LET us set things on the right course. It would not have been easy to overthrow the regime of oppression and brutality in Syria without the strong will of the Syrians themselves, particularly those who believed in the Sham Liberation Army. From day one, the army demonstrated its capability, led by Ahmed al-Sharaa, and prioritized the interests of the country over their own. Hence, the Riyadh Conference to support Syria was convened mainly because its organizers understood the importance of helping this Arab nation emerge from the ordeal inflicted by the leaders of a gang supported by the Iranian regime, which viewed Syria as a pivotal part of its evil axis.
Syria’s salvation, along with the election of President Joseph Aoun to fill the vacuum in the Lebanese presidency, marks an important moment in the collapse of Persian domination over four Arab capitals. This signifies the end of the anxiety caused by the short-sighted vision of Iranian leaders who once dreamed of altering the social, political, and even religious fabric of the Arab world. The change is indeed dramatic, and there are challenges in dismantling the reach of this devilish octopus.
However, with the new leadership in Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq, this will not be impossible, especially since the only remaining force is the Houthi militia, which controls the fate of Yemen, the land of wisdom. Here, we repeat the question we have always asked: What have the people of these countries gained from Persian hegemony? Wasn’t the Gaza Strip destroyed because some Palestinian factions aligned themselves with the Persian axis of evil? Haven’t over 51,000 martyrs, most of them children, women, and the elderly, been killed, while the entire Gaza Strip has become uninhabitable? For nearly 44 years, the regime of discord has worked relentlessly to fuel division among the people through its mercenaries in Lebanon, Iraq, and Yemen, and exploited the Baath regime to serve its interests. This has brought woe, siege, hunger, poverty, and death upon these nations.
The leaders of this regime lost their sense of reality when they chose to support a small minority at the expense of the large majority in those countries. They believed that their control was secure and thought no one would challenge their dominance over the four Arab capitals they controlled. They failed to realize that the oppressed people would eventually rise up and overthrow the oppressor, no matter how powerful he seemed. The aftershocks of the Syrian earthquake quickly began to reverberate on the rest of the drug-trafficking axis of evil. Signs of their defeat became evident in Lebanon, with the downfall of the so-called Party of Satan (Hezbollah). Meanwhile, Iraq began to recover under the leadership of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. These shifts must be understood by the Houthi leaders, who should undoubtedly be cautious, as their power is now under intense pressure. After Operation Prosperity Guardian weakened most of their strength, coupled with increasing sanctions and blockades, the Houthi leaders must be on alert, and know that their days are numbered. We acknowledge that the Houthi group has long been used as a tool to undermine the Arab Gulf countries. Unfortunately, the Houthis have not learned from the lessons of Lebanon and Syria.
On the contrary, they continue to blindly implement the Iranian agenda. What has transpired in the past two years, particularly in recent months, indicates that the Arab world is moving toward peace and stability. It reinforces the truth that no group, regardless of its military strength or the extent of its oppression, can alter the cultural fabric of society. The Syrian people, for example, endured 54 years of brutal repression, but they never abandoned their beliefs. They eventually rose up against the regime. We therefore say to the Houthis: “Look at what the mullahs’ regime did to the people of Iran and how they eventually revolted. Learn the lesson before your turn comes. Be assured that there will be no place for you in a stable and prosperous Arab world.”
Ahmed Al-Jarallah
Editor-in-Chief, the Arab Times
