Britain is misjudging what is unfolding in the Middle East
A GOOD Editorial
The Guardian, Monday 7 March 2011
"David Cameron is not having a good Arab revolution. He was the first world leader to visit Egypt and Tahrir Square after the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak, which is good. But on the same Middle Eastern tour he took with him eight defence firms peddling military equipment, which is to misjudge the nature of events in the region badly....Then came his comments about a no-fly zone over Libya, which were initially greeted with less than the customary enthusiasm by people – such as the US defence secretary, Robert Gates....
And now there is another fiasco which highlights this government's fumbling in the desert. Hardly had news come out that Britain was to send experts into eastern Libya, to give military advice and make contact with opposition leaders, than it emerged that a British intelligence and special forces unit had been caught by the opposition with espionage equipment, multiple passports and weapons. As a senior member of Benghazi's revolutionary council told this newspaper: "This is no way to conduct yourself during an uprising.".........
.....The moral strength of the Libyan rebels and their political claim to represent the true voice of the people both rest partly on the fact that, like the Egyptians and the Tunisians, they have come this far alone. The revolt is theirs, they are no one else's proxy, and the struggle is about ending tyranny rather than searching for new masters. Even if Gaddafi's forces succeed in checking the advance of rebel forces, and the civil war becomes protracted, it is the home-grown nature of this revolt that contains the ultimate seeds of the destruction of Gaddafi's regime. Thus far, it is Gaddafi and his sons who have had to import hired guns from abroad.
In Egypt, events are happening which in the long run are just as important as the battles taking place in Libya. The revolution is deepening. It has succeeded in ousting first Mubarak, then the prime minister appointed as a transition figure, and installing one of their own, Essam Sharaf, to the post. The ruling military council yesterday replaced the ministers of the interior, foreign affairs and justice. The reform of the interior ministry's hated security services was one of the major demands of the protesters, and the release of their secret files will be just as important as the Stasi files were in the dismantling of that organisation. The revolution in Tahrir Square may now have reached a point of no return, where it can not be undone. This is a real achievement which will empower a new generation of Arabs. This, too, requires western recognition and support."
A GOOD Editorial
The Guardian, Monday 7 March 2011
"David Cameron is not having a good Arab revolution. He was the first world leader to visit Egypt and Tahrir Square after the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak, which is good. But on the same Middle Eastern tour he took with him eight defence firms peddling military equipment, which is to misjudge the nature of events in the region badly....Then came his comments about a no-fly zone over Libya, which were initially greeted with less than the customary enthusiasm by people – such as the US defence secretary, Robert Gates....
And now there is another fiasco which highlights this government's fumbling in the desert. Hardly had news come out that Britain was to send experts into eastern Libya, to give military advice and make contact with opposition leaders, than it emerged that a British intelligence and special forces unit had been caught by the opposition with espionage equipment, multiple passports and weapons. As a senior member of Benghazi's revolutionary council told this newspaper: "This is no way to conduct yourself during an uprising.".........
.....The moral strength of the Libyan rebels and their political claim to represent the true voice of the people both rest partly on the fact that, like the Egyptians and the Tunisians, they have come this far alone. The revolt is theirs, they are no one else's proxy, and the struggle is about ending tyranny rather than searching for new masters. Even if Gaddafi's forces succeed in checking the advance of rebel forces, and the civil war becomes protracted, it is the home-grown nature of this revolt that contains the ultimate seeds of the destruction of Gaddafi's regime. Thus far, it is Gaddafi and his sons who have had to import hired guns from abroad.
In Egypt, events are happening which in the long run are just as important as the battles taking place in Libya. The revolution is deepening. It has succeeded in ousting first Mubarak, then the prime minister appointed as a transition figure, and installing one of their own, Essam Sharaf, to the post. The ruling military council yesterday replaced the ministers of the interior, foreign affairs and justice. The reform of the interior ministry's hated security services was one of the major demands of the protesters, and the release of their secret files will be just as important as the Stasi files were in the dismantling of that organisation. The revolution in Tahrir Square may now have reached a point of no return, where it can not be undone. This is a real achievement which will empower a new generation of Arabs. This, too, requires western recognition and support."
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