Condi’s
“New” Middle East: Colonialism in
New Garb
By Dr. Ghulam M. Haniff
St. Cloud, MN
No
one was bit amused, not the least in the Muslim
world, at Washington’s cynical chicanery
when it speeded up the delivery of laser guided
bunker bursting bombs to Tel Aviv and, simultaneously,
dispatched Condoleezza Rice to the Middle East
to talk about peace.
George Bush, while arming one side in the conflict,
also wanted to be seen as a peacemaker. Either
way he wanted to seize the moment and, once again,
hoodwink the world into accepting his duplicitous
machinations.
Bush strongly backed Israeli air strikes yelling:
“Israel has a right to defend itself.”
From the past records he knew Israel would score
a quick victory after which he would call for
peace to promote Israeli agenda. In that way a
colonial co-dominion would be implemented in the
region.
For much of the conflict Bush has been in no hurry
to call for a cease-fire and goaded the Israelis
“to degrade Hezbollah.” He pressured
his Arab “allies” (the correct word
would be “puppets”) to refrain from
criticizing Israeli mayhem in Lebanon. They dutifully
obeyed. A Saudi sheikh even issued a fatwa strongly
condemning Hezbollah on behalf of the Sunnis believing
that all the Sunnis were on his side, the simple-minded
cleric.
After much foot-dragging, calculated to give Israelis
time to finish-off Hezbollah, Condoleezza Rice
arrived in the region. It took her over a week
after the outbreak of the conflict to leave Washington.
She sneaked into Beirut to explain to the beleaguered
Lebanese President that the exploding bombs were
just the “birth pangs of a new Middle East.”
As smoke billowed from exploding buildings under
the onslaught of American-supplied twenty-ton
bombs, Condoleeza Rice thanked Fouad Siniora for
his “courage and steadfastness.” She
added insult to injury by offering a paltry $30
million in humanitarian aid, a pittance by any
stretch of imagination. Pakistan once, in dire
need, spurned a similar offer of assistance by
the US as “peanuts.” But President
Siniora was too shell-shocked to do so.
Millions were fleeing Israeli bombs but Condi
said not a word about stopping the air attack.
Besides perfunctory regrets, she remained indifferent
to the plight of women and children dying in the
streets or those being driven to flee the country
as refugees. When it comes to Israeli killings
of Arabs no excuse is considered too preposterous.
Over the years, Arabs have come to be seen by
policymakers in Washington as simple-minded nincompoops.
They are often caricatured as vultures or rats
or cockroaches and publicly ridiculed in the major
newspapers. During the past weeks vitriolic articles
have advocated crippling strikes against Arabs
since they are the barbarians of the modern world.
According to neo-cons Israeli action in Lebanon
is morally justified.
The blatant racism inherent in American foreign
policy, and reflected in public perception of
the Arabs, was recently demonstrated by the US
failure to quickly evacuate its citizens from
Lebanon. The administration dragged it feet knowing
full well that the largely Arab and mostly Muslim
people did not matter much. The priority given
to those caught in harm’s way in other circumstances
apparently did not apply this time since those
involved were “natives” of the Third
World origin, regarded by the West as the “other,”
the non-whites.
For decades the American policy in the Middle
East has been to make sure that Israel remains
stronger than all the Arab countries combined.
With a population of 5 million Israel is the dominant
power in the region in possession of a military
might superior than the total forces of the 200
million Arabs together. The tyrannical dictators
ruling the Arab countries have made this policy
possible through their incompetence and connivance.
Despite repeated challenges no Arab country has
been able to organize a military force comparable
to that of Israel. When it first appeared on the
usurped land of Palestine in 1948 Israel had a
population smaller than that of Lebanon or Jordan.
During the ensuing decades the latter two countries
remained dwarfs while Israel transformed itself
into a Goliath of the region.
Israel’s intrusion in the Middle East is
not unlike that of Britain’s in India after
the Battle of Plassey. The failure of the Nawab
of Bengal to stop the advance of the British forces
in 1757 resulted in piecemeal colonial conquest
of Mughal India. Fortunately, for the first time
in the history of the Middle East resistance to
foreign invasion is being offered by the “forces”
of the people at the grassroots, rather than by
an army fielded by the state.
Unfortunately, whenever Israel attacks one Arab
country the others stand on the sidelines to watch.
The Arabs have never learned to take joint action
despite their defeat one by one. Squandering wealth
on gambling, drinking and sexual debauchery, Arab
rulers have made their countries into the laughing
stock of the world. In the present conflict every
one of them has maintained a low profile.
Only one Arab leader, Nouri Al-Maliki, had the
guts to stand before the public and vociferously
condemn the Israeli aggression. That was not surprising
given the fact that he attained his position through
competitive elections, the only Prime Minister
in the Arab world to do so.
For its part Hezbollah has stood up to Israeli
onslaught for over four weeks, the longest by
any Arab opponent against the common enemy. In
communities populated by Arabs and Muslims its
popularity has shot up, becoming an object of
adulation for the common man and envy of the governments
in the region.
After tediously repeating the formula: “We’ll
call for a total cease-fire when we see the likelihood
of a sustainable, enduring Mid-east peace”
Condi Rice faced a new reality when several Israeli
soldiers were killed in Bint-el-Jbail, and a few
days later, Israel committed a massacre in Qana.
All of a sudden she began to mention “cease-fire,”
the dreaded word she had refused to utter.
The expected lightening victory by Israel had
failed to materialize. As a cheerleader for the
Israeli side she was looking bad. International
pressure was also building up. She had no choice
but to make an about face turn.
Accordingly, at long last a cease-fire resolution
was drafted which began to percolate through the
international community, the euphemism for “the
white power structure” that runs the world.
Meanwhile, Condi’s “new” Middle
East has become a nightmare for the people of
Lebanon as their corpses pile up before the eyes
of the world. Half a millennium of colonial project
is still alive and well.
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