for the future, struggling daily to survive and to try to assist their children to lead better lives, and fearful of complaining lest they be
harassed or worse by their government, it is natural they would champion other underdogs, of whom the Palestinians are the region’s prime examples. The disjunction therefore between Arab states’ inadequate support for that cause
to say nothing of their desire to have ever stronger relations with Israel, and the feelings of the majority of their peoples, is thus politically paralyzing for those states. They are hunkering down, trying to say the right thing and do as little as possible lest they trigger
popular reactions or the ire of the U.S. These
then are not strong partners for Washington or
for Israel, both of which have seen their stocks
fall to all-time lows among Arab publics.
In sum, Hamas and Iran have achieved a strategic victory but at a huge price to
Palestinians, both of Gaza and the West Bank. But that price will be overlooked by all concerned except those who actually pay it. The
focus will be on those deemed to be the guilty parties, which for most Middle Easterners will not be Hamas or Iran, but Israel, the U.S., and for many, their own Arab governments. This is precisely what Hamas and Israel intended.
Robert Springborg is a Research Fellow of the Italian Institute of International Affairs and Adjunct Professor, Simon Fraser University. Formerly he was Professor of National Security Affairs at the Naval Postgraduate School and Program Manager for the Middle East for the Center for Civil-Military Relations; the holder of the MBI Al Jaber Chair in Middle East Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, where he also served as Director of the London Middle East Institute.
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