What citizens of other countries are reading about the Middle East.
By COMPILEDTHE MEDIA LINEPresident Barack Obama during a news conference in the White House. ‘What was the role played by countries like the US in the Arab Spring?’(photo credit: REUTERS)THE DEVALUATION OF THE EGYPTIAN POUND Al-Araby al-Jadid, London, November 8Last week, the Central Bank of Egypt decided to float its currency – devaluating it against the US dollar – in an attempt to draw foreign capital into the country. In addition, interest rates were raised by roughly 3%, in order to incentivize Egyptians to keep their money in the banks. Accordingly, the exchange rate has fallen from nearly nine Egyptian pounds to the dollar to roughly 17 pounds.This transition to a free market currency rate will undoubtedly lead to further declines in the value of the Egyptian pound. Despite the fact that the Central Bank injected millions of US dollars into the market in order to stabilize this downfall, the trend will continue in upcoming weeks.The Egyptian Treasury has enacted these dramatic changes as a precondition to securing a $12 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund. The first part of the loan, roughly $3 billion, will be transferred to Cairo next week. The rest of the payment will be spread throughout the next few years. These are crucial measures for the Egyptian economy. But how will they affect the average Egyptian? With the introduction of a new value added tax, the rising prices of gasoline, and the removal of government subsidies on basic foods, the lives of virtually all Egyptians will significantly change. Security forces have already been deployed in the streets of Cairo in order to prevent a public uprising. But with more than 30% of Egyptians living below poverty line, and many more struggling to make ends meet, it is hard to believe that these reforms will go by unnoticed.Egypt must rehabilitate its economy, but it cannot neglect its citizens while doing so.– Mohammad Aish PRESIDENT-ELECT TRUMP AND THE GULF Al-Sharq al-Awsat, London, November 10Pundits have been working overtime in recent days in an attempt to understand what Trump’s policies in the Middle East will look like. Allow me to join this wave of speculations by making predictions on the future of the relations between Washington and the Gulf under Trump’s presidency.The short answer I have is the following: the relationship between the Gulf and the United States will be based, largely, on Trump’s stance on Iran. Saudi Arabia and the United States boasted exceptionally close ties up until the signing of the nuclear agreement with Iran last year. This agreement enabled Teheran’s continuous intervention in the region – from Iraq and Syria, through Lebanon, to Yemen. Since then, relations between the Gulf States and Washington took a severe downfall.If Trump continues Obama’s line of policy, there is no doubt that such tensions between the two sides will continue to exist. Riyadh will reluctantly fight Iran and its proxies in the region, protecting its own borders and its own interests. Gulf states will likely seek new alliances in Europe and Asia in place of the one with the America.This will bring to the biggest rift between the Gulf and the United States that we have witnessed to date.However, if Trump takes a stern approach on Iran – remaining committed to the nuclear agreement but closely monitoring Teheran’s behavior, then the relationship between the Gulf and Washington can be revived again.Indeed, this is what Gulf leaders are yearning for.At this point in time, Saudi Arabia is closely following the consolidation of a new administration in Washington, hoping for a chance to restart and revive its relations with Washington. The Gulf States have been America’s closest and most trustworthy ally in the region for many decades. Given the chance, they will do whatever they can to restore this special alliance once again.– Abd al-Rahman al-RashedFRIENDS OR FOES OF THE ARAB SPRING? Al-Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, November 6With Obama’s term in office coming to end, one can only reflect back on his last six years in office and ask: what was the role played by countries like the United States in the Arab Spring? In other words, was this wave of revolutions meant to exploit the grievances of the Arab people in order to promote foreign political interests, or did the world’s powers actually work in favor of the revolutionaries on the streets? I am asking this because there is an unequivocal difference between ridding countries of their tyrants and ridding tyrants of their countries. Looking at the Middle East today – what is happening in Iraq, Egypt, Yemen, and Syria – I cannot help but subscribe to the latter opinion. It seems to me as though the world’s biggest powers, including the United States, used the Arab people to promote their own colonial interests in the region. When America’s interests are on the line, particularly in regards to energy and oil, it does not shy from collaborating with tyrants.In the case of the Arab Spring, the Untied States was able to redraw the maps of the region and redistribute power and wealth according to its liking. It is enough to set our eyes on Syria, where Assad’s regime butchers hundreds of its people on a daily basis, while the US stands idly by. Can the US claim to really have stood by the people, when it consistently overlooks the human right abuses prevalent around us? Uprisings are only successful insofar as the revolutionaries behind them are united around a shared goal.Unfortunately, the world powers have divided and conquered the people on the streets, thereby only strengthening the power of our oppressors. – Faisel al-Kassem The end of ISIS as we know it? Al-Dustour, Jordan, November 3As Iraqi troops, backed by American special forces, complete their takeover of Mosul and begin to prepare for the upcoming offensive over Raqqa, it seems like the era of Islamic State has come to an end. However, this is only an end to the era of ISIS as a “caliphate” controlling contiguous territories and populations; not an end to the ideology guiding the organization and its personnel.In order to truly defeat the Islamic State, the underlying ideology of the organization must be defeated as well. Historical precedents prove that this is quite difficult.ISIS is a unique organization, far more brutal and prolific than its predecessors like al-Qaida. It managed to recruit lone wolves across the globe, even in places where it has not established a physical presence.Thus, despite its current decline, the Islamic State is still a powerful movement that could last for many more years. Its numerous supporters around the world will not abandon the ship simply because of a military defeat in Iraq or in Syria. Many will remain loyal to their allegiance and to the ideology that inspired the movement. Only time will tell whether this is the beginning of the end, or not. We will only be able to answer this question surely once the dust of war settles. – Muhamad abu Ramanhttp://www.themedialine.org/
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