Commentaries By El-Ayouty

Call it what you will: The mysterious stabilizer in the Arab world is The Family. It could consist of 2 or 2000. But that link is the most enduring. Economy is not a decisive factor. Blood is. I for one, could trace my family linkage, as far as 450 years. Father's origin: Hejaz (Saudi Arabia); mother's: Anbar (Iraq). One streaming North, the other streaming West. Two streams meeting in the land of the Nile. These facts of history intermingled with geography, encapsulated into a well-defined Arab/Muslim culture source of personal strength!! Call it belonging; call it personal pride. But it pulsates with inner strength, and intrinsic ethos. The responses to these facts are reflexive. You don't need to think hard about which road you choose when you come to the fork. The choice is predestined. No effort in choosing the obvious. The Arab village is a historical habitat; the city is almost an after-thought. In the village, everyone knows everyone. They greet; they wave; they...

Oil is not only a national resource. It is also a weapon to reckon with. Iran and its proxies know this better than most. That is because Iran is suffering from American sanctions which are opposed by nearly the entire international community. This writing is not intended as defense of Iran. Its purpose is to clