There is no Arab appetite for the chaos caused by an Israeli or western attack on Iran, despite fears over its expansionism
Wadah Khanfar
(Former director general of the al-Jazeera television network)
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 8 May 2012
"The image of Iran in the Arab public mind has changed during the last three decades. Its popularity has declined on the Arab street; albeit for reasons that are nothing to do with the concerns of Israel and western powers. It would be a mistake to depict the widespread Arab concerns over Iran as an act of support for an Israeli or American war against it....
The Arab spring has inspired the region's people with a vision of change. Yet, there is a long road ahead before they attain political and economic stability. This entails the writing of constitutions, building state institutions and stemming economic decline. In other words, they are in a process of transition. It is a period that requires peace and internal agreement on priorities. A war with Iran would distract attention from the needs of the democratic transition to focus on demands of war. While it is easy to predict its beginning, it is almost impossible to presage its end. War would redraw alliances and elicit external intervention into the affairs of states and groups. In the event, the Arab spring would end and be replaced by a Middle East autumn, one which would not give the region and the world anything but misery and danger."
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