Ripe to fall

In interview with Al-Ahram Weekly, Ghassan Al-Khatib rings the alarm bell for pro-American Arab regimes

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Former Palestinian Authority (PA) official Ghassan Al-Khatib warns that Israel's present offensive against the Lebanese and Palestinian peoples is pushing the Arab masses to the edge. In light of graphic images of Israeli massacres in Lebanon -- especially Qana -- the target of Arab wrath may soon include corrupt, despotic and impotent Arab regimes.

Following the latest massacre in Qana in South Lebanon, Arab masses are incensed with the impotence of their regimes vis-à-vis Israel and subservience to the US. Is this feeling transient or will it have long-lasting effects?

I don't believe it will be transient. Today, there is a collective realisation among Arabs that the present situation is unbearable. The latest Israeli massacres and wanton destruction in Lebanon and Palestine have seriously exacerbated the indignation of Arab masses towards Israel, the United States and especially towards Arab regimes which are totally impotent vis-à-vis Israel but unbelievably potent when it comes to suppressing the masses and denying them human rights and political liberties.

What makes you think that this time is different?

The regimes -- I would say most of them -- are not only powerless to stop Israel but have failed to stem the tide of poverty and unemployment. This makes me think that the masses will rise up sooner or later. In short, the present situation in most Arab countries is simply untenable. And, indeed, Israel's criminal behaviour and America's brazen and enthusiastic embrace of Israel will exacerbate this even further.

But pro-American regimes in the Arab world are authoritarian and unlikely to allow expressions of dissent that might lead to regime change.

This is true, but I think the masses have reached the limit of their patience. If the regimes continue to ignore the feelings of the masses, explosions will occur, and I mean it literally and metaphorically.

Are you suggesting that a wave of violence might soon overtake the region?

Well, I hope that nothing of this sort will be done against innocent civilians. These things are detrimental to our cause. However, things happen not necessarily because they are desired, but rather because they are inevitable.

Do you think that we are about to witness the formation of two axes in the region, the Iranian- Syrian axis, which also encompasses the resistance groups such as Hamas, and the Egyptian-Saudi-Jordanian axis, which is to be backed by the United States?

I don't think that even pro-American regimes would be able to adopt serious hostile stands against Syria and Iran and especially against the resistance. Such a stand would be rejected by the masses in these countries.

How do you think the current showdown between Hizbullah and Israel will affect the Palestinian situation?

There is no doubt that there is a moral and psychological relationship between what is happening in Palestine and what is happening in Lebanon. Having said that, I believe that there is a real distinction between the two cases. Palestine and its people are under the Israeli military occupation and the Palestinian resistance has inherently Palestinian reasons that justify its existence and continuity.

And what will be the war's effect on the PA and the Hamas-led government?

I think the very existence of the PA in the generic sense is receding and diminishing. Israel has destroyed the substance of the PA. What remains are a few symbols without sovereignty, without authority and without immunity.

What do you mean by that?

The PA had three main functions: political, which is nearly non-existent; security, which in the West Bank is in Israel's hands and in the Gaza Strip is in the militias hands. As for the service sector, there is a growing dependence on foreign donors to keep the health and education sectors afloat. In other words, we are moving towards an international mandate under Israeli control.

Interview by: Khalid Amayreh