The Middle East Riddle: A Study of the Middle East Peace Process and Israeli-Arab Relations in Changing Times by Luis Fleischman

Author:Luis Fleischman [Fleischman, Luis]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Social Science, General
ISBN: 9781733398084
Google: 6Yg5zgEACAAJ
Publisher: New Academia Publishing, LLC
Published: 2021-02-23T11:12:35+00:00

CHAPTER 4

THE IMPACT OF THE ARAB SPRING

The changes that are taking place in Arab society in the aftermath of the Arab awakening or Arab Spring are occurring slowly and are less obvious to the naked eye. In this chapter, we will explore the actual and potential impact of the Arab Spring on the attitudes of Arab civil society towards Israel and we will identify changes that may accelerate the process of Arab/Israeli reconciliation.

The Arab Spring: The Emergence of a New Social Contract

The Arab Spring was a chain of uprisings against authoritarian governments. These uprisings began in Tunisia, followed by Egypt, Libya, Yemen, Syria, Bahrein, and, most recently, in Sudan. These rebellions generated hopes for a fourth wave of democratization in the Arab world as happened in Eastern Europe in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s. However, with the exception of Tunisia, no Arab country experienced an actual transition to democratic rule. Arab states experienced either an authoritarian restoration (Egypt), civil war and anarchy (Syria, Yemen and Libya) or an effective reaction by the existing government that enabled it to stay in power despite protests (Bahrein).

Consequently, some scholars and observers have expressed skepticism about the Arab Spring and declared it a failure.

Scholars such as the Egyptian, Tarek Heggy, argue that Arab culture often resists western forms of democracy and human progress.1 Other scholars of the Middle East as well as politicians have described their bitter disappointment over the outcome of the Arab Spring from a variety of vantage points. George Washington University political science professor Marc Lynch claims that the enthusiasm of the youth in Tahrir Square, the place of mass protests in Cairo and the symbol of Mubarak’s downfall, has diminished due to a new authoritarian regime installed in Egypt after the summer of 2013. Lynch argues that charlatans and politicians who pursue their own interest have stolen the revolution. He also claims that foreign powers such as the Gulf States, Saudi Arabia and Iran have taken advantage of internal divisions created during the Arab Spring in order to foment proxy wars.2 His disappointment extends to deposals and challenges to authoritarian rulers in countries such as Libya and Syria, which have turned into interminable ethnic and sectarian civil wars.

Steven Cook, a scholar with the Council on Foreign Relations, also expressed doubt about the Arab Spring based on current conditions in the Arab world. Cook argues that the oppressive structures of the state inherited from the authoritarian age constitute an impediment to the progress of democracy and civil society in the Arab world.3

Politicians such as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cite Muslim Brotherhood victories in Tunisia and Egypt as clear examples of what could happen in the rest of the Arab world as old autocracies begin to fall. In the Prime Minister’s view, the Arab Spring uprisings were not like the upheavals against Eastern European communist regimes in the late 1980’s that ultimately led to formal democracies.4 Instead, from Netanyahu’s perspective, the Arab Spring resembled Iran in 1979 when popular rebellion was hijacked by Islamic fanatics.

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