In Beirut, where I spent last weekend doing TV interviews, I talked with many friends representing all parts of the political spectrum. That is one thing I love about Lebanon, you may disagree with anyone, but — and this is a big but — you end up being even more friendly. Intellectuals there, as much as ordinary people, are used to differing with each other. They come from diverse religious, sectarian, political and ethnic backgrounds. Having lived side by side in a wide democratic, but tight geographic, space for generations has taught them to accept disagreements as a fact of life.
My Shiite and Sunni Arab and Christian friends are politically opposed. Some of the Shiites are anti-Iran and its Hezbollah stooges; others, including Sunnis and Christians, are strong Hezbollah loyalists. Still, after long nights of heated discussions, we end up laughing and fondly wishing each other farewell.
A Shiite friend invited me to meet with his family at his apartment in the Southern district of the city, the stronghold of the Party. When he noticed my hesitance, he laughed and assured me that I wouldn't even notice the difference. Politics have nothing to do with social life, he assured me, and it was totally safe to be anywhere in Beirut, these days. I went and it was just as he said.
Before recent events, the same tolerant environment existed in Yemen. Everywhere I went, people lived in peaceful coexistence. In universities in Aden and Sanaa, you could see students from the north and south of the country, Sunni and Zaidi, talking and dealing with each other in a mode of comradeship, even as they discussed their political and religious views. It was amazing and refreshing that women were involved in such discussions with the same accommodation and respect for each other's views.
In Tarim, where some of the most ancient Muslim schools are located, people representing different schools of thought sat side by side in mosques, classrooms, libraries and cafes to exchange ideas and knowledge. At wedding and Eid parties, they sang and danced together, like the friends they were and should be.
So what has happened over the past few years? The answer is that Iran and Al-Qaeda came to Yemen. The divided opposition parties introduced their own political agendas, schemes and tools. Iran took the side of the Zaidis and planted its agents. It used the power of thought, money and persuasion to build an extremist Shiite community. Al-Qaeda employed a similar scheme based on Jihad. The result was catastrophic.
It started with shouting and ended up with shooting. Each camp recruited followers from the most underprivileged and uneducated communities. Leaders, however, came mostly from the elites. They were given, especially in the case of Iran's followers, positions, money and arms. Their objective is to rule over the rest - nothing less. Logic, therefore, becomes irrelevant. Hate speech has been given the upper hand. Mosques, schools, TV stations and the Internet have given even the tiniest voice the loudest and widest reach. Tribes with guns for hire were bought and alliances were made based on sectarian divisions.
Government leaders were fully aware of what was happening. However, they not only turned a blind eye, but also supported some of these groups. The former president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, according to Western and Arab diplomats based in Yemen, supported the opposing factions in the hope that they would weaken each other while giving him the excuse to call for Arab and international help to fight terrorism. And whenever one camp seemed to be winning, he fought it and got the US and his neighbors to help. An American diplomat even admitted that Saleh gave them the exact Al-Qaeda locations to be attacked by drones and then helped the terrorists recover from the attack!
Iran, on the other hand, was given a free hand to supply the Houthis with cash and arms. The Shiite militias were given ample training and religious education in Lebanon and Iran by Hezbollah and the Revolutionary Guards.
You see, dear readers, it is all about politics, control and authority. It has nothing to do with religion or patriotism, but is simply a power game in which everything is used and abused, including the sacred. People lives are just part of the game. It is doesn't matter if they all die or live in misery. Empires, as these people believe, are built on skeletons.
Their trick is to divide and rule. That's why we need to outlaw hate speech, fight religious, ethnic and all sorts of division, and confront the warmongers and empire builders with unity and awareness. Care to share your thoughts on this? Be my guest!
— Dr. Khaled M. Batarfi is a Saudi writer based in Jeddah. He can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @kbatarfi
