From Asharq Al-Awsat (pan-Arab daily newspaper) Sunday 24 February 2008, by Mshari Al-Zaydi, a Saudi journalist and Asharq Al-Awsat’s opinion page Editor:
One of the most compelling things about Imad Mughniyeh’s assassination is the nature of the description and image that various parties use to depict him. For Hezbollah, Iran, Syria and their supporters in Lebanon, such as followers of General Aoun, the [Weam] Wahab, [Talal] Arsalan or [Omar] Karami movements, Mughniyeh is a saintly resistance hero and a symbol of martyrdom and jihad.
However for others, especially in the Gulf region and among some Arabs and Lebanese, he is a master of plane hijacking, explosions and terrorism. It’s true that Iran employed Mughniyeh as an instrument to spread terror and panic but he was also an 'academy' [accomplished mentor] that specialized in generating Shia movements across various states in the same vein as Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Mehdi Army in Iraq and the Shia terrorist groups in the Gulf region. In this regard, we must also refer to his basic role in the Khobar Towers explosions in Saudi Arabia in 1996.
... it only seems natural that his assassination would continue this conflict and disunion since he had dedicated his life and services to serve a vision, project, and course that constitute a point of contention and conflict in the Arab region, which has been witnessing a broad and extensive state of transformation in its present and future.
The Arab region is divided between some parties who seek to transform it into a land of strife, war, martyrdom and another Karbala, such as illustrated by some of the slogans raised in the Iranian demonstrations that hailed Lebanon as 'Karbala' following the assassination of Mughniyeh.
However, there are also those who want to head in another direction towards progress, developing the economy and catching up with the contemporary world. Such a contradiction may be summarized as: the two cultures [trends] of life and death and it can be used to describe the conflict between these two visions, such as those of Hezbollah, Hamas, Iran and Syria on the one hand, and the March 14 Coalition Forces, Egypt and Saudi Arabia on the other.
The latter culture is one that propagates stability, calm and peace and is against revolutionary trends, suicide operations and weapons. This is why Hezbollah, Iran and those that orbit in the same circles should not expect the world to praise or commemorate Imad Mughniyeh since his life and efforts – and even his death – reflect the interests of a hostile party, namely Iran and its supporters.
My approach is not one that stems from Sunni-Shia sectarianism to which I oppose strongly; rather it emerges from a practical description of reality. What I am referring to is the audacious manipulation of Khomeini's Iran of all Shia followers around the world with the intention of attaching them to pure Iranian interest ... and ultimately only serve the interests of the Iranian political agenda....
Division among the Arabs has reached unprecedented depths; compliments and rehashed words about the interests, dreams and objectives of the Arab nation are useless, as are the tours and statements issued by Amr Moussa [Secretary-General of the League of Arab States]....
..... All it takes is tuning into Al-Manar TV, which is affiliated to Hezbollah, to gauge your feelings and reactions. You will find yourself bombarded by scenes of martyrs, death, explosions and songs of praise for suicide bombers and other media tools that are only dedicated to one purpose: to glorify the dead and persuade the living to seek the same end so that they may share the same fate as the archetypal martyr: al Hussein. And it goes on and on…
But if you happen to change the channel to any other, even if it were the Disney Channel you would suddenly feel as if you had just exited a stifling steam room to an open space with fresh air and scenes of life; a place where death does not reign. The culture of Hezbollah ... is a death culture ...this is the mobilizing culture that drives vital youth to become reduced to nothing but guns and bombs that heed the direction of Sayyed Nasrallah or follow the orders of Hajj Radwan. And this is exactly what happens to their Sunni counterparts who have been recruited as the soldiers of Al-Qaeda and other Islamic movements that adopt the Salafist Jihadist approaches....
.... Even if Hezbollah were to liberate the Shebaa farms and free the prisoners held in Israeli prisons, it would still not mean that it would shift into becoming a civil party with a civil ideology and a civil vision. The party will not stop generating individuals who are obsessed with death and martyrdom since its very structure is built upon 'resistance', as Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah told the 'understanding' General Michel Aoun in their second meeting.... the aim behind Hezbollah's armament, and therefore its culture and exceptional nature, is to annihilate Israel!
This is why after the assassination of Imad Mughniyeh; Nasrallah came out to say that his blood would wipe out Israel. A few days later General Jaafari offered his condolences and support to Mughniyeh's supporters and said that Hezbollah would eliminate the Israeli virus “soon” .....
Thus, Hezbollah’s arms and culture will always exist until Israel no longer exists, which is an impossible objective – just as Hezbollah’s stipulations are in the Lebanese arena. It is a laborious task not just for the party but for the entire Lebanese state, let alone Syria, which is a major state and which could not succeed in eliminating Israel. “Imad Mughniyeh’s blood means the annihilation of Israel…soon!”
It is true what the great Arab poet Abul Alaa Al-Maari said: These words are fully loaded with meaning
They mean that we have no brains!
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