Excerpts: Killing Israelis 'legitimate jihad' Saudi discrimination towards
its own.Resurrect Iraq.17 May 2003
+++ARAB NEWS (Saudi) 17 May '03:"Martyrdom and Terrorism"Abid Khazindar .
Okaz

QUOTES FROM TEXT:
"attacks against an enemy occupying your land, killing your children and
humiliating you family ... what the Israelis are doing to the Palestinian
people, is considered legitimate jihad."

"what these people aim at is to turn a country that Almighty God has
blessed and made a safe haven and refuge for all people into one in which
the peaceful and innocent are brutalized and worshipers, pilgrims and
visitors are terrorized."
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FULL TEXT:

To carry out attacks against an enemy occupying your land, killing your
children and humiliating your family - which is exactly what the Israelis
are doing to the Palestinian people - is considered legitimate jihad. To
launch suicide attacks against civilians who have come to your country at
the invitation of its government to serve the country and train its people
is terrorism, plain and simple. There is no difference between murdering
people and taking your own life. Both are criminal acts that must be
condemned.

Those who carried out Tuesday's suicide attacks in Riyadh have not harmed
American interests as they claimed, but have in fact inflicted great damage
upon their country, its security, interests and stability.

At a time when we invite foreign investors, many of whom are giant American
firms, to come and do business in our country, create jobs for our youth,
transfer technology and contribute to the country's progress, terrorists
commit their criminal acts which destabilize the country. This will only
force foreign companies to think twice before committing their money and
expertise to help us. And at a time when we invest billions in hospitality
infrastructure projects to attract visitors and tourists and provide work
for our people, terrorists driven by poisonous ideas and twisted logic
attempt to prevent the country from moving forward by seeking to destroy the
tourist sector and the entire economy.

In the end, what these people aim at is to turn a country that Almighty God
has blessed and made a safe haven and refuge for all people into one in
which the peaceful and innocent are brutalized and worshipers, pilgrims and
visitors terrorized.

[IMRA: Saudi Arabia a refuge to whom?]

By what they have just done, the terrorists have crossed all lines. This is
as far as any criminal can go; a limit has been reached. We hope those
responsible for these acts are quickly arrested and brought to justice. As
for others who have been brainwashed but have not committed criminal acts,
they should repent and atone for their behavior, before it is too late to
spare themselves the wrath of society and the most severe punishment from
the Almighty God.

+++ARAB NEWS (Saudi) May 17 '03:"Sorry, You Can't Win"Dr. Hamoud
Al-Ghathami/Al-Madinah

[IMRA: King Fahd Academy in Washington, D.C. was established in 1984-5.
During 1984-94 King Faud spent over $35 million on the school of 1,200
students. Not giving the prize to a Saudi recipient was a private Saudi
decision. There was no U.S. interference.]
QUOTE FROM TEXT:
"Arabs and Muslims are sometimes treated as if they were not human's and
to whom principles of justice and equality apply. This is why so many
Arabs and Muslims are now in American prisons without trial on the mere
suspicion of having links with terrorism. It is why American Muslims are
treated unfairly while American Jews enjoy more rights than ordinary
Americans."

My granddaughter, Mashael, a student at King Fahd Academy in Washington,
recently won a prize in a local competition. The prize was a luxury car, but
her happiness was short-lived. When she went to collect the prize, the
organizers refused to give it to her because, according to them, prizes were
only intended for those who hold American nationality. ...

[IMRA: The organizers were Saudis, not Americans. Why accuse the US?]

Why do people behave in such a shameful manner in a country claiming to be
the guardian of freedom and equality and one which doesn't hesitate to
launch war to liberate people from injustice and tyranny and spread human
values - including equality.

When Mashael went to receive her prize, the members of the prize committee
discovered she was of Middle Eastern origin and came from an area often
associated with terrorism and violence.

The questioning then began: Where are you from? What is your nationality?
What nationality are your parents? Such silly stuff! Because neither the
girl nor her parents were American, she was told, "Sorry, we cannot give you
the prize."

...the reason for denying Mashael a legitimate prize is that she is not an
American, that is unacceptable. The American system does not differentiate
between whites and blacks, Muslims and non-Muslims, the weak and the strong
who possess the power that allows them to lie and tamper with the law.

What if an American woman were denied a prize in another country on the
grounds that she was not a citizen of that country? Would the Western media
keep silent or would it demand action against the country which violated
human rights and which dared to deny an American something she had fairly
won?

Arabs and Muslims are sometimes treated as if they were not humans and to
whom principles of justice and equality do not apply.

