JEDDAH, 6 March 2005 — Next month, this newspaper celebrates its 30th anniversary. As veteran journalists in the newsroom correctly point out, never in the history of Arab News has it had the opportunity to report the kind of stories that would have been the stuff of Quixotic dreams just a couple of months ago. Who would have imagined these two headlines screaming out from the front pages of Arab News just this past week: “Show of People Power in the Streets of Beirut” and “Multicandidate Presidential Poll in Egypt”?

Indeed, these are interesting times in the Middle East, and journalists covering the political beat for various publications, both domestic and foreign, are having a ball.

Who and what really set this juggernaut of change in motion in a region known for its love of complacency? None other than George W. Bush and the US invasion of Iraq. The illegal invasion and subsequent unseating of Saddam Hussein changed the political dynamics of the region. Of course, not everyone will be ready to accept this explanation, but there is no other way to explain the momentous changes now taking place in the Middle East.

Yes, the reforms in Saudi Arabia were being discussed long before Sept. 11, 2001. If the Americans want to take credit for the subtle changes that are taking place here and now, nobody can stop them. But it’s just not the case. Those who have followed Crown Prince Abdullah’s statements closely for the last five years will testify to that.

Yes, Col. Muammar Qaddafi’s about face on the weapons of mass destruction issue had nothing to do with the fate of Saddam Hussein. For quite some time, he was trying to get back into the good graces of the West — especially the United States.

The chaos that followed the immediate aftermath of the Iraq invasion gave him a good reason to strike a deal with the United States. The United States was more than willing to accept him into its fold because the Neocons said Libya’s turnaround was the good coming out of the action in Iraq. It served both parties well. Good explanations all.

But what about the changes in Egypt and Lebanon? Unarguably they are a result of the not-so-subtle pressure being applied by Bush in his quest to see democracy flourish in the Middle East.

The Muslim and Arab world has always looked at the current political leadership in the United States with suspicion. Every single decision that the Bush administration has taken regarding the Middle Eastern nations has been examined through a prism of prejudice and dismissed as a veneer for vengeance. There was disappointment when Bush was re-elected. But the events that are now unfolding will force many of us into a re-examination.

If there are multicandidate elections in Egypt, and Syrian troops are forced out of Lebanon then the credit should go to Bush. This will, in a way, change the historian’s view of George W. Bush’s invasion of Iraq — it was illegal and based on a pack of lies about the so-called weapons of mass destruction. Nor will anyone forget what happened in Abu Ghraib and what still occurs at Guantanamo.

The Neocons in the United States wanted chaos in the Middle East to reign supreme so that their trusted ally and bully Israel could continue to do what it has been doing for the last 50-odd years — keep Palestine under occupation forever. But the outcome of the elections in Iraq and the events in Egypt and Lebanon have changed everything for the good.

It has been said that Palestine’s plight for the last 50 years has been the root of all major problems between the West and the Middle East. The realization of that fact is growing around the world, and more Muslims, Christians and Jews are holding on to a string of hope that this time, unlike so many earlier attempts, the peace process will succeed.

If at the end of Bush’s second term we have a viable Palestinian state then that will enhance Bush’s standing in the Muslim and Arab worlds. Indeed, if the United States can keep Israel at the table until these matters are resolved, it will enhance Bush’s standing around the whole world.

Not that we will acknowledge that immediately. It will take some time for the air of suspicion to clear itself. There are hundreds and thousands of Muslim youth who have no animosity toward the United States. They don’t envy it, they just want to share the American Dream of having a good life, good education and good values. They don’t want America to be the supporter of any mass murderer — whether he’s named Saddam Hussein or Ariel Sharon.

This is new ground for us, too. There is one headline we hope you enjoy reading as much as we will enjoy writing it — “PEACE” — if and when it comes.