Intensive discussions on bringing down the Iraqi regime are going on. The effort might lead to radical changes in the country.
Though such discussions have been heard before, this time Washington seems to be more serious. The war against terror in Afghanistan has almost ended, and there remain only a few wanted members of Al-Qaeda who can be handled by the police and other security agencies.
The Arab world has been sidelined in the discussions on Iraq in Washington because the Arabs have proved their inability to take any effective decision in settling the issue among themselves. We have also noted that a number of countries wanting a change of the Iraqi regime have increased considerably since the beginning of the Afghan military operations.
As I said earlier, the Arab view is of no consequence to decision-makers in the United States. Iraq’s demand for good neighborly relations with other countries cannot be taken seriously as it has been continuing its aggression against them. Even as recently as three months ago, Iraq attacked Kuwait.
There have been a number of attacks against the Saudi Arabian armed forces in the border regions. Muhammad Atta, one of the main suspects in the terror attacks in the United States, reportedly had links with the Iraqi regime.
Americans know very well that a clear Arab stand will emerge only after the strike against Iraq, not before it. If the regime falls in the attack, all Arab governments will send cables of congratulations. Further, the military action will be described as an act of liberation which Washington should have undertaken much earlier. On the contrary, if the campaign fails to achieve its goal, the Arab countries will issue statements condemning the action saying that they had warned the Americans in advance about the consequences.
In fact, there is no firm Arab stand on either removal or preserving the regime. The Arabs are afraid of the negative consequences of such an action; if the operation fails, a much worse regime than Saddam’s might emerge.
A difficulty for the West when it deals with such issues as terrorism, extremism or the elimination of a dangerous military government in the Arab world is that the West senses a welcoming attitude from the Arabs but hears no welcoming voices. The reason for this is clear. If Washington fails in its efforts, it will just be one more failed operation for Washington and nothing more. On the other hand for the Arabs, it would be a political, military and economic calamity. That is why the Arabs prefer to prolong the final solution to the problem.
The US efforts to bring down the Baghdad regime will not be easy though military experts believe that it will be less difficult than the Kuwait War or the hunt for Bin Laden. After all, the Iraqi leaders have no place to hide but their own palaces; there are no networks of caves in Iraq.
Nobody will offer them refuge, as the price for doing so would be too high. Their friends would like to pay them their last homage rather than give them any real assistance.
