A source on politics, war, the Middle East, Arabic poetry, and art.
Sunday, August 20, 2006
It is very important that Arabs, and non-Arabs, don't romanticize the Shi`ites as a group in light of Hizbullah successes in the resistance to Israeli occupation and aggression. No group, qua group, should be romanticized. In 1982, most Shi`ites were supportive of the Amal Movement and quite willing to cooperate with the Israeli occupiers against the PLO. And many Shi`ites in Iraq are willing to cooperate with the US (and Macedonian) occupiers. It is enough to visit the website of Grand (not really) Ayatullah Sistani to disabuse yourself of any notions of inherent Shi`ite qualities of resistance and defiance. And if you find yourself romanticizing Shi`ites, just remember that Ahmad Chalabi is a Shi`ite.