What citizens of other countries are reading about the Middle East.
By COMPILEDTHE MEDIA LINEArab League Secretary-General Nabil Elaraby (left) and Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry answer questions after a summit in Egypt.(photo credit: REUTERS)
Will Iran lose the war against the Arabs?Al-Nahar, Lebanon, March 26For almost an entire year, Saudi Arabia stood aside and watched the uprising in Yemen unfold. This week, it had enough: The Saudi army surprised the entire world, including its allies, and launched a military operation against the Houthi rebels in Yemen known as Operation Decisive Storm. Riyadh came to the understanding that the Houthis are not seeking a peace agreement with President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi’s government, but rather a complete takeover of the country, backed by the Iranian regime.Where does Decisive Storm leave Iran? It’s hard to tell, but two things remain clear: First, Iran will face a miserable failure in Yemen; second, the operation strengthens the US’s leverage against Tehran in the ongoing nuclear talks in Geneva.On the Syrian and Iraqi front, things are a little less certain. None of the Arab countries chose to intervene in the Syrian civil war, despite the massive amounts of deaths caused by the ongoing onslaught. Arabs ask themselves why Saudi Arabia intervened so quickly in Yemen, but neglected to save thousands of Syrians.Yet Saudi sources explained that Iran’s current involvement in Syria and Iraq might be a victory in the battle, but not in the war. Tehran will quickly come to realize, following this operation, that its military adventures aboard do not always pay off. – Muhammad NamerSaudi Intervention in Yemen prevented a disasterAl-Sharq Al-Awsat, London, March 27Things were looking awful for Yemen. The Houthis decided to take over the entire country by forcing government officials into exile – executing some of those who ran away – in order to impose a new order.Yemen was on the direct path towards a civil war, with armed rebels fighting each other and seizing more land. No one cared for the needs of the local population or the growing famine in the country; Houthi armed militias simply sought to take over as much land as possible.All of this might have worked until this week; with Saudi fighter jets bombing targets in Yemen, reality changed. Now no side is stronger than the other, and both parties will be forced to reach a peace agreement.The international community, led by the UN, must seize this opportunity. If it fails to do so, Yemen will join the dismal list of strife-ridden countries such as Syria, Somalia and Libya. Saudi Arabia’s intervention in Yemen gives us a chance to prevent a huge disaster. – Abdulrahman Al-RashedInner Lebanese rift regarding Yemen OperationAl-Masrawi, Egypt, March 27Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah directed a tirade at Saudi Arabia this week, following the latter’s intervention in Yemen. Nasrallah blamed Riyadh for following orders from the US, and questioned why it did not intervene in any of the others wars waged in the region in the last couple of decades.He accused Saudi Arabia of ignoring the biggest threat posed to the region by Israel, and did not spare criticism against Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who openly praised Riyadh for its intervention.“The Arabs, including the Palestinian leadership, have abandoned the Palestinian cause,” he accused.In response, former Lebanese prime minister Sa’ad al-Hariri accused Nasrallah of putting Iran’s interests above those of Beirut. He described Saudi Arabia’s contribution to Lebanon as “unprecedented,” driven by “goodness and kindheartedness.”These remarks expressed the growing tensions between Lebanon’s Future Movement, which is predominantly secular and supported by Sunnis, and Hezbollah, the armed Shi’ite group led by Nasrallah. The operation in Yemen is likely to extenuate this debate. – Ibrahim EyadNetanyahu owes his victory to the racism cardAl-Nahar, Lebanon, March 24Last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu realized he might lose the Knesset election, so he resorted to using the ultimate weapon: the race card. “Arab voters are coming in droves to the ballot boxes,” he declared in a video posted to Facebook. Two days later, following his victory, he issued an apology for his statement.However, his remarks will not be easily erased. US President Barack Obama finally realizes that Israel, led by Netanyahu, has no real interest in reaching a peace agreement with the Palestinians. The White House does not consider Netanyahu’s remark a mere slip of the tongue, rather a revealing truth regarding Israel’s intention to peacefully coexist with its Arab neighbors.Sadly, the last Israeli attempt to reach peace took place over two decades ago, under prime minister Yitzhak Rabin. Interestingly, it was not Palestinians that killed the peace process, but a Jewish extremist.Netanyahu knew that his statements against the Arabs would gain widespread appeal. He simply confirmed what we already knew for a long time: Israel does not consider its Arab citizens as equal. It is not the democracy it claims to be. – Octavia Nasr
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