MEMRI Special Dispatch |3540|January 27, 2011
Saudi Arabia/Iran/Egypt/Jordan/Tunisia/Inter-Arab Relations
Three Perspectives on Recent Events in Arab World
The media in different Arab countries have taken varying perspectives on the
recent events in the Arab world, specifically the ousting of Tunisia's
former leader Ben Ali, the violent demonstrations in other Arab countries,
especially in Egypt, Jordan and Yemen, and the overthrow of the Al-Hariri
government in Lebanon.
Saudi journalists have held Iran responsible for the events.
The Iranian press has concurred with this interpretation, presenting the
developments as a victory of the resistance camp, led by Iran, over the
West, led by the U.S., and predicting that other pro-Western Arab regimes
will soon go the way of Tunisia's former regime.
The editor of the London daily Al-Quds Al-Arabi, 'Abd Al-Bari 'Atwan, who
over the years has opposed the West and expressed support for Osama bin
Laden and Saddam Hussein, said that the U.S. and Israel were the parties
most deeply concerned by the events, for they were the ones bound to suffer
the most from the collapse of the pro-Western Arab regimes.
The following are excerpts from articles expressing each of these three
perspectives:
The Iranian Position
The Iranian daily Kayhan, which is close Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, said
that what is happening in the Middle East is both an armed battle and a
"soft war" between the resistance, led by Iran, and the regime of arrogance,
i.e. the West, led by the U.S, adding that the resistance front is winning
in Lebanon, Iraq, Afghanistan, Egypt, and Sudan, just as Iran had triumphed
in the nuclear talks in Istanbul. The paper called for removing the defeated
forces, who are allies of the West, from the region.[1]
The weekly Sobh-e Sadeq, which is close to the Revolutionary Guard Corps,
said that the crisis in Lebanon has regional repercussions that are
extremely damaging to the U.S. It added that the Saudi-Syrian initiative had
failed because Saudi Arabia's moves, made on behalf of the U.S., were aimed
solely at buying time until the release of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon
(STL) indictment. According to Sobh-e Sadeq, Walid Jumblatt's joining the
Syria-Hizbullah camp was a turning point that rendered Prime Minister
Al-Hariri superfluous. The paper praised Hizbullah for its wise moves,
pointing out that contrary to the dire predictions made by Israel, Saudi
Arabia, and the U.S., as well as by certain circles and figures in Lebanon
such as Samir Geagea, Hizbullah had not turned to violence but had
maintained a patriotic stance on the political, media, and security levels.
Sobh-e Sadeq assessed that following the Tunisia uprising, the pro-American
Arab regimes are bound to collapse one by one, like dominos.[2]
The Saudi Position
The director-general of Al-Arabiya TV and the former editor of the Saudi
London daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, 'Abd Al-Rahman Al-Rashed, hinted that Iran
instigated unrest in the countries that opposed it: "Some two years ago,
Tehran shook with the [rage of] demonstrators who protested against the
election fraud and vote stealing [in the June 2009 presidential elections]
and presented Ahmadinejad's rule as illegitimate. Today the ground is
shaking in Tunisia, Ramallah, Beirut, Egypt, and Jordan, while other
countries are preparing for strife. From a political perspective, the map
[of the Arab world] is divided in two, between the Iranian [camp] and the
anti-Iranian [camp]. All the recent upheavals have taken place on the
anti-Iranian part [of the map]. Tunisia's Ben Ali fell. The leader of
Hizbullah overthrew Sa'd Al-Hariri's government. [PA President] Mahmoud
Abbas's government was subjected to a brutal smear campaign, and Cairo's
Liberation Square was flooded with 'Facebook and Twitter [demonstrators]'[3]
with a list of demands, wanting to topple the Egyptian regime, along with
its government and parliament. In Jordan, the government's decision to
cancel the [planned] price increases did not stop the demonstrators, who
presented a long list of demands, from basic livelihood to the severing of
ties with the U.S..."[4]
Responding to the appointment of Najib Mikati, the candidate of the Lebanese
opposition, to form the new Lebanese government, Saudi liberal columnist
'Abdallah bin Bjad Al-'Otaibi wrote that this was the doing of Hizbullah
Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, who served as Khamenei's official
representative in Lebanon.[5] A similar position was expressed on January 27
by an analyst in the Saudi daily Al-Jazirah.
The Position of Al-Quds Al-Arabi
The editor of the daily Al-Quds Al-Arabi, 'Abd Al-Bari 'Atwan, known for his
criticism of the moderate Arab regimes, stressed the that the political and
economic demonstrations are taking place in countries with ties to the U.S.,
such as Egypt, Jordan, and Yemen, and assessed that Mubarak, like Tunisia's
Ben Ali, would have to spend the rest of his days in exile. He assessed that
these developments are profoundly worrying for Israel and America:
"There is no doubt that the two countries most deeply disturbed by the
situation in the Middle East... are the U.S. and Israel. The fire of protest
has begun to lick at the edges of the moderate Arab regimes, one after the
other, in a way that threatens these dictatorships, known for aligning
themselves with America's foreign policy...
"Three countries are facing profound change that could topple their
regimes... namely Egypt, Yemen, and Lebanon. Each of these countries has its
own unique importance, and each meets a strategic need of the U.S.: Egypt...
provides security for Israel, leads the Arab plans for normalization [with
Israel], and combats all forms of political and Islamic extremism that
oppose its [regime]. Yemen is considered to be the cornerstone of America's
war on Al-Qaeda and a buffer between [this organization] and the sources and
deposits of oil. As for Lebanon, it is considered to be the spearhead of the
resistance camp and of Iran's geopolitical and military aspirations. It
should be noted that it is [precisely] in these pro-American [countries]
that protesters are holding loud demonstrations, demanding to bring down
their current regimes just as the Tunisians ousted their dictatorial
regime...
"The U.S. will possibly accept its fate and decide to tolerate the changes
brewing in the region, but Israel will find it difficult not to panic –
because the state of stability, wellbeing, and arrogant [domination] that it
has enjoyed for the past 30 years is now dependent upon [the actions of] the
Egyptian protesters. It could be said that its fat years are over and its
lean years are about to begin, for it is surrounded [by dangers]: a
'democratic' intifada armed with 40,000 missiles and with a
martyrdom-seeking leadership [i.e., Hizbullah], a popular revolution with a
7,000-year history [i.e., the protesters in Egypt], a Palestinian Authority
that has lost its authority, and a Jordanian government that is on the brink
of collapse, if it hasn't collapsed yet...
"As a matter of fact, Mubarak has only one option: to quietly hand the
[reins of government] to the army, just as Farouq, [the last king of Egypt],
did... Saudi Arabia will never close its gates to him and will never
surrender him to the next Egyptian government, for it does not abide by
[international] law. Moreover, Mubarak does not have many years [to live],
and I sincerely wish him a long life in whichever country he chooses as his
place of exile... I recommend Saudi Arabia, because the weather there is
better than in Britain, and because it can provide him with a summer house
similar to his favorite summer house in Sharm Al-Sheikh..."[6]
[1] Kayhan (Iran), January 26, 2011.
[2] Sobh-e Sadeq (Iran), January 24, 2011.
[3] This is a reference to the fact that the demonstrations were organized
through Facebook and Twitter.
[4] Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), January 27, 2011.
[5] Okaz (Saudi Arabia), January 26, 2011.
[6] Al-Quds Al-Arabi (London), January 27, 2011.
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