PARTICIPANTS in the last meeting of Arab foreign affairs ministers have “agreed to disagree”. Some parties have outrightly rejected the decision of the Arab League to give the Palestinian Authority a grace period of four months to initiate indirect negotiations with Israel. Does this mean they do not want any solution to the Palestinian cause? Those who oppose the decision should explain their side because we do not know how long they will stand by their ideals. Israel has been using the opposition’s policy to serve its own interests by claiming to have initiated peace talks.

Since 1948, Israel has been politically trading in this issue at international meetings, while the Arabs keep on giving the Zionist state a chance to use them as tools in this trade. After the declaration of former Egyptian President Jamal Abdul Nasser that he intends to throw the Jews into the sea, some Arabs imagined waking up one day seeing the Israelis running away from Palestine. However, Israel pressed ahead with its plan to occupy the West Bank, East Jerusalem, Gaza, Sinai and Golan. Israel utilized this historical event to occupy these areas, while some Arabs made one announcement after another without changing anything.

Tel Aviv was ecstatic when the late Saddam Hussein threatened to use his chemical weapons to burn half of Israel, but instructed his soldiers to invade Kuwait and commit the most inhumane crime in Arabian history. Prior to the reign of Saddam and Abdul Nasser, the Arabs accused Al-Habeeb Burqiba of being a tyrant. After his visit to the West Bank, Burqiba called for peace with Israel, which was very happy when the Arabs lost confidence in former Egyptian President Anwar Al-Sadaat. At the time, some Arabs coordinated their efforts to assassinate Al-Sadaat because he signed a peace treaty with Israel. Arabs have constantly rejected suggestions to have a dialogue with Israel.

Besides the Arabs, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has also been serving the Israeli objectives. His stepson in Lebanon, Hassan Nasrallah, has continued to give gifts to Israel. These groups threaten to isolate the Arabs every time the international community expresses its willingness to support Israel, in addition to labeling the Arabs and Muslims as terrorists. Arabs will soon find it difficult to fathom why Israel has taken the peace initiative, considering it is the occupier and it has gone too far in depriving them of their rights.

Arabs have been refusing to accept defeat since 1948. They have continued to lay down certain conditions like an old adage which says, “Day erases the talk of the night.” Some people want this situation to continue forever to protect their power and positions. They want to keep their compatriots in cages. They have no intention to fight fiercely because they do not want to take their people out of war and focus on development. The wealth of their countries usually goes to the minority and specific groups. Are these people afraid of the possibility of their failure in case peace reigns in the region?

Some Arabs do not believe that Israel is supported by the US, Europe and Russia. Even China is playing the game and it has been promoting itself in the international market. Israel shows that the only democracy in the Middle East is sinking due to backwardness and suppression. It seems to be clamoring for peace but the opposition is uncooperative. The latter even announced its plan to throw the Israelis into the sea or remove the country from the world map. Sadly, the Arabs have continued to provide the mechanism for Israel to market its policy and ideology in the international community.
Arabs and Muslims have allowed the extremist killers like Bin Laden, Hamas, Hezbollah and the regime in Tehran to tarnish their image. Even the western media has ignored the holy sites in Jerusalem. These sites are on the brink of extinction because the Arabs allowed Israel to use their image and policies to serve its own interests.

Do those who oppose the four-month indirect peace talks have an alternative solution? Do they have the ability to market their alternative, if they have one? Do they have the necessary tools and mechanisms to achieve their goal? Arabs have no way out but to accept the reality, so they can protect their identity. Otherwise, they will again experience a similar scenario when they were moving out of Al-Andalus and crying like women over their lost dignity, which they have neglected.    

Email: ahmed@aljarallah.com