Christina

"The United States and Iraq: American Bull in a Middle East China Shop", Clement Henry

This article discusses the consequences of the occupation in Iraq for the Middle East and North Africa. Main hypothesis: "Had the US appeared more even-handed to Arab and Muslim public opinion in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict before going to war against Iraq, the efforts to 'liberate' Iraq from Saddam's tyranny might have met less universal hostility." Henry argues that the invasion and occupation of Iraq by the US has only created a breeding ground for terrorists, which may result in Iraq becoming another Lebanon.


1. Articulating Arab and Muslim sentiment:
- Saddam Hussein was generally regarded to be an evil tyrant, but public indignation over the US's perceived imperialist motives supersedes any relief or happiness that he is gone.
- Public opinion polls in the MENA area illustrate this: 93% regretted that the Iraqi military hadn't put up a better fight, 80-85% think Iraqis are worse off without Saddam there.
- Residents in the MENA area are especially sensitive to any indications of imperialism because "virtually the entire region had experienced some sort of unwanted Western presences by the mid-twentieth century..."


2. US Partisanship Compromises its Position in the Middle East
- Even before Sept 11, the Bush administration was perceived as Israel's accomplice, not a nonpartisan mediator.
- Things Israel should have done for peace but didn't: withdrawing soldiers from densely populated areas in Palestine, stop building the wall around parts of West Bank and Jerusalem, removing settlements, etc.
- Even 47 % of Israelis believe US favors Israel over Palestinians too much, according to a recent poll. Only 38% believed US was fair.



3. Consequences of the Invasion in Iraq
- "The occupation has attracted a variety of trans-national Islamist adversaries that may now use Iraq (and regions in Afghanistan and Pakistan) as refuges and bases from which to plan further attacks. The American identification of Saddam with Al Qaida became a self-fulfilling prophecy after the invasion removed Saddam's border guards and secular police state protection against the Islamists. The invasion and occupation, too, have had the effect of polarizing regimes and Islamist oppositions in the regime, to the detriment of moderating trends on both sides."
- The big concern is the Iraq could become another Lebanon, due to the political vacuum that followed the invasion by the US.