This is why so many Arabs and Muslims are now in American prisons without
trial on the mere suspicion of having links with terrorism.

It is why American Muslims are treated unfairly while American Jews enjoy
more rights than ordinary Americans. [IMRA: Standard nonsense.]

Some Americans may not agree with their country's foreign policy or with
the way some of their own people treat others. At the same time, however,
the image of Muslims and Arabs is being blackened and more people are
keeping silent in the face of American injustice.

+++AL-AHRAM 15-21 May '03:"The future of the Arab League"
HEADING:"Can the Arab League survive its present crisis, asks Mohamed
Sid-Ahmed"
QUOTES FROM TEXT:
"Britain accelerated the creation of the Arab League before the end of
World War II to introduce a number of 'friendly' Arab states into the nacent
international organisation in order to guarantee for itself a better
bargaining position in the construction of the post-World War II order."

"With the creation of Israel in 1946, the Arab League, despite its
failings and weaknesses, became the symbol of collective Arab resistance to
the new challenge."

"frankness is a prerequisite for inter-Arab reconciliation."

"One important, albeit unspoken, source of tension is the uneven
distribution of oil reserves, and hence of wealth, among the various Arab
states."
"Western journalists featured scenarios in which American armed forces
seized Middle East oil fields"

"challenge to which the Arab League must address itself is the
preservation of Iraq's character"

"the country was kept together only by Saddam's autocratic rule and
aversion to democracy."

"There already has been an American-Israeli attempt to have 'Middle
Easternism' replace pan-Arabism as the dominant ideology in the region."
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EXCERPTS:
The forcible removal of the Iraqi regime and its replacement, for the time
being at least, by a foreign military occupation, raises important questions
about the future of the Arab League. While it is true that not all Arab
League member states are genuinely independent, it is also true that they
enjoy the requisite degree of independence that qualifies them to invoke
"sovereignty", albeit more nominal than real, and to become members of the
United Nations. Britain accelerated the creation of the Arab League before
the end of World War II to introduce a number of "friendly" Arab states into
the nascent international organisation in order to guarantee for itself a
better bargaining position in the construction of the post-World War II
order.

But things did not work out according to plan. ... British imperial power
found itself beset on all sides by national liberation movements ... new
dynamic was reflected in the Arab League, which developed its own agenda,
independent from, and often at odds with, London's designs for the region.
With the creation of Israel in 1948, the Arab League, despite its failings
and weaknesses, became the symbol of collective Arab resistance to the new
challenge. At the time, not all the Arab states enjoyed the same degree of
independence. Some had crossed from colonial domination to real independence
so successfully that they came into open collision with Western imperialist
powers, notably during the Suez crisis. Others enjoyed only formal
independence. But gradually the Arab countries under full-fledged Western
occupation vanished ...and all Arab countries became members of the Arab
League.

Nearly fifty years on, we are suddenly faced with a situation in which a
leading Arab state is being ruled by an American, ... . Does this mean that
Iraq's seat in the Arab League will be filled, and its votes cast, by a
representative of the Pentagon or the State Department, or will Arab League
meetings convene in the absence of an Iraqi representative? ... will
resolutions issued by a majority of members be regarded as unanimous?

A couple of years ago, it was decided by participants at an extraordinary
Arab League summit to hold regular summit meetings once a year. Their
decision, which was enshrined in a unanimous resolution, promised to usher
in a new stage ...the League, marked by more purposeful and united approach
to regional problems. For a while, it seemed the status of the League had
been enhanced by the summit resolution, which indicated that Arab leaders
were willing to subsume their individual will to the collective will. It was
believed that regular face-to-face meetings could eventually create a
mechanism in inter-Arab relations capable of overcoming reasons for friction
and unresolved tensions, and hence of curtailing obvious manifestations of
inter-Arab collisions.

But what actually transpired has been just the opposite, with meetings given
over to exchanges of mutual flattery or mutual recriminations, sometimes
degenerating into shouting matches in which Arab leaders hurl personal
insults at one another. It would appear that the decision to make summit
meetings compulsory has sharpened animosities rather than the opposite.
Obviously a whole new approach is necessary if the Arab League is to become
an effective decision-making body reflecting the collective Arab will. ...

