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In Private, Arab States Are Rooting for Israel to Destroy Hamas

(Washington Institute for Near East Policy) Robert Satloff - The Washington Institute sent a delegation that visited Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Israel, and the PA to assess the prospects for security and peace in the current environment. In private, Arab states are rooting for Israel to destroy Hamas. One senior Arab official said, "Israel is fighting for us in Gaza, and if it wins, it will succeed in defeating an Iranian proxy for the first time in forty years." But Arab states are focused on their own security and their own interests and are either unwilling or unable to play much of a role in shaping the outcome in Gaza or helping fill the vacuum that will be left by the Hamas defeat they all privately say they want. The Arab states all face domestic political urgency because of mass sympathy for the Palestinians and Al Jazeera-fueled outrage against the Israelis. One senses almost zero appreciation that Israel today is a very different country than it was on Oct. 6 and that, for the vast majority of Israelis, even talking about the two-state solution is viewed as bizarre, even perverse. Most Israelis see the world solely through the lens of 10/7. The general Israeli political sense is that it is wrong to make north Gaza safe enough for Palestinians to return until the Israeli evacuees are safe enough to return to their burnt and ransacked homes in Israel. In private conversation, Arab officials express great sympathy and understanding for Israel's situation. Arabs are still working closely with Israel to stem Iranian smuggling and to cooperate against radical plans to escalate on other fronts. Israelis say they are now facing seven hot fronts of military operation: Gaza, West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and Iran. They are involved directly in six, leaving America, Britain, and some allies to address the Houthis and their threats to Red Sea shipping. Iran has activated all those fronts, watching safely from the confines of its own territory as its adversaries take on one proxy after another. We may be scoring tactical victories, but it's not even clear we are playing the right game. The writer is Executive Director of The Washington Institute.
2024-02-26 00:00:00
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