Dr. Khaled M. Batarfi
My friend, Musaed Almatrafi, was visibly troubled as he called to comment on my last article “Saudi-led troops to Syria — why not?” He explained his misgivings, which I also heard from others, saying:
“I agree with you that our war in Yemen is a just war. We were forced to respond to Iran’s intrusions and threats. If we had waited longer, we could have faced a formidable force, led by an ideological militia that takes its orders directly from Tehran.
“As it is, they rain us with Scuds, bombs and missiles. Imagine if we had waited until the lines of supplies were well established with Iran, and more trainers, consultants and operators from Hezbollah and the Revolutionary Guards are in. We could have then dealt with a sword raised to our necks that would have forced us to compromise and accept the Farsi nation’s dictation on every matter, from our stand in Syria and Lebanon to oil policies. That was an impossible situation to accept, and we had to respond.
“But … Syria is another matter. Yemen was easy for Saudis to understand. You saw how strong and united they stood with their leadership and army, accepting economic hardships and human loss as a necessary sacrifice to protect national interests.
“However, to fight in Syria with non-Muslims against Muslims, and send our sons to unfamiliar grounds in a very complicated war is totally a different — and much more difficult — concept to grasp.
“Convince me, please, why should we fight on two fronts, Yemen and Syria, and continue to spend fortunes on each, during a very difficult economic times?
“Oil prices are terribly down, and our budget is increasingly under pressure. Shouldn’t we focus instead on the inside — facing financial challenges and fighting terrorism, extremism and unemployment?” he asked.
The argument looks convincing. Saudi Arabia has always been a peaceful nation. We only fought when it was absolutely necessary. We did so to unite the country; fought with Yemen over borders in 1934; joined Arab forces to liberate Palestine in 1948; stood with Egypt against Israel, Britain and France during the Suez crisis in 1956; defended Kuwait against Iraqi threats in 1961 and occupation in 1990; supported Jordanian and Syrian armies after the 1967 War. We also participated in peacekeeping missions: In Lebanon as part of the 1989 Taif Agreement and in Bahrain after Iranian induced protests, in 2011.
So why Syria? Isn’t our plate full enough with the Yemeni war and the fight against Daesh (so-called IS) and Iran’s terrorism?
I told my friend that it is basically the same war. Whether in Yemen or Syria, against the Houthis or Daesh, we are fighting the exact same master enemy. We have taken the strategic decision to take this war to their backyard instead of ours. That is what we called the world community for, for years, and were ignored. Now that terrorism is knocking on the doors of Europe and USA, they have finally decided to join the fight against it.
Aerial campaigns, however, are never enough. Even if you burn the ground, as Russia has been doing, you still have to occupy it.
Do you want Iran and company to fill the void and rule the land? It is like liberating it from one enemy to hand it over to another! America did that when they freed Iraq from Saddam’s rule and passed it on to Iran. The “Khomeinis” shan’t be as lucky this time!
My friend seemed convinced, but asked me to pass on a message.
“I am not alone,” he stated, “many more have my misgivings about the war in Syria. They feel that we are siding with the enemies of Islam against Muslims. We heard this argument before when we joined the US-led alliance to liberate Kuwait. Today, the case is even stronger, because Saddam was Baathist, threatened our existence, and occupied a GCC country, but Daesh took a land from the enemies of Sunni Islam.
“I propose that we initiate a strong public awareness campaign to help the rest of us understand the reasons and purposes for the war on Daesh, and its endgame.
“Muslim scholars, educators and the media should join hands. They need to coordinate efforts to fight rumors, respond to anti-war arguments, and spread the word.
“We must reach out to the young and religious who are more vulnerable to extremist messages and influence in schools, mosques, social media and playgrounds. And we must start right now! The intellectual war is no less urgent and important than the war against extremism and terrorism.”
I agreed with my friend and promised him to pass on his message. Let’s win this war on all fronts — hearts and minds included.
Dr. Khaled M. Batarfi is a Saudi writer based in Jeddah. He can be reached at kbatarfi@gmail.com. Follow him at Twitter:@kbatarfi
