8 - 14 March 2001
Issue No.524
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Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 8 - 14 March 2001 Issue No.524 |
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 | Current issue | Previous issue | Site map | ||
The real reasons
Iraq's alleged military power provided the US with the pretext for its latest air attacks, even as US officials reassured the world that Saddam's weapons of mass destruction no longer pose a threat. No one, though, should make the mistake of assuming that the recent American-British air raids targeted only Baghdad. They were intended as a lesson for every Arab metropolis.
Every pretext has a corresponding reason. In the present scenario, while weapons of mass destruction provide the pretext, albeit lame, the reason for the attacks is the atmosphere generated by the Intifada, which has regenerated a spirit of resistance and national solidarity across the Arab world.
The Intifada has reasserted an Arab, as opposed to Middle Eastern, political presence. At the Cairo summit meeting, not only was Iraq present -- the Intifada has allowed it room to break out of its isolation -- but Arab leaders felt confident enough to threaten to cut relations with states that moved their embassies from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. It is in the light of these developments that the US attempts to undermine the growth of Arab solidarity and reintegration are best understood.
The Gulf War resulted in a rift many thought would be impossible to bridge. Yet following the flare-up of the Intifada planes landed increasingly in Baghdad, Iraq began taking part in the political life of the region, and popular solidarity movements sprang up everywhere. A tentative unified structure thus began to take shape.
The US targets the weaker organ, aiming for the whole body. By revivifying the international alliance against Iraq, it hopes to cut short the process of political reconciliation the Intifada has made possible, and to which the entire Arab world is party. It remains up to the Intifada, and its Arab parties, to resume the important dual role -- that of rebuilding a united national front and of confronting ongoing attempts to undermine the foundations of any such structure.
* This week's Soapbox speaker is a journalist with Al-Ahali newspaper.
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