The Iconoclastic Society
“America is the Great Satan. The corruption in our lands is because of America. The corruption in Muslim lands is because of America ”
- Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini
( Supreme leader of Iran post 1979)
Previously: Middle EastThe Levantine Carnage§1ISRAELI - EXISTENTIAL CRISIS
From day one, Arab states coalesced to decimate Israel from the map of the globe. The United States couldn't afford a loss that huge. Post-1967, the USA became the sole mediator of major diplomatic agreements and peace deals between Israel and the Arabs:-
1978 Camp David Accords: Israel - Egypt
1993 Oslo Accords: Israel - PLO (Palestine Liberation Organisation)
1994 Israel-Jordan Treaty
2020 Abraham Accords: Israel with UAE, Bahrain, and Sudan
But all these accords could only solve a fraction of the problems.
Israel's existence faces hindrance from a multi-front cold war between Saudi Arabia and Iran.
A chase for the crown of Islamic leadership in the Middle East. Both nations want to prove themselves as the sole legitimate guardians of Islamic values in the West Asian region.
Iran’s 90 to 95 % population consists of Shia Muslims whereas Saudi Arabia is significantly dominated by Sunni Muslims.
So even this is a kind of cultural friction.
In the year 1979, Ayatollah Khomeini took over as the Supreme Leader of Iran, establishing a theocratic state governed by the 'Sharia' law. Constant American intervention for securing oil monopoly and restricting Communist influence led to the toppling of the first and only democratically elected government. Mohammad Mosaddegh( the elected leader of Iran before the rule of Reza Shah Pahlavi) was sacked by a coup carried out by CIA for nationalising Iranian oil and his hostile approach towards American presence. This event, coupled with suppression of dissent under the rule of Reza Shah Pahlavi, was met with widespread public outrage. Khomeini's divine sermons mobilised the entire Iranian populace to oust Pahlavi and declare the US as the "Great Satan" with Israel as the "Little Satan".
Their flags were burnt publicly and the Iranian state took the resolve of wiping out Israel's presence from day one of its formation.
Iran heavily funded proxy militias like the Houthis( Yemen), HAMAS (Gaza), Hezbollah(Lebanon), and Iraqi militias to constantly attack Israel with rockets and terror attacks.
Iran acquiring the nuclear bomb is the ultimate nightmare for Israel's existence and American interests in the Middle East theater.
If Iran does so, then it will distort the entire balance of power in the Middle East.
More importantly, it will break out a lethal arms race amongst Arab countries for acquiring a nuclear bomb.
On the other hand, Saudi Arabia has been pacified to a large extent by massive bilateral trade deals with the US: Saudi oil in exchange for American high-grade weapons. As per the SIPRI reports, Saudi Arabia is one of the largest importers of arms and regularly features in the top 5.
From the lens of geography, Iran sits near one the world’s most important choke point- ‘Strait of Hormuz' which single handedly facilitates 20 to 25 % of global oil trade . Iran can easily weaponize this geographical leverage to dictate terms and conditions against USA in its own favour.
Recently you must have seen and heard in news channels that Iran has launched missiles on Saudi Arabia ,UAE,Jordan and other Arab countries.
Quite confusing right ??? Because even these countries are muslim dominated regions and did object Israel’s formation in the beginning. And also actively participated in the wars waged against Israel in the past.
But its simple…
In due course of time, USA struck good number of deals with all these oil-rich countries. These countries allowed USA to construct military bases and ports for self-defence and American projection of power in the region. These bases were the targets of the Iranian missiles during the middle-east instability .
§2GAME OF DOMESTIC POLITICS
This geopolitical tug-of-war acts as a point of leverage for consolidating domestic power.
Israel's right-wing politicians exploit people's fear to secure their political interests.
A paranoia based on self-determination and the right to exist is spread to compel the people to become the politicians' vote banks.
In the US, AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee) engages in pro-Israel activities by actively lobbying politicians. AIPAC heavily funds political campaigns to get favours from politicians and diplomatic backing.
The Evangelical Christians* of the US form a major vote bank in US politics, significantly influencing regional politics.
( * - this community has religious beliefs that Jews returning to their ancestral homeland and taking control of Jerusalem will mark the coming of Jesus Christ for a second time)
In the case of Iran, its existence entirely rests on the agenda of Israel's decimation. Diverting attention of the populace from economic stagnation, violation of human rights, suppression,corruption, and poverty towards fighting an external enemy wins people's support.
Conclusively, the Middle East theater is entangled in a complex game being played between various state and non-state actors.
The next time you watch geopolitics, don't be stuck in a good versus bad debate. Just find out what interests lie in whose favour. You will understand the game…
Yeah so , that's it for today's reader-episode
