Report on Nuclear Weapons and the Violation of Sustainable Development Goals

Introduction: The Moral Imperative Beyond Strategic Debate

• Analysis of the 1945 atomic bombings frequently centers on strategic justification, a framework that fails to address the primary moral question regarding the deliberate targeting of civilian populations.
• A significant moral consensus asserts that nuclear weapons violate fundamental principles of human dignity, a position that directly supports the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
• This report examines the inherent incompatibility of nuclear weapons with key Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), utilizing survivor testimonies, historical records, and contemporary risk analysis.

Detrimental Impact on SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being) and SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities)

• Immediate and Long-Term Health Crises: The use of atomic weapons results in catastrophic public health failures. The bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki caused approximately 200,000 initial fatalities and condemned survivors (hibakusha) to lifelong health issues, including cancers and radiation-related diseases, directly undermining SDG 3.
• Transgenerational Suffering: The impact extends across generations. Survivors have faced persistent fears regarding genetic defects in their children and grandchildren, a profound psychological and physical burden that contravenes the long-term health objectives of SDG 3. Testimonies describe radiation as a “living presence” within their bodies.
• Destruction of Urban Centers: Nuclear weapons are designed for the obliteration of cities, rendering communities unsafe, non-inclusive, and unsustainable. This capability is in direct opposition to the core mission of SDG 11, which aims to create safe and resilient human settlements.

Contradiction with SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions)

• Erosion of International Peace and Security: The existence, development, and proliferation of nuclear weapons are a primary threat to global peace and security, a foundational element of SDG 16. Current geopolitical tensions involving nuclear-armed states highlight the persistent risk of escalation.
• Violation of Just War Principles: The indiscriminate nature of nuclear weapons makes it impossible to distinguish between combatants and non-combatants, violating established moral and legal principles of warfare. This conclusion is supported by a diverse range of authorities:
  1. The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, which, since 1945, has condemned the use of atomic weapons as “religiously and morally unlawful” based on Islamic principles that forbid the killing of innocents.
  2. Senior American military leaders of the era, including General Dwight Eisenhower and Admiral William Leahy, who described the weapons as “barbarous” and strategically unnecessary.
• Neglect of Diplomatic Solutions: Historical evidence indicates that Japan was attempting to negotiate surrender prior to the bombings. The rejection of these diplomatic overtures in favor of military force runs counter to the promotion of peaceful and inclusive societies envisioned in SDG 16.

Disproportionate Impacts and Environmental Harm (SDGs 10, 14, 15)

• Exacerbation of Inequalities (SDG 10): The legacy of nuclear weapons demonstrates a pattern of disproportionate harm to specific populations. The use of these weapons on civilian centers and the subsequent testing on Indigenous lands represent a severe violation of SDG 10, which seeks to reduce inequality and ensure equal opportunity.
• Environmental Devastation (SDGs 14 & 15): Nuclear testing has inflicted severe and lasting damage on terrestrial and marine ecosystems.
  1. From 1946 to 1996, Western powers detonated 318 nuclear devices across the Pacific, transforming ancestral homelands into testing grounds.
  2. The Marshall Islands alone were subjected to 67 nuclear tests, which contaminated entire atolls, displaced communities, and caused multi-generational health crises, including widespread cancer.
  3. This radioactive contamination of land and sea is a direct assault on SDG 14 (Life Below Water) and SDG 15 (Life on Land).

A Call for Global Partnership and Disarmament (SDG 17)

• A Broad Coalition for Abolition: A powerful moral consensus against nuclear weapons unites hibakusha, faith-based organizations like the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, and secular strategic thinkers. This demonstrates the potential for a global partnership (SDG 17) to achieve the goal of disarmament.
• Sustained Advocacy: The continuous, decades-long advocacy by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, including direct warnings to world leaders by its Caliph, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, exemplifies a sustained effort to build the political will required for abolition.
• Public Support for Disarmament: Public sentiment increasingly recognizes the danger. A 2025 survey found that 69% of Americans believe nuclear weapons development has made the world less safe, indicating a mandate for policies aligned with disarmament.

