Tense stand-off
The world must commit to winning peace. That was the unmistakable message of countless anti-war protests in cities around the world. From Sydney, Australia, to San Francisco, California, millions of anti-war protesters took to the streets to denounce the promised American aggression against Iraq.
Interestingly enough, the biggest and rowdiest protests were in European countries that, ironically, took Washington's side in opposition to France and Germany. The largest and most outspoken demonstrations, then, were in Rome, London, Barcelona and Madrid.
United States Secretary of State Colin Powell's presentation at the United Nations Security Council, in which he outlined Baghdad's alleged failure to cooperate with UN weapons inspectors and omission of important information from its weapons declaration, did not impress the anti-war protesters. Powell's insinuation that Iraq has links to Al-Qa'eda -- which Baghdad denies -- have also failed to persuade.
Anti-war protesters, like many of Washington's European and Arab allies -- Egypt, France, Germany and Saudi Arabia to name but a few -- wish to give the UN inspectors more time to do their job properly. If the inspections are achieving even modest results, then they remain the preferable way to disarm Iraq and bring it back into the international fold.
War would be disastrous. It would have horrifying repercussions for Iraq and the countries of the region, warned President Hosni Mubarak. Leaders from throughout the Arab world concur. "War was always an admission of failure and everything must be done to avoid it," as French President Jacques Chirac eloquently put it.
It is in this context that Mubarak's visit to Germany and France take on special significance. The US must be persuaded to listen to the voice of reason. Washington has indicated that with or without a second UN resolution it will strike Iraq. Such an arrogant attitude augurs ill. Does Iraq really represent such a threat to the US and the world as to warrant a war against it? We hope that both reason and peace prevail.
Al-Ahram Weekly Online : 20 - 26 February 2003 (Issue No. 626)
Located at: http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2003/626/ed.htm