Daily Alert Archives

How the Middle East Map Changed in 2013

(Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs) Jacques Neriah - Since the beginning of the "Arab Spring," a number of striking changes have occurred in the Arab world. First and foremost, the Arab Spring represents the end of pan-Islamism championed by Iran and the Muslim Brotherhood, and the beginning of an open war between Sunnis and Shias. The civil war in Syria triggered a negative reaction towards Iran, which became the enemy of the Sunni world and has been treated as such ever since. In Arab eyes, the U.S. administration committed a major error when it "betrayed" a 30-year ally - Mubarak - and favored instead the Muslim Brotherhood. Another U.S. mistake in Arab eyes was to refrain from punishing Syria for its use of chemical weapons. The Arabs suspect that the U.S. did not attack because it wanted to mend fences with Iran. In the Arab perception, the old alliance between Iran from the time of the Shah's regime and the U.S. was resurrected at the expense of the traditional alliance with the moderates of the Arab world. Col. (ret.) Dr. Jacques Neriah was formerly Foreign Policy Advisor to Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Deputy Head for Assessment of Israeli Military Intelligence.
2013-12-30 00:00:00
Full Article