It was my intention to write an article expressing my views of British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his whirlwind tour of the Middle East; his effort to resurrect the overly-dead peace process between Israelis and Palestinians. I have no need to do so. Rami G. Khouri, writing for ‘Middle East Online’ obviously thinks exactly as I do.
He writes:
“There is a tragic, pitiful quality to British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s current trip around the Middle East, which he says aims to resurrect an Arab-Israeli peace process, though it seems much more obviously designed to salvage some of his own fading reputation. It is unlikely to succeed on either count, for he continues to pursue the same sort of biased policies that generated the Palestine problem in the first instance under his nation’s dishonest tutelage over half a century ago.”
Khouri’s first sentence is unnecessarily long. There is a tragic, pitiful quality to Tony Blair – period.
“He makes for a fine sound bite in asking the world to support “moderates” in the Arab world who want peace, but his support of Mahmoud Abbas in the internal Palestinian power struggle sends the message that corrupt and inefficient Arabs are the West’s chosen partner. He speaks eloquently about supporting democratic processes in the Arab world as an antidote to terror, but also insincerely — for he quickly jumped on the Israeli-American bandwagon to boycott Hamas after its election victory in a rare modern Arab democratic endeavor.”
Blair’s eagerness to follow George W Bush’s wayward policies in the region, rather than make a stand for justice that might just have given Bush pause for thought, are a betrayal – not simply of the Arabs – but of the British people who have long demanded a resolution to the Arab/Israeli conflict.
Khouri concludes:
“This [Blair’s] insincerity does not escape us, and has not done so for generations. I recall in the 1960s when my aged maternal Palestinian great aunt was on her deathbed in Beirut, having lived through the entire modern history of Palestine from the 1910s. When I was visiting her one day shortly before she died, she offered me sage advice, garnered from much bitter experience: “If you want to live a long and happy life,” she told me, then a lad of 16 years just embarking on life’s journey, which she was completing, “you should remember two important things: Always brush your teeth well in the morning and evening, and never trust the British.” “
Sound advice. She may well have added to that: “……..or the Americans”.
Khouri’s article is worth reading in its entirety. It can be found HERE.
Filed under: Blair’s blunders
