What citizens of other countries are reading about the Middle East.
By COMPILEDTHE MEDIA LINETurkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (left) welcomes his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani during the Organization of Islamic Cooperation Summit on April 14 in Istanbul(photo credit: REUTERS)Between sanity and insanity Al-Okaz, Saudi Arabia, April 18 Following its two-day long summit held in Istanbul, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation condemned Iran on Friday for sponsoring terrorism and meddling in the affairs of other countries in the region. The Iranian response was unsurprising: Officials in Tehran ignored the accusations and simply claimed that the OIC is “dominated by a few biased members.” Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Zarif slammed Saudi Arabia, claiming that its efforts to push for the condemnation were “destructive” to the entire Muslim world. I find it difficult, if not impossible, to see how the minister’s claims could be true. Does anyone, other than Iran, find Saudi Arabia’s calls for a safer Middle East destructive? What the OIC statement called for was an end to Iran’s involvement in Lebanon and Syria, as well as its close partnership with Hezbollah.Most Arab leaders would easily agree that this is a top priority for their countries, and that terrorism must be fought wherever it exists. The Iranian reaction was full of anger and resentment. It was most likely aimed at intimidating Saudi officials and warning them against Iranian retaliation in other forums. In reality, however, the Saudis enjoy the support of the vast majority of the Arab world. This condemnation exposed the striking contrasts that exist within the Arab world, between those like Saudi Arabia, who believe in the sovereignty of the state, in democracy, and in the rule of law, and those like Iran, who believe in violence and terrorism. The choice is not between condemning Iran or not. The choice is between sanity and insanity. – Turki al-Dakhil The secret of the Moroccan success Al-Jazeera, Qatar, April 7 Following the Arab Spring, many Arab countries received substantial assistance in order to carry out political reforms and form stable governments, but it is Morocco, the one country left unassisted, that managed to surpass them all. Without any financial assistance and with very limited political power, the Moroccan government managed to unite its people under a new leadership, with the goal of building a better future in the country. Today, it is one of the safest and most stable countries in the region. The question is what set it apart? What is the secret of the Moroccan success? This is a difficult conundrum to crack, but the answer might have to do with Morocco’s Islamic movement.Unlike in other countries in the region, the Moroccan Islamic party viewed itself as a national movement above all. In other words, it cared less about assuming power, and more about carrying out genuine reforms in society. From the very beginning of the Arab Spring, leaders of the movement separated themselves from calls to form an Islamic republic. They also chose not to partake in many demonstrations that did not present “a clear vision for a better future” in Morocco.The fact that the nation came above everything else, even above the idea of an Islamic republic, allowed all political players, both secular and religious, to come together as one.Successive smaller reforms, carried out one by one, brought the public to believe in its new government and the people sitting in it. The new country heads even announced a fight against corruption and nepotism, stating their commitment to transparency and efficiency in governance. Surely, Morocco is still far from being a Western democracy with fully functional authorities.However, in the context of the greater Arab World, it is definitely considered a success story – to a large extent thanks to its Islamic parties. – Sahil al-Ghanoushi Obama’s Mideast visit: Reaffirming the alliance with the Gulf Al-Hayat, London, April 15 US President Barack Obama is scheduled to embark next week on an official visit to Saudi Arabia, where he will participate in the Gulf Summit. The president is not going to come bearing exciting news on his Mideast foreign policy. With only nine months left in office, Obama is now focused on carrying out symbolic gestures, not practical ones. After having secured a nuclear deal with Iran – a deal which, in the eyes of the president, was a great success – Obama wants to reaffirm the United States’ commitment to the Gulf. Washington’s Iran policy left many of its allies in the region unhappy, and this visit is designed to reduce these tensions. In many ways, Obama is preparing the ground for his successor. In his visit, the president will reaffirm the United States’ strong standing with Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council and offer to enhance their respective security ties.At the same time, he will not apologize for courting Tehran. He will likely encourage Cairo and Riyadh to continue enhancing their cooperation in trade, security, and counterterrorism, but he will not overlook the Egyptian government’s infringement of basic civil rights. Obama entered office with a romanticized rhetoric about grand morals and values. He was not afraid to abandon Arab leaders whom he perceived as despots, even if they considered him an ally. However, he is leaving office while turning a blind eye to the most brutal atrocities taking place in Syria. And throughout recent year, he remained completely silent in the wake of awful crimes committed by the mullahs in Tehran. These striking contrasts – or hypocrisy, as some accuse – left Washington and Riyadh at odds with one another. This is what the president’s visit is aimed at rectifying. It is unlikely that any dramatic development will come as a result of this visit other than more of Obama’s typical rhetoric. At the same time, Gulf States are desperate for reassurances, particularly in the form of military sales, so they will take whatever they can get. – Raghda Dargham Ban on the Israeli shekel Dunya al-Watan, Ramallah, April 18Senior Palestinian Authority member, Nabil Sha’ath, announced a series of measures that will be taken by the Palestinian leadership to sever its ties with Israel, following the continuous encroachment of Palestinian rights in the Occupied Territories.Under the guidance of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, measures will be taken in three different realms: Cutting political ties with the Israeli authorities, boycotting Israeli products and the Israeli shekel, and ending security cooperation with the Israeli army. Sha’ath explained that the PA would replace the shekel with other currencies, such as the Jordanian dinar.On the security front, he explained that Israeli authorities rely heavily on their cooperation with the Palestinian security agencies, and that such a ban would severely impact Israel’s capability to thwart attacks against its population. Asked about the possibility of Israeli retaliation, Sha’ath claimed that he does not fear the Israeli reaction to these decisions, as “Palestinians already face daily intimidation and harassment at the hands of the Israelis.” Meanwhile, the implementation of these decisions is still pending the approval of the PLO’s Central Committee, which will vote on this decision upon the return of Abbas from a state visit. Sha’ath called all Palestinian fractions to unite in order to increase the pressure on Israel, and bring the Palestinian cause back to the center stage of the international community. – Dunya al-Watan StaffFor more Media Line stories: http://www.themedialine.org/
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