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Mideast Upheaval Jolts Israel

(New York Times) Steven Erlanger - Israelis worry that Arab democracy movements will ultimately be dominated by extremists, as happened in Iran after the 1979 revolution that ousted the shah. They worry about the chaotic transition between revolt and democratic stability, if it ever comes. They see Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood as pressing for more solidarity with the Palestinians and Hamas, the Palestinian branch of the Brotherhood. And they fear that Israel's regional partners in checking Iran are under threat or falling. Dore Gold, a former Israeli ambassador to the UN and former aide to Prime Minister Netanyahu, said that Arab democracy could make Israel more secure. "For years, Arab leaders who thought they had legitimacy problems because they were not elected played several chords to the populace - Arab unity, Islamic solidarity, and most important, the struggle against Israel....So if you have regimes legitimized by democratic elections and accountable governance, then they will depend less on the conflict for their own internal standing." Even so, "the transition to democracy is full of all kinds of land mines," he said, arguing that the regional destabilization had helped Iran, which Israel regards as its most important threat.
2011-02-24 00:00:00
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