As the prospect of a US-led air strike on Syria looms heavy over the region, Arab Gulf nations have plenty of security-related questions to contemplate, including whether they will stand on the same ground when such a strike unfolds, columnist Shamlan Yussef Al Essa wrote in yesterday's edition of the Abu Dhabi-based newspaper Al Ittihad.
"We don't know at this time, as these lines are written down, when exactly the strike against the Al Assad regime will hit," the columnist said. "But, putting the less important question of timing aside, we fear that Gulf nations might lack a unified stance on how to deal with the repercussions and aftermath of that strike on Syria's neighbours and, by extension, on the Arab Gulf nations themselves."
On Saturday, President Barack Obama said he would wait for congressional approval before giving the order to launch a limited-scope strike on Syria. Congress is not due to reconvene until September 9. The US leader said his military chiefs advised him that the planned strike would be equally effective whether undertaken today, in a week or in a month.
In his column yesterday titled The Gulf after the strike, Al Essa asked a series of questions: "Are Gulf countries prepared? Are they ready for the post-strike phase? Will the Syrian regime and its allies make good on their previous threats of setting the whole region on fire? How will Gulf countries react if the temerity of the regime in Damascus goes as far as launching missiles towards friendly and brotherly nations like Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey?
"And what will Gulf nations do when thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of Syrian refugees start pouring into Jordan, Turkey, Lebanon and Iraq?"
Note that the Iranians have warned western countries of the illegality of such an air strike and vowed that Tehran will not sit back and watch in the face of aggression.
Russia and China have also expressed their disapproval and called on the secretary-general of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon, and members of the Security Council to work on a peaceful solution to the Syrian conflict, the writer noted.
Other questions will need answers should the western strike hasten the collapse of the Syrian regime or, indeed, fail to provoke its unseating, the columnist went on. "Whether the Syrian regime falls or survives, GCC states will be faced with a fresh problem: how to deal with GCC jihadists involved in the war in Syria?"
Further questions will need joint deliberation among members of the GCC if they are to pre-empt any actions by domestic sleeper cells.
"How will Gulf countries react if Hizbollah starts acting up in Lebanon? Will its supporters in the Gulf stay put if Israel gets involved?"
Turkish provocation could prove costly
In all fairness, Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is the founder of a new, advanced and democratic Turkey. With his moderate Justice and Development Party, he was able to free the country from military rule and place it at the threshold of the advanced world, said the Saudi daily Al Riyadh in its editorial yesterday.
Engrossed with his success, Mr Erdogan seemed to harbour dreams of reviving the old Ottoman Empire. "He misinterpreted the moment and forgot that the era of empires ended long ago."
The Arab Spring presented the Turkish prime minister with a new opportunity, especially with Muslim Brotherhood-led Tunisia and Egypt, to transform Turkey into a leading model of moderate Islam based on respect of democracy and human rights. But his reading of the facts was unrealistic: he dealt with the Brotherhood in Egypt as if they precluded returning to military governments.
Mr Erdogan was shocked to see his new allies in Egypt so swiftly collapse. His reactions were extreme and unexpected from a wise statesman. In one fiery statement after the other he went so far as verbally attacking the sheikh of Al Azhar and classified all those who sided with the Egyptian people, including Gulf states, as enemies.
"But it is in the best interest of Arabs and Turkey to maintain relationships based on mutual interests," the paper observed.
Intervention in Syria should not be limited
The worst possible scenario for the US-led military intervention in Syria would be a limited "disciplinary" strike. It would give Syrian president Bashar Al Assad the opportunity to come out the next day claiming triumph and it would grant him moral, political and military momentum to improve his situation on the ground, suggested the columnist Ali Hamade in the Lebanese daily Annahar.
A strike that doesn't break the regime's back in Syria will strengthen Mr Al Assad's negotiation capabilities ahead of the second Geneva conference.
The best scenario is that the US offensive shakes the regime in Damascus to the core. This, in turn would allow revolutionary forces to advance and establish their presence in Damascus.
"The attack must be sufficiently powerful to ensure the defeat of Iran and Hizbollah on the battlefield in Syria at any cost. Otherwise, the war in Syria will trudge along for years to come," he opined.
