, fuel, food and internet.² These photos, taken from hundreds of miles above, show how Ethiopia's population has been left in the dark. 

Meanwhile, a continent away, Russian kamikaze dronesAlso known as "loitering" munitions, unmanned, explosive-laden drones which can hover above an area to identify a target. are striking Ukrainian cities. Here, too, civilians are dying amid widespread blackouts. Ukrainians face the threat of a long, cold and dangerous winter. 

Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, says that he will use "all available means to defend Russian territory". Many think it is little more than a veiled threat: Putin has nuclear weapons at his disposal, and he is not afraid to use them.

There are eight countries worldwide that admit to keeping nuclear weapons. Few are willing to give them up. Most cite security - the British government's website states that the country must "maintain an independent, minimum, credible nuclear deterrent to protect ourselves and our NatoThe North Atlantic Treaty Organisation was founded in 1949 to unite Western democracies in Europe and North America against the perceived growing threat of the USSR. It now has 31 members. allies". The fear of mutually assured destruction, many say, is what kept Europe from entering a third great war in the 20th Century. 

There are practical reasons too. The production of military equipment is big business. Last week, Britain's Trade Union CongressA group bringing together different trade unions in England and Wales. (TUC) voted at its annual conference to back increased military spending. Not to do so, it said, would lead to job losses in the arms industry. 

But now, at the start of its Disarmament Week, the UN has called for nations worldwide to lay down their nuclear weapons. "Nuclear disarmament is not some utopianImpossibly perfect. The term comes from an ancient Greek phrase meaning "no-place" invented by Henry VIII's chancellor, Sir Thomas More, in 1516, as the name of an imaginary, ideal island. dream," the organisation's chief told an audience in HiroshimaA Japanese city destroyed by an atomic bomb in World War II.. "It is the only pathway to a peaceful future."

"Rather than backing the government's drive towards more militarisation," Chris Nineham of the Stop the War CoalitionA British campaign group, set up after 9/11, which campaigns against what it sees as unjust wars. warned the TUC, "the movement should be arguing for more jobs and spending on the things working people actually need such as healthcare, housing, education, transport, green technologies and civilian infrastructure." 

Laying down arms and instead using resources for human good is not a new idea. In 1959 the USSR presented the UN with a statue, based on a passage in the Book of IsaiahOne of the major writings of the Old Testament. : "they shall beat their swords into ploughshares... nation shall not lift up sword against nation."³

Today, the war in Ukraine is being used by those on both sides of the debate. Those in favour of disarmament point to the terrifying concept of nuclear war in Europe. Those against see the same weapons as the only meaningful deterrentSomething that prevents people from doing something by making them afraid of what will happen to them if they do it.. There is only one thing all sides can agree on. This year, as tensions escalate across the continent, finding a path towards a peaceful world is more important than ever. 

Yes: Once again the threat of nuclear war looms. It is time to stop unnecessary deaths with global disarmament. The money spent on weapons could be put to much better use for human development which would in itself help to put an end to war.

No: Countries have a right to defend themselves. Disarmament would leave open the possibility of attacks from countries who refuse to give up their weapons. Look at the situation in Ukraine where a larger, more powerful neighbour has invaded.

Or... Countries could agree to maintain armies but only for defence and spending should be limited to only what is necessary to maintain peace. 

Tigray - A region home to the Tigrayan people in northern Ethiopia.

Kamikaze drones - Also known as "loitering" munitions, unmanned, explosive-laden drones which can hover above an area to identify a target.

Nato - The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation was founded in 1949 to unite Western democracies in Europe and North America against the perceived growing threat of the USSR. It now has 31 members.

Trade Union Congress - A group bringing together different trade unions in England and Wales.

Utopian - Impossibly perfect. The term comes from an ancient Greek phrase meaning "no-place" invented by Henry VIII's chancellor, Sir Thomas More, in 1516, as the name of an imaginary, ideal island.

Hiroshima - A Japanese city destroyed by an atomic bomb in World War II.

Stop the War Coalition - A British campaign group, set up after 9/11, which campaigns against what it sees as unjust wars.

Book of Isaiah - One of the major writings of the Old Testament.

Deterrent - Something that prevents people from doing something by making them afraid of what will happen to them if they do it.