It is all but impossible to conceive of a Middle East bereft of violence and bloodshed. The Arab Spring, which has stormed through Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, has now claimed over 60,000 Syrian lives and displaced hundreds of thousands of civilians in an increasingly gory Syrian Civil War. Supposedly, removing Bashar al-Assad, the ruthless Syrian dictator, from his authoritative post is the highest priority of the U.S. State Department, as quotidian remarks of the necessity of his departure by outgoing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton are ubiquitous in newspaper headlines. However, as we approach the two-year anniversary of Syria’s struggle to emancipate itself from Assad, all predictions as to when the war may conclude are dubitable.
Ostensibly, the United States is in favor of the usurpation of Assad’s throne; however, it remains entirely possible that yet another dictator or terrorist group takes the reign in his stead. Our reluctance to arm Assad’s opposition with heavy artillery stems from two apprehensions. Firstly, we are privy to the fact that al-Qaida, who is aiding the rebels in overthrowing Assad, could ascend to power after he is gone. Secondly, as long as we do not offer major assistance to the rebels, it appears that Assad and his allies will refrain from attacking U.S. interests in the region, namely Israel.
Last week, Israel shot down a convoy delivering chemical weapons to the terrorist organization Hezbollah. This strike, which was condoned by all U.S. policy makers, was also condemned by Russia, Iran and Syria, all of whom have ties to Hezbollah. Although Iran and Syria have pledged to retaliate, no actions have been taken thus far, a sign that the U.S.’s tepid support for Syrian rebels is met with a temporary red light in response to Israeli strikes on terrorist targets.
Complicating matters further is Turkey’s rebuke of Iran and Syria for not yet launching an attack on Israel. Turkey, which had once been a bastion of hope for the juxtaposition of an Islamic government with a westernized, peaceful society, has shifted more and more toward extremism in recent years. Furthermore, Iran and Egypt are looking to make amends after more than thirty years of severed ties between the two most populous countries in the region. After the Camp David Accords in 1978, which forged a peace treaty between Egypt and Israel, Iran cut ties with Egypt. Iran also named a street after the assassin who killed Anwar Sadat, the Egyptian leader who signed the peace treaty with Israel.
When democratic elections are held in the Arab world countries, the majority of people elect representatives from extremist Islamic organizations like the Muslim Brotherhood, for example Egypt’s president Mohamed Morsi. The Muslim Brotherhood is the parent organization of Hamas, the terrorist group in power in the Gaza Strip which is hell-bent on demolishing Israel. There are millions of people in the Arab world that genuinely want peace and stability; however, when activists such as Malala Yousafzai lead movements to instill these values in their society, they are shot in the head by organizations like the Taliban and left for dead.
As the bloody rampage in Syria continues to fester with no end in sight, there remains nothing to assuage any fears that the Arab Spring may become the Arab Decade. In the coming months, we may reach an impasse with the intransigent Iranian regime over its contentious nuclear program. All U.S. policy makers, including the dovish potential Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, have repeatedly stated that Iran’s window of opportunity to open its nuclear facilities to international scrutiny is quickly closing. Should that window shut, the U.S. and Israel will soon find themselves in another battle in an immensely convoluted Middle East.
Zac is a senior majoring in philosophy and communications. Find his thoughts on the goings-on in the Middle East in print every week. Please send all feedback to opinion@dailycardinal.com.
