Saudi Arabia welcomes trilateral border treaty between Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan    Trump prepares to unveil sweeping new US tariffs on 'Liberation Day'    At least 22 civilians killed in Israeli strike on UNRWA clinic in Gaza    UK says it won't jump into US trade war as Starmer urges calm response to tariffs    Russia, Ukraine trade fresh accusations of violating US-brokered energy ceasefire deal    Swedish table tennis legend Jörgen Persson appointed head coach of Saudi national team    Danilo Pereira fires Al Ittihad into King's Cup final with dramatic stoppage-time double    Over 1 million pilgrims benefit from golf cart service at Grand Mosque during Ramadan    Visitors welcomed with Eid initiative at Thee Ain Heritage Village in Al-Baha    Tebuk emir reviews rain response in Tayma    Saudi Arabia considers rent cap as part of major real estate reforms    Messi's bodyguard banned from touchline at Inter Miami games    Screen time in bed linked to insomnia, study finds    Haramain High-Speed Railway transports over 1.2 million passengers during Ramadan    Saudi Transport Authority says passengers can ride for free if taxi meters are off    Ministry of Education forms 425 community partnerships with SR653 million impact    Mexico bans junk food in schools to fight childhood obesity epidemic    Sweet sales surge ahead of Eid as Saudi chocolate imports top 123 million kg in 2024    Saudi creatives shine at Jeddah's Fawanees Nights with art, fashion, and storytelling    T1 CEO confirms Gumayusi's return for LCK Spring after lineup shakeup    Bollywood actress vindicated over boyfriend's death after media hounding    Grand Mufti rules against posting prayers and preaching in mosques on social media    King Salman prays for peace and stability for Palestinians in Ramadan message King reaffirms Saudi Arabia's commitment to serving the Two Holy Mosques and pilgrims    Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan 'out of danger' after attack at home in Mumbai    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Signs of a New Arab Order
Published in AL HAYAT on 09 - 04 - 2011

The decision of the Arab League to impose a no-fly zone over Libya has given the Security Council and NATO a rare opportunity – an opportunity that both have used as political and moral cover for bombing Tripoli and the areas under Gaddafi's control. No one, except for supporters of the “leader”, can any longer say that the West is attacking Arabs or taking revenge on Muslims, or that it has returned to its colonial racism and ambitions.
Yet such a decision, apart from its military perspectives and the extent to which the views of the “international community” and of Arab League countries (each on its own) coincide, represents a strong indication that a new Arab order is taking shape, after the old one had failed to take decisions of such caliber. It is an order that would be formed by the vibrations of the “Arab Spring”, and one which the new Egypt would participate in establishing, on the basis of its role in the events in Libya and supported by the results of Tahrir Square, where demands were voiced for the return of Cairo to its Arab role.
Another feature of this new order is the change in the stance taken by Gulf countries. For the first time, these countries have activated their treaty within the framework of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), and decided to intervene to protect the regime in Bahrain. Doubtless such a precedent will have a major role to play in shaping a different Arab direction, especially if one takes into consideration the Gulf coalition's decision to confront Iran's influence by all means available, in addition to its doubts over the role played by Turkey under the Justice and Development Party (AKP) and over Ankara's efforts to establish a regional order with Tehran and Damascus as its main pillars.
Each of the two non-Arab regional states has its own national strategic plans established on religious (read: sectarian) bases in the region. Turkey is returning to its religious heritage, enhanced with Atatürk's nationalism and secularism, which was imposed and protected by the military, and seeks to be the model of a modern Muslim state, benefiting from the support of the US and NATO. And Iran seeks to be the model of an Islamic state, with all that the term entails, considering what Khomeini established to be a revolution within Islam impeded only by the West and the governments that orbit around it.
Both sides, Turkey and Iran, have taken the Palestinian Cause as a basis for their influence in the Arab World, and they have succeeded to a great extent at gaining the approval of a public opinion for which this issue represents a large part of its collective and national consciousness. Tehran has gone further than Ankara in its enmity towards Israel, backing the resistance in Lebanon and in Gaza and sparing no opportunity to make use of its influential position to call into question American and Western policies biased in favor of the Hebrew state. In other words, it has opposed and continues to oppose the Arab order, which seeks after peace with the Jewish state without achieving any progress.
The old Arab order results from the effects of the Palestinian issue, a topic which has always been present on the agenda of the Arab League and of Arab Summits, from the time when the Shah's Iran and the military's Turkey formed with Israel a single front opposing any national direction taken by the Arabs. Today, amidst the tremendous changes the region has witnessed and continues to witness, and because of opposition to Iran and of doubts over the direction taken by Turkey, and before all of that abandoning any “dream” of confronting Israel, it is imperative for an Arab order to arise on the basis of these factors – an order that comes with Egypt starting from Libya, and with the GCC from the move made in Bahrain. And it would not be surprising if it were weaker than its predecessor, especially as Syria still insists on its old stance and the popular movement there is still in its early stages, as Iraq's identity is “diverse”, and as the Palestinian issue is being fought over by the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah and Hamas in Gaza.
The signs of a new Arab order are only beginning to appear. But what is certain is that the Palestinian issue is no longer the main factor giving it shape.


Clic here to read the story from its source.