Gaza has exposed the Arab leaders to fury and contempt

[Vegasaurus]

Yesterday's summit of kings, presidents and emirs did produce one piece of good news for the battered Palestinians: a Saudi cheque for $1bn that will certainly help rebuild bombed mosques, schools and homes. But it raises the wider question of what Arabs can and should do to help the cause they hold so dear - when they cannot even agree an agenda and when or where to meet.

On Sunday the heads of state of Egypt and Jordan, both stalwarts of the so-called moderate or western-backed camp, were the only Arabs to attend the Sharm el-Sheikh conference.

Last Friday there was an Arab majority in the Qatari capital Doha - though still not the required two-thirds quorum for a formal Arab League summit. Bashar al-Assad, Syria's president, was the star of that show, along with the leaders of Hamas and Islamic Jihad, his Palestinian guests in Damascus. Non-Arab Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was the other special invitee. This is the core of jabhat al-mumana'a - the Arab "refusal front".

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/jan/20/gaza-israel-kuwait

[Vegasaurus]

1. The fact that the Arab nations can agree on so little

will likely be blamed on "the West", "imperialism", "colonialism", "Zionism", "Jews", or just about anything except for their own inner conflicts and failings.

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2. Gaza divide dogs Arab economic summit

KUWAIT (Reuters) - Arab leaders will agree at a summit on Tuesday to launch a $2 billion (1.43 billion pound) reconstruction fund but differences persisted over finding a united stance on the Israeli offensive in Gaza.

Israel's three-week assault that killed more than 1,300 people has underscored the divide between those allied to Egypt and Saudi Arabia on one side, and those allied to Syria and Qatar on the other.

The debate in Kuwait, which delayed the summit's final session, was over whether to include strongly worded resolutions recommended at a special meeting on Gaza in Qatar last week, Arab diplomats said.

The Doha meeting called on Arab countries to review their ties with Israel and to suspend a 2002 Arab peace initiative.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUKTRE50H1CO20090120?pageNumber=1&virtualBrandChannel=0

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3. Iraqi FM: Arabs unable to agree on Gaza statement

KUWAIT CITY - Arab countries have been unable to agree on a unified statement about the Gaza Strip following Israel's devastating three-week offensive, Iraq's foreign minister said Tuesday at the end of an economic summit dominated by Gaza.

The crisis in Gaza has divided Arab countries into two camps _ one supporting Hamas' hard-liners, the other hoping to lure the Palestinian militant group toward more moderation. The political division could affect the stability of the fragile cease-fire in Gaza, which was in its third day Tuesday.

"Unfortunately, we didn't reach a final result because of time limits and because some are entrenched in their positions," Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari told state-owned Kuwait Television at the end of a two-day Arab Economic summit in Kuwait.

He did not name any countries, but stressed that "everybody has to make concessions" and efforts were still ongoing to reach agreement.

http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2009/01/20/ap/international/d95qr5b80.txt

[Vegasaurus]

4. The lack of unity bodes badly for any peace agreement

Without Palestinian unity first, and Arab unity next, it doesn't matter what Israel does.

There won't be peace.

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5. Yep, it's probably hopeless now.

Nothing but war, war, war from here on out.

[Vegasaurus]

7. But it needn't be

It would take strong leadership on the Palestinian side to find unity, and agree to stop terrorism and recognize Israel.

It would take strong leadership on the ISraeli side to stop settlement expansion.

But the lack of unity is greater on the Arab side, and they have more to lose, and thus a greater need to find unity.

It is the only way.

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9. I don't think either side has the organic political capacity to do what is needed.

For "peace", I mean. But I sympathize with your desire for peace. I am hopeful that outside help of the right sort might be forthcoming now, but it's too soon to say. And, in all candor, I think the existing political classes of both sides will try to throw tantrums if that sort of help does happen, so it will have to be assertive, not to say aggressive, help to get the job done. But there are no guarantees.

[azurnoir]

6. Let's hope the latter group wins out meaning

The crisis in Gaza has divided Arab countries into two camps _ one supporting Hamas' hard-liners, the other hoping to lure the Palestinian militant group toward more moderation.

edited for clarity

[bemildred]

8. I haven't reached any partisan position about it.

But I do think it's a big deal. I see it as a further development of the northern group of "Iran-affiliated" states - I don't really like that term, but it fits - that are rebelling against the existing order in the Middle East. It does seem to me like Neocon blowback in spades. Iraq and Iran were enemies. Syria still thought it had claims on Lebanon. The Gulf States would never have wanted to piss off Saudi Arabia. And Turkey, Turkey is pissed off, Turkey's civilian government is trying to beard is military shadow state.

And of course, I do agree that it's foolish to try to stomp Hamas out, when you don't have the means to do it, and you could take a subtler approach and talk, offer incentives, get them to do your work for you, because it is in their interest to do so.

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10. Egypt Dominance As Mideast Mediator In Doubt

Egypt stole the diplomatic limelight for its efforts to end recent fighting in Gaza, but its failure to achieve a negotiated truce leaves a question mark over Cairo's future as a preferred Arab mediator.

U.S.-ally Egypt, an Arab regional heavyweight with a peace deal with Israel, has long been treated as an indispensable go-between with Israel and Palestinian factions because of its close if often strained ties to both sides.

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"The ceasefire was obviously led by Israel, so there is a limit to Egyptian influence," said Issandr el-Amrani, Egypt and North Africa analyst at the International Crisis Group, adding that Egypt also faced a credibility problem on the Arab side.

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"Now the picture is looking muddled... There is obviously an enormous amount of resentment among Hamas leaders and Palestinians more generally against the role Egypt has played," Amrani added.

http://www.postchronicle.com/news/breakingnews/article_212201692.shtml

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11. ANALYSIS / Jordan's king is torn between U.S.-Egypt and Syria-Hamas axes

"I swear in the name of Allah that I will not use that American merchandise, I will not bring it into the house and I will not permit the members of my family to use it."

That was the vow made in recent weeks by members of Jordan's committee against normalization with Israel. The burning of U.S.-made goods, a call for a boycott on companies that cooperate with Israel, and even a demand to sever Jordan's diplomatic relations with Israel are nothing new, but the burning of the Israeli flag by Jordanian MPs inside the parliament building - that has never happened before.

Even the demonstrations that flooded the streets of the capital Amman, and particularly the confrontation between thousands of demonstrators and the security forces in the Al-Rabia neighborhood are things Jordan has not seen for many years. If we add to that the fact that Jordan has not yet allowed its ambassador to return to Tel Aviv and remember that the relationship between the Israeli embassy and Jordanian government institutions has been unofficially frozen, can we conclude that Jordan has changed direction?

In the past year Jordan has held contacts with Hamas representatives, mainly via its chief of intelligence, Gen. Mohammad Al Dhabi, the prime minister's brother. At the same time, relations between Jordan and the Palestinian Authority have been damaged.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1057385.html