Arabs’ tears... game over!
Videogames usually end with the phrase ‘Game Over’, then the winner is declared and the points he earned are tallied. The Arab world is currently witnessing a very serious game played by players with different goals and affiliations. This dangerous game is not over yet, the winner is not selected and the points are still not counted. The sure thing is that Arabs are the biggest losers in this game because they have not scored any positive points and are up to their ears in negative ones.
Just like the levels in video games, the dangerous regional game has many phases, and we have lost all of them. The cards we played did not work, but unfortunately, we are still using them. So, when will that magic phrase ‘Game Over’ pop up to stop the shedding of Arab blood?!
Arabs have been weeping over the past five years and complaining to the entire world - the UN, the Security Council, the US and Western countries concerning Iran’s interference in Arabs’ domestic concerns, smuggling weapons and missiles into our countries, recruiting our children in terrorist groups founded by the Iranian regime and transferring billions to parties and Arab personalities who serve Iran’s interests.
Here, we have to wonder about what Arab countries did to fight this other than complain. Why do we complain about Russian air strikes on Syrian cities and villages killing civilians, women and children, while at the same time, turn a blind eye and encourage the Arab alliance air strikes on Yemeni cities and villages? Are Syrian Arabs different from those in Yemen? How painful it is to watch TV scenes of Arab women, children and old men weeping and young men looking towards the unknown after losing any hope for a better future!
On the other hand, we the see images of a militant fully armed with machinegun and grenades launch missiles towards people, killing and injuring many of them without even knowing why he killed them or why he is fighting in the first place. It has been five years and we are still suffering from poor planning and fluctuating policies. Our mistakes are becoming so many that we have lost our allies and taken part in destroying Syria, forgot about Lebanon, got Iraq torn apart, made the great Libya vanish and destroyed historic Yemen.
Then, and this is the real big question, has Egypt willingly drifted away from the Arab arena or has it been alienated? For whose interests was Egypt’s voice silenced and faded away? Other Arab countries have been also alienated - even the GCC’s voice has faded out and the Yemeni peace talks in Kuwait were foiled, while the Arab League seems to be gone for good. Days, months and years have gone by and we are still waiting for that magic phrase to pop up - GAME OVER!