The 34-nation Muslim anti-terror alliance led by Saudi Arabia is a positive step in an ever more dangerous neighborhood. Kudos must go to the Kingdom for taking the initiative.
A lack of unified purpose has long been a fissure running through the Arab world and the Muslim world at large, which has left spaces for not only terrorist groups but also hegemonic powers to fill.
The alliance is in its infancy but if there’s the political will to truly make a difference, an impenetrable defense bloc could be formed with the potential of bringing peace to those countries affected. This will require member states to put their differences aside and compromise on their world views for the sake of the greater good.
The one thing all have in common is the terrorist threat, which knows no borders. Together Muslim countries could be a force to be reckoned with in terms of financial clout, massive armies, commando units, sophisticated military hardware, battleships, warplanes, surveillance as well as electronic and human intelligence capabilities — not to mention nuclear deterrence. China’s stated blessing and offers of cooperation will be an added boost to the coalition’s capabilities.
Naturally there are those who remain skeptical that this thrust can ever get off the ground given the Arab League’s history of disagreements over all kinds of issues and the IOC’s failure to commit to “safeguard and defend the national sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all member states” enshrined in its constitution. Hopefully, the past will not be an indicator of the future bearing in mind the emergency situations in which many predominately Muslim states find themselves today.
It’s high time that Muslims took care of themselves, and stopped relying on western powers for protection when it’s known they act in accordance with their own interests. Western interventions under the guise of disseminating democracy or waging war on terror have delivered misery to millions — and rather than reduce terrorism, they’ve served as terrorist recruitment tools.
America’s allies against the Soviets occupying Afghanistan were the precursor to Al-Qaeda and its dismemberment of Saddam’s army bore the leadership of Daesh. There were no terrorists in Iraq prior to George W. Bush’s invasion.
There were no terrorists in Libya prior to the US-led coalition’s entrée into that country which brought down the regime of Muammar Qaddafi. And not only did Bush gift Iraq to Iran, Barack Obama has greatly enriched and empowered that country by pushing through the nuclear deal, even though, according to the nuclear watchdog, the IAEA, there is no evidence that Iran was pursuing nuclear weapons since 2009. It’s no oversight that Iran hasn’t been invited to join the coalition, as some mainstream western newspaper have highlighted, when it and its proxies form part of the problem.
Another looming threat to Muslims, which began as a source of merriment, is the advent of a Trump presidency when he’s way ahead of his competitors in the Republican field. Worryingly, his statements vis-à-vis Muslims — barring Muslim visitors to the US, internment camps, reinstating water boarding, bombing oilfields — sounding too outrageous to be true, but what if?
Several of his rivals are similarly gung-ho. Ted Cruz says he would eradicate Daesh with illegal carpet bombing, eliciting the death of untold numbers of civilians.
When Ben Carson, a pediatric neurosurgeon, sworn to uphold the Hippocratic Oath, was asked whether he was okay with the deaths of thousands of innocent civilians and children, “You have to be able to look at the big picture and understand that it’s actually merciful if you go ahead and finish the job rather than death by a thousand pricks,” was his answer. Would his response have been the same, had a non-Muslim country been the one under discussion?
There’s no getting away from it, the world’s 1.7 billion Muslims are under suspicion due to a relatively small number of cancerous groups carrying out atrocities which rob vastly more Muslim lives than those of non-Muslims. Islamophobia is on the rise within the US and Europe and the far right is capitalizing using the politics of fear.
Muslims are constantly being asked to speak out against terror when they are also victim to this scourge. The new Muslim anti-terror coalition sends that message loud and clear — and once it is backed up with action, its enemies of all stripes, including false friends still plotting to divide and rule will have no choice but to hear.
