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Voice of the Arab People
FEATURED ARTICLE MOHAMMED BIN SALMAN AND THE “RATIONAL IRRATIONALITY” OF SAUDI FOREIGN POLICY Saudi Crown Prince bin Salman’s foreign policy decisions reflect a peculiar logic that makes perfect sense in context: his desire for status and recognition as a strong leader and successful reformer trumps Saudi national interests. by Maysam Behravesh In a meeting of ministers ahead of the Arab League summit in Tunisia on March 31, Saudi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Assaf predictably highlighted Iran as the major source of threat facing Arabs while member states were struggling for a coordinated response to the U.S.’ recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights. “One of the most dangerous forms of terrorism and extremism is what Iran practices through its blatant interference in Arab affairs, and its militias . . . the Revolutionary Guards in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, and Yemen, which requires cooperation from us to confront it,” al-Assaf said. The tirade came only a few days after the fourth anniversary of the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen, that began on March 26, 2015, to restore ousted President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi to power. This kind of demonizing attitude has been a constant refrain of Saudi foreign policy since January 2016 when the Saudi embassy in Tehran was set ablaze by a group of state-backed hardliners—in retaliation for the execution of prominent Shia cleric Nimr al-Nimr—and bilateral relations were severed. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s foreign policy decision making seems to be driven by a so called “rational irrationality” that prioritizes his quest for recognition as a strong and smart leader at the expense of Saudi national interests. And at the heart of this state of affairs, to quote a Saudi affairs expert is “the question of succession.”
Iran While Iran’s regional rivals, led by Saudi Arabia, rightly perceive its growing influence as destabilizing, it is often neglected that Tehran has made repeated overtures for a rapprochement with Riyadh, only to be rebuffed by Saudi leaders. Given bin Salman’s promise in a May 2017 interview to “take the fight inside Iran,” Riyadh is also believed to be behind militant activities by extremist or separatist groups across the country. Given bin Salman’s promise in a May 2017 interview to “take the fight inside Iran,” Riyadh is also believed to be behind militant activities by extremist or separatist groups across the country. From the Islamic State group’s terror attacks of June 2017 in Tehran to the Ahvaz shooting assault in September 2018 to the suicide car-bomb attack against a Revolutionary Read Full Story on Guards convoy in February... .com
WHAT READERS SHOULD EXPECT EDITORIAL: FREE PRESS, AMERICAN AS APPLE PIE – INFORMS PEOPLE, EXPOSES TRUTH, CHECKS ABUSE OF POWER
NEW-OLD THINKING ON PALESTINE: RECONCILING THE SETTLER STATE AND THE INDIGENOUS POPULATION
by Elisabeth Myers Inside Arabia believes in the importance of a free press to democracy, and to the American brand of democracy, in particular.
by Ilan Pappe There is a famous Jewish maxim that people tend to look for a lost key where there is light and not where they lost the key.
SAUDI–EMIRATI COALITION’S WAR IN YEMEN IS DEVASTATING THE COUNTRY
HAFTAR’S AMBITIONS FOR A UNIFIED LIBYA: PROSPECTS FOR PEACE OR RECIPE FOR CHAOS?
by Abdelaziz Elkhalfaoui When Saudi Arabia formed a coalition in March 2015 to lead the military operation dubbed “Decisive Storm,” its aim was to end the Yemeni Houthis’ control over a number of cities in Yemen and ultimately restore the ousted government of Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi. Little did they anticipate that after three years and thousands of casualties they would still be waging war and devastating the country.
by Diana Partridge Whatever one’s opinion of Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, the 75-year-old leader of the Libyan National Army (LNA) is without a doubt a major player whose presence or absence will be determinative in the ongoing Libyan conflict.
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Voice of the Arab People
Inside Arabia is an independently funded, on-line magazine, launched in July 2018, that provides in-depth analysis of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Headquartered in Washington, D.C., Inside Arabia is bringing the voice of the Arab people to the American public, to let Americans know what “real” people in the MENA region believe, think, and do, not their governments. Inside Arabia goes beyond what is typically reported by traditional U.S. and global media to educate, inform, and build bridges of understanding, people to people, to promote peace and tolerance. Inside Arabia aims to be the leading credible source of information and analysis about the MENA region and a reference source for future researchers who want to learn about the past, present, and future of the Arab world. Using vibrant videos, photo essays, and social media, we focus not only on politics and current events, but on culture, cuisine, lifestyle issues, religion, music and the arts. In addition to our dedicated team of professional journalists and writers, we have a growing network of contributors and freelance correspondents in a number of different countries, including academics and think tank experts. By bringing voices from different perspectives and different parts of the region to tell their own stories, Inside Arabia challenges false narratives, counteracts stereotypes, and champions the truth.
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