On the anniversary of the 1973 October War, and 36 years after that momentous event, Arabs who have witnessed those crucial days believe that war unites the Arabs, and that peace with Israel divides them. On the other hand, the Arabs who did not witness that era are convinced that Arabs are in a perpetual state of division, and that nothing, whether in war or in peace with Israel, can bring them together. The Arab scene so far shows that the second opinion seems to be more accurate. Moreover, the events that have engulfed the world in the recent years, and in which the Arabs were involved, have reaffirmed convictions that no Arab consensus can ever be reached over a war against Israel. This remains true even if any Arab party was indeed a victim, no matter what the reasons might be, and regardless of whether the Israeli military capabilities are larger [than the Arabs'], or whether the United States and the West would never leave the Hebrew state to face its fate alone, or even whether some Arabs themselves may believe that war with Israel is futile. As for the attempts to sign peace accords, they only led to antagonism, not only among the Arabs in general, but more so among the Palestinians themselves. These attempts at peace also prompted every Arab side to wash its hands clean of any blame for the mistakes or for the commitments that any negotiations with Israel might entail. Regardless of the details of what had happened before 2 PM on October 6, 1973, and of the testimonies given by the high ranking military leaders in Egypt and Syria with regards to the war strategy or its realities on the ground, the Arabs who witnessed the war felt that an unprecedented, and a hitherto unparalleled Arab solidarity had taken place then. Moreover, and also regardless of the results of the war and the analysis of the experts regarding the calculations of loss and gain, that war spawned the last unified Arab position over which they did not disagree, and over which they were not divided between supporters and opponents, where one side tries to entice another in order to gain further support from its own people, or to defend themselves against. Just as the war united the Arabs, its results actually divided them. Then, and ever since the visit of the late Egyptian President Anwar al-Sadat to Jerusalem, and his initiative which turned into a peace agreement between Egypt and Israel, the Arabs have been moving from one crisis to another, and from an argument to a "dispute" then from reconciliation to estrangement, even for reasons that have nothing to do with Israel or the peace process. As such, the October war became source of pride, but at the same time, its memory reminds all the Arabs of their grieves, not only when it comes to peace with Israel or the peace agreements among the Palestinians themselves, but also when it comes to any Israeli aggression against any Arab side, as happened in South Lebanon or Gaza. The Arabs then no longer addressed their issues in general and their crises with Israel in particular, with the same spirit that they had enjoyed during the 1973 war. The Arab states, and instead of overcoming their differences as they did in that year, are rather overlooking the Israeli aggression, and are fighting one another, leaving the arena vacant for Israel to implement what they had agreed on. What is surprising here is the ongoing interest shown by the Arab media outlets in the anniversary of the October war, as they keep talking about the fact that the Arabs did not fully exploit the victory that was achieved, and that they squandered the sacrifices that were made and the blood that was spilled. This is despite the fact that this argument is no longer useful and does not achieve anything. After all, the war took place and its results failed to bring about a complete peace with Israel, while the current Inter-Arab conflicts have nothing to do with what had happened 36 years ago. On the anniversary of the war, it would be better to talk about the Arab accord before and during the war, back when all the Arabs believed that they have joint interests, and that rallying behind Egypt and Syria and supporting them fulfills the interest of the Arab people everywhere. Today, it transpires that we are living in a different era during which any agreement between the Arabs is unlikely to take place. This era has thus become the title of a song that celebrates the forlorn "Arab dream." * Al-Hayat 4/10/2009
