From Lebanon and Palestine the new Middle East is emerging?

from Dr Salim Nazzal -

Will the Lebanese and Palestinians demonstrate that they plant the seeds of the culture of dialogue towards constructing a new middle east capable to promote democracy and resist the imperial projects; this is the question which no body can answer except those who are concerned.

From Lebanon and Palestine the new Middle East is emerging?









The Israeli war on Lebanon has stopped so far on the border but the cold war among the Lebanese parties has been widely opened.

A Lebanese writer who I spoke to recently thanked god that the conflict between the Lebanese parties is not based on sectarian divisions. (The 14th march alliance), which stands against Hezbollah is composed of Maronites, Orthodox, Catholics, Druze, Sunni and Shiites, in the opposite side, in the alliance that stand with Hezbollah there are Shiites, Sunni, Maronites, Orthodox and Catholic.

This does not however mean that the parties in each trend are in harmony with each other on all points because after all each party has its own agenda. Nor it does mean that the sectarian aspects are totally absent. And despite the existence of several conflicting domestic issues among the Lebanese parties, such as the future president who will proceed president Lahood, and the election law and (the full implementation of the Taef agreement), it is possible to say that the major conflict between both camps is about the choices which Lebanon must take in the conflict with Israel.

It has become clear that the regional powers are divided between states friendly to the USA, and have diplomatic contact with Israel, and states opposing the American /Israeli policy in the region. (The 14th of March) trend argues that the decision of peace and war is a national decision which should not be left to one party to decide it.

This trend views the war on Lebanon as a proxy war between the US and Iran, while Lebanon pays the price. Hezbollah sees that as long as the Sheba farms are occupied by Israel and as long Israel violates the sovereignty of Lebanon they will not put arms aside. On this question the party sees no point in disarming it self when the Lebanese state is still unable to defend Lebanon should Israel attack again. Nasralla has made it clear that there will be no need for arms once the Lebanese state becomes powerful.

Each trend has its own regional or international alliance: the 14th of March enjoys good contacts with the Arab moderate states such as the Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and close contact with the USA and France. Hezbollah has a close friendship with Syria and Iran .This means that inter Lebanese conflict mirrors a regional and international dimension.

Compared with the situation in Iraq the Lebanese scene seems more optimistic :the civil society in Lebanon is strong and effective, while the Iraqi society, a blend of inter tribal, inter racial and inter sectarian conflicts do not seem strong enough to carry a serious Iraqi democratic project that ends the occupation and push towards democratization.

This is likely due to the lack of the democratic culture in the Iraqi society which was governed since the coup de tat in 1958 with military generals and one party system. Add to this the existence of the American occupation which if not encourages the sectarian conflicts it has created the conditions which permit its eruption.

No wonder then that the sectarian conflict will likely continue in the future until the emergence of a strong non sectarian party which can put Iraq together again, which is unfortunately a matter that is unlikely to occur in the foreseeable future.

Perhaps the situation in Palestine seems more similar to Lebanon than in Iraq. As in Lebanon the president in Palestine has a different political agenda than his prime minister. And as in Lebanon the inter Palestinian conflict is based on politics and not strife among sects. And as in Lebanon Palestine has one of the strongest civil societies in the region.

All this of course must not be taken for granted to construct national unity government. It should be taken as an indication to the potentialities and the strength of the society in facing the current challenges. But it seems up til now; the dominance of the party culture has hindered any possibility to form a Palestinian national government, a matter which Al Qadoumi one of the founders of Fateh movement has warned against.
In the current dangers which seems to be blowing forcefully on the region there should be no excuse for the Lebanese politicians to find a solution which will save Lebanon. The challenge lays in the capability of the political parties to use reason and rationalism towards developing a constructive dialogue to reach a common ground agreement.
Yet the major difference between Lebanon and Palestine is that the basic existence of Lebanon is perhaps not as threatened as in Palestine. This naturally must be a pressing factor on the Hamas and Fath parties, because their agreement or not is decisive at this particular point in the Palestinian history. Both Parties should not forget that they were founded on the grounds of fighting Israel and not fighting amongst them selves. The Lebanese parties must not forget that the role of Lebanon in the Arab Israeli conflict was a major factor in the disputed matters which led to the civil war in 1975. Those who thought in the past that Lebanon could be separated from the conflict with Israel were proven wrong without doubt.

This does not mean that Lebanon should be the only country that bears the price of the Arab Israeli conflict because this is unfair and too much to carry for a small country. Nevertheless the challenges which lay ahead are too many: the response to these challenges lie in the maturity of the political parties to work out a political formula which save the two countries from the possibility of falling into chaos which will benefit no one except for the forces unhappy with the peaceful democratic changes.

Will the Lebanese and Palestinians demonstrate that they plant the seeds of the culture of dialogue towards constructing a new middle east capable to promote democracy and resist the imperial projects; this is the question which no body can answer except those who are concerned.

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* Dr. Salim Nazzal is a Palestinian historian. He has written extensively on social and political issues in the Middle East .E mail:  gibran44@hotmail.com