The tinderbox that is the Middle East
For anyone remotely interested in international affairs (and I am very interested), events in the Arab world this spring have been both fascinating and exciting. Dictators have been overthrown in Tunisia and Egypt, the leader in Yemen may not return from hospitalisation outside the country, and it should be only a matter of time before Gaddafi falls in Libya.
But, in all these countries, the forces of democratisation are fragile and internal tensions are rampant. Meanwhile the situation in Syria – which I visited just before the demonstrations and killings started – is dire and becoming worse daily.
This is having consequences for neighbouring countries. Lebanon – which I visited immediately after Syria – has not had a government for months and the political situation – always fractious and complicated – is being impacted by events in Syria. Meanwhile the regime in Syria is trying to divert attention away from its brutal actions by promoting demonstrations against Israeli occupation of the Golan Heights (which I visited a few years ago).
Working behind the scenes, we then have Iran – another country I have visited in the last couple of years – which has internal tensions between the president and the ayattolah and major connections in both neighbouring Syria and in Lebanon through its sponsorship of Hezbollah.
It’s a frightening political and ethnic cocktail as underlined by Simon Tisdall in this article.