In an article that is setting the Arab world back on its heels, a former top Syrian commander has denounced the 64-year enmity with Israel as a waste of lives and resources which could have been better spent on education, healthcare and the improvement of human rights.
Writing in Arab News, a Saudi Arabian English language newspaper, Abdulateef al-Mulhim said it was “time to stop the hatred and start to create better living conditions for future Arab generations”.
What is truly surprising about this is not that it is an opinion expressed by an Arab – there are many who would agree with his views, even if they do not support him openly - but that it has been expressed in print in Saudi Arabia, usually regarded as one of the most conservative Arab States and an implacable enemy of Israel.
Some commentators are regarding this as the first sign of shifting sands under the hostility and hatred that has bound many of the countries in the region together for so long – and perhaps concern over the way non-Arab Iran’s perceived pursuit of a nuclear weapons capability could be leading the Middle East into another ruinous war.
In his article Mulhim is quite frank about the futility of continued opposition to Israel. He points out that while the Arab world has wasted hundreds of billions of dollars and tens of thousands of lives on the conflict over the decades, it has allowed corruption to flourish and basic services to languish at home.
And meanwhile what has been happening to the Jewish State? “It has the most advanced research facilities, top universities and advanced infrastructure,” he writes.
“Many Arabs don’t know that the life expectancy of the Palestinians living in Israel is far longer than Arabs in many Arab States and they enjoy far better political and social freedom than many of their Arab brothers.
“Even the Palestinians living under Israeli occupation in the West Bank and Gaza Strip enjoy more political and social rights than some places in the Arab World.”
Whether or not Mulhim is the mouthpiece for a movement for change within the Arab Middle East, his words should not be lost on Israeli politicians as the country prepares for a General Election. Israel has not done enough in recent times to revitalise the peace process and a newly-elected Government would be in an excellent position to change that.
It is true that due to the heroic efforts of its people, Israel has managed both to successfully defend itself and to achieve a reasonable degree of prosperity since independence in 1948, but with a true and lasting peace it could do much more. Israelis are beginning to realise this, but the question remains whether they will feel confident enough to express this view at the polls on January 22.
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