Conclusion: Heeding the Moral Witness for a Sustainable Future

• The testimonies of the last atomic bomb survivors serve as an urgent and irreplaceable moral guide, highlighting the unique and unacceptable human cost of nuclear weapons.
• The realization of the Sustainable Development Goals is fundamentally impossible in a world threatened by nuclear annihilation. The core objectives of promoting health, peace, equality, and environmental integrity are incompatible with the continued existence of weapons of mass destruction.
• The international community must heed the clear moral consensus and pursue complete nuclear disarmament, thereby aligning global security policy with the universal principles of human dignity and sustainable development.

1. SDGs Addressed or Connected to the Issues Highlighted in the Article

• SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions: The article’s central theme is the abolition of nuclear weapons, a direct effort to promote peace, prevent violence, and reduce arms. It calls for a moral and institutional consensus against these weapons.
• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being: The text extensively details the devastating short-term and long-term health consequences of nuclear weapons, including radiation sickness, cancer, and genetic defects passed through generations.
• SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities: The article uses the complete destruction of the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki as a primary example of the impact of nuclear weapons, highlighting the threat they pose to human settlements.

2. Specific Targets Under Those SDGs

• SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

  • Target 16.1: Significantly reduce all forms of violence and related death rates everywhere.
    
    The article directly addresses this target by focusing on the catastrophic violence of nuclear weapons. It cites the “estimated 200,000 people” killed in the initial bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and warns that modern weapons have a far greater destructive capacity, arguing for their elimination to prevent future violence and death.
  • Target 16.4: By 2030, significantly reduce illicit financial and arms flows, strengthen the recovery and return of stolen assets and combat all forms of organized crime.
    
    While the article discusses state-owned arsenals, its core argument for the complete “elimination” of nuclear weapons aligns with the spirit of this target, which is to reduce the global presence and proliferation of arms. The warning that “five of the nine nations that possess nuclear weapons have been engaged in active military operations” underscores the danger of arms proliferation and the need for disarmament.

• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

  • Target 3.9: By 2030, substantially reduce the number of deaths and illnesses from hazardous chemicals and air, water and soil pollution and contamination.
    
    This target is relevant due to the article’s detailed description of the effects of radioactive contamination. It mentions how survivors in Hiroshima still receive daily treatment, how Marshall Islanders suffer from “Cancers continue from generation to generation” due to nuclear testing, and how radiation is perceived as a “living presence” within survivors’ bodies, causing lifelong illness.
  • Target 3.d: Strengthen the capacity of all countries, in particular developing countries, for early warning, risk reduction and management of national and global health risks.
    
    The article functions as a form of risk communication about a major global health threat. It cites warnings from leaders like Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad and experts like Ira Helfand about the grave and ongoing nuclear threat, which could “produce generation after generation of children being born with severe genetic or physical defects,” thereby highlighting the need for risk reduction through disarmament.

• SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

  • Target 11.5: By 2030, significantly reduce the number of deaths and the number of people affected… caused by disasters… with a focus on protecting the poor and people in vulnerable situations.
    
    The atomic bombings are presented as catastrophic man-made disasters that destroyed entire cities and their populations. The article’s focus on how these weapons “destroy entire cities” and its use of Hiroshima and Nagasaki as case studies directly connects to the goal of preventing such disasters and protecting communities from their effects.

3. Indicators Mentioned or Implied in the Article

• For Target 16.1 (Reduce violence and death rates)

  • Conflict-related deaths: The article provides a specific figure: “The atomic bombs killed an estimated 200,000 people initially.” This serves as a direct indicator of deaths from a specific form of violence.
  • Prevalence of arms: The text implies an indicator by stating that “nine nations that possess nuclear weapons,” highlighting the scale of the global nuclear arsenal and the risk it represents.

• For Target 3.9 (Reduce deaths and illnesses from contamination)

  • Morbidity from contamination: The article provides qualitative and quantitative evidence of illness. It states that Hiroshima’s Red Cross hospital treats “180 survivors of the blasts each day,” which is a specific indicator of the long-term health burden. It also describes intergenerational suffering, such as “Cancers continue from generation to generation” and fears of birth defects, which are indicators of the lasting impact of radioactive contamination.

• For Target 11.5 (Reduce deaths and people affected by disasters)

  • Number of people killed and affected by disasters: The article uses the “200,000 people” killed as an indicator for deaths. The number of people affected is indicated by the “hibakusha (atomic bomb survivors)” who face “lifelong health problems, social discrimination, and genetic fears,” as well as the displaced communities in the Marshall Islands.

4. Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: alhakam.org