The likely strike against the regime is a golden opportunity for the revolutionary forces. They must benefit from it to bring down the regime once and for all. This should be the primary responsibility of the Free Syrian Army and all countries that support the revolution.
* Digest compiled by The Translation Desk
translation@thenational.ae
Abu Dhabi World Pro 2019 remaining schedule:
Wednesday April 24: Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship, 11am-6pm
Thursday April 25: Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship, 11am-5pm
Friday April 26: Finals, 3-6pm
Saturday April 27: Awards ceremony, 4pm and 8pm
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
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Publisher: Activision
Console: PlayStation 4 & 5, Windows, Xbox One & Series X/S
Rating: 3.5/5
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hall of shame
SUNDERLAND 2002-03
No one has ended a Premier League season quite like Sunderland. They lost each of their final 15 games, taking no points after January. They ended up with 19 in total, sacking managers Peter Reid and Howard Wilkinson and losing 3-1 to Charlton when they scored three own goals in eight minutes.
SUNDERLAND 2005-06
Until Derby came along, Sunderland’s total of 15 points was the Premier League’s record low. They made it until May and their final home game before winning at the Stadium of Light while they lost a joint record 29 of their 38 league games.
HUDDERSFIELD 2018-19
Joined Derby as the only team to be relegated in March. No striker scored until January, while only two players got more assists than goalkeeper Jonas Lossl. The mid-season appointment Jan Siewert was to end his time as Huddersfield manager with a 5.3 per cent win rate.
ASTON VILLA 2015-16
Perhaps the most inexplicably bad season, considering they signed Idrissa Gueye and Adama Traore and still only got 17 points. Villa won their first league game, but none of the next 19. They ended an abominable campaign by taking one point from the last 39 available.
FULHAM 2018-19
Terrible in different ways. Fulham’s total of 26 points is not among the lowest ever but they contrived to get relegated after spending over £100 million (Dh457m) in the transfer market. Much of it went on defenders but they only kept two clean sheets in their first 33 games.
LA LIGA: Sporting Gijon, 13 points in 1997-98.
BUNDESLIGA: Tasmania Berlin, 10 points in 1965-66
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UAE jiu-jitsu squad
Men: Hamad Nawad and Khalid Al Balushi (56kg), Omar Al Fadhli and Saeed Al Mazroui (62kg), Taleb Al Kirbi and Humaid Al Kaabi (69kg), Mohammed Al Qubaisi and Saud Al Hammadi (70kg), Khalfan Belhol and Mohammad Haitham Radhi (85kg), Faisal Al Ketbi and Zayed Al Kaabi (94kg)
Women: Wadima Al Yafei and Mahra Al Hanaei (49kg), Bashayer Al Matrooshi and Hessa Al Shamsi (62kg)
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Conservative MPs who have publicly revealed sending letters of no confidence
- Steve Baker
- Peter Bone
- Ben Bradley
- Andrew Bridgen
- Maria Caulfield
- Simon Clarke
- Philip Davies
- Nadine Dorries
- James Duddridge
- Mark Francois
- Chris Green
- Adam Holloway
- Andrea Jenkyns
- Anne-Marie Morris
- Sheryll Murray
- Jacob Rees-Mogg
- Laurence Robertson
- Lee Rowley
- Henry Smith
- Martin Vickers
- John Whittingdale
Scoreline
Liverpool 3
Mane (7'), Salah (69'), Firmino (90')
Bournemouth 0
COMPANY PROFILE
● Company: Bidzi
● Started: 2024
● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid
● Based: Dubai, UAE
● Industry: M&A
● Funding size: Bootstrapped
● No of employees: Nine
Company%20Profile
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Tree of Hell
Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla
Director: Raed Zeno
Rating: 4/5
Villains
Queens of the Stone Age
Matador
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Other promotions
- Deliveroo will team up with Pineapple Express to offer customers near JLT a special treat: free banana caramel dessert with all orders on January 26
- Jones the Grocer will have their limited edition Australia Day menu available until the end of the month (January 31)
- Australian Vet in Abu Dhabi (with locations in Khalifa City A and Reem Island) will have a 15 per cent off all store items (excluding medications)