Time for Arab countries to change their tune

The reaction of Arab countries to Trump’s proposal what to do with Gaza and Hamas was as I expected – no, no and no: Gazans cannot and should not be moved or transferred even temporarily so Gaza can be rebuilt. Only Palestinian Authority can rule Gaza, preferably in alliance with Hamas. And there is only one solution for peace in the region – the two-state solution, meaning Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace and harmony (ha!). And perhaps most importantly, they do not want help from the US, Trump or Israel. Do not Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar etc. realize that all of this was already tried or suggested without any success? Instead of looking for novel solutions and ideas they keep their heads in the sand. They are afraid of changes so much that they prefer old events, stagnation and disasters to repeat themselves. Whether Trump’s proposal is serious in its literal presentation or just an overture to actions is not an issue here. The issue is that yes, Gaza with Hamas dancing on its ruins and on backs of desperate people who lost everything is not heading for a rosy future.

For the rehabilitation and sake of the Gaza and Israeli populations (who suffered and are still greatly suffering), Hamas needs to be dis-armed and expelled (if not eliminated) so it cannot rule the strip of the land and its inhabitants. Until Hamas is out of the picture no reconstruction should be initiated and if that miracle happens Hamas leaders living in unbelievable luxury in Qatar should part with the billions of dollars in their bank accounts, and if more money is needed, I am sure that Qatar would more than happy to donate some funds for a lofty purpose, they can write off this donation as a deduction towards their sin forgiveness. And until Hamas is liquidated or finished in Gaza Palestinian Authority cannot be allowed to rule there in any capacity for several reasons: it would not administer Gaza better that the West Bank (likely would do a worse job) if it were even allowed to stay in power – remember the violent overthrow of PA by Hamas in 2007? Where is the guarantee the same would not happen today? And what about the power of the two-state solution? Two things have to be taken into consideration: can Palestine be an independent state where even after many years in power its PA government has been unable to build institutions and industries capable to provide Palestinians with livelihood, where the same government pays terrorists and their families for “heroic” acts of terrorism against Israelis and Jews, where the government is able to “govern” only because it is propped up by Israel to prevent takeover of the West Bank by Hamas, and finally where majority of Palestinians in in favor of one-state solution – judenrein Palestine.

And one should not forget that Abbas’ speeches and proclamations at UN and other world institutions and events comparing Israel to Nazis and fueling antisemitism and anti-Israeli resolutions do not inspire much hope and conviction that democracy and peace is about to embrace Abbas’ Palestine. Of course, it is not only Arab countries that raised major objections Trump’s plan. EU and UK expressed strong objections to “ethnic cleansing”, another useless gesture. Don’t they enough of their own problems? Struggling economy, rising antisemitism, problems with newcomer integration into new culture, just to name some of them. I guess they are looking for distraction…

I suspect that the rulers of most Arab countries realize what something needs to be done, but they are unable to change in their thinking and actions. It is important to notice that and think about why this is the case. After all these countries had an illustrious culture and civilization with flourishing literature and science, well, it all happened in Middle Ages, and unfortunately, they are still stuck there, I write “stuck” because these countries have lost touch with their own glorious medieval culture and accomplishments. They are still in the Middle Ages with their approach to women, democracy (or rather lack of it) and even to philosophy, writings of certain Muslim philosophers from Middle Ages are forbidden! To preserve their power and religion, or at least certain religious precepts and teachings they are stagnant, literary and in their thinking. To worst thing that can happen to the Arab Muslim leaders, and also the ordinary Muslims is to have a critical look at themselves and their culture and religion, they are afraid of being accused of apostasy and of their neighbors and compatriots, and terrified that real changes may come.

The Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and the Jordanian king Abdullah II are afraid of Hamas, a branch of the Muslim brotherhood, and also of Gazans – they refused to take any of them even on a temporary basis right from the beginning of the war, only handful of Gazans were taken in for medical treatments. Prince Mohammed bin Salman (who is generally known under the spiffy acronym MBS), the Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia, lets the world know that normalization with Israel runs through the two-state solution, fine, but how does he contribute to it beside talking? As one of the most powerful leaders in the Middle East he should be able to exert some pressure on PA to change the Palestinian approach.

Everybody and his brother are crying over suffering of Palestinians (and of course they all blame it on Israel) – but as pointed out in an Opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal (About Those Beachfront Gaza Condos, February 6, 2023) nobody, be it Arabs, Muslims or Europe, is rushing to help them.

Don’t these heads and governments realize that the war Israel has and is still fighting on multiple fronts is also benefiting them, e.g., by deterring Iran? And as a matter of principle shouldn’t they contribute to Israeli effort? Perhaps not by fighting, but at least by re-thinking their stand in UN and other world forums? And if they really want to help not only Palestinians, but their own countries as well, shouldn’t they implement at least some changes in education and cultural attitudes, and religious approach to other nations and religions? Don’t they own it to their new future generations? And actually to themselves if they want to stay in power and alive in the future?