Dr.t Abdel-Meguid, Amr Moussa's predecessor as secretary-general of the Arab
League, said frankness is a prerequisite for inter-Arab reconciliation.
Unfortunately, however, whenever member states engage in a frank exchange of
views the result is an exacerbation of tensions and animosities, not a
smoothing over of differences. Indeed, the underlying causes of friction
between Arab capitals have proved in recent years to be an effective
deterrent to the prospect of Arab unity. One important, albeit unspoken,
source of tension is the uneven distribution of oil reserves, and hence of
wealth, among the various Arab states. The problem is compounded by the fact
that the have-nots believe the oil price hike which enriched the haves was
made possible thanks to the October 1973 war that they, the have-nots,
waged, and feel cheated out of their rightful slice of the cake.

...th the war on Iraq, the United States has proved that it can embark on
preemptive wars with impunity. What is to prevent it from using military
force to impose its control over the sources of oil in the region? In the
immediate aftermath of the oil price hike, Western journalists featured
scenarios in which American armed forces seized Middle East oil fields, and
the only reason these scenarios did not materialise at the time was because
of the possible response of the Soviet Union. With the disappearance of the
Soviet Union, the use of military force to ensure the uninterrupted supply
of oil can no longer be discounted. Then there is the question of the
reconstruction of Iraq. The United States is pushing for the lifting of
sanctions to have Iraq carry the cost of reconstruction. These are just two
of the many challenges facing the Arabs, challenges they can only overcome
if they speak with one voice through the Arab League.

An immediate challenge to which the Arab League must address itself is the
preservation of Iraq's Arab character. In the name of planting democracy and
a culture of peace in Iraq, the defeat of Saddam's regime will be followed
by a concentrated effort to eradicate the pan-Arab identity invoked by
successive Iraqi governments to justify their confrontational stance towards
Israel. Indeed, it is not only Iraq's identity that is at risk but even its
integrity. Divided between Shi'ites, Sunni and Kurds, the country was kept
together only by Saddam's autocratic rule and aversion to democracy. It is
hard to envisage a genuine democracy taking root in conditions where the new
Iraqi regime will be forced to confront two challenges simultaneously, one a
democracy imported from abroad with traits not compatible with many national
and cultural characteristics, and the other a dictatorship inherited from
the past.

The Arab League is also called upon to guarantee the preservation of the
Arab character of the regional system, a difficult task while its member
states continue to display more disunity than unity. There has already been
an American-Israeli attempt to have "Middle Easternism" replace pan-Arabism
as the dominant ideology in the region, by pressing for the establishment of
a common Middle East market that would include Israel. There is no doubt
that we will witness similar attempts in future, especially with
globalisation removing barriers and blurring distinctions between Arab and
non-Arab states in the region, such as Turkey and Iran. The direct American
rule of Iraq will dissipate differences between Iraq and Israel. The
continued existence of the Arab League is vital if the Arab identity is to
be preserved. The disappearance of the Arab League exposes the Arab Mashreq
to fragmentation into small entities among which Israel, though not
necessarily bigger in size, is bound to acquire the status of a superpower.

As a regional organisation, the Arab League must also have a say when it
comes to determining the shape of world order, and is called upon to play a
role in changing the former bipolar world order into a multipolar order
rather than a unipolar order under the hegemony of the United States (with
Israel standing as a junior partner by its side). So far, the Arabs are
absent in the global battle over whether the world order should become
unipolar or multipolar, despite the fact that the Middle East is one of the
main arenas in which this battle is being fought.

A few days ago, the four main Egyptian opposition parties issued a joint
declaration announcing that they are preparing a united programme for quick
political reform and expressing unconditional support for the stand adopted
by Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa against the American invasion of
Iraq. Let us hope the ruling National Democratic Party adds its voice to
theirs, especially when it comes to supporting Moussa. Knowing Moussa, I am
sure he would not hesitate to resign if he believed this would better serve
the cause. But we do not want him to resign. On the contrary, we want him to
continue in his efforts to turn the Arab League into a real forum in which
the Arabs can come together to confront the problems and challenges facing
the Arab world at this critical juncture. The problems of the Arab League,
however intractable, can be solved and eventually will be. Amr Moussa
addresses these problems from a political perspective, which is the very
opposite of a technocratic, instrumental approach. He is not, as some would
have it, merely an employee, but the representative of the collective Arab
will. As such, it is his duty not to desert the ship as it is on the verge
of sinking, but to remain at his post until the end. Contrary to others,
Moussa is aware that his position at the helm of the Arab League carries a
very important symbolic meaning. In a way, it can be compared to the
symbolic meaning of the statues which once adorned Baghdad, whose downfall
represented more than the downfall of mere statues.

Dr. Joseph Lerner, Co-Director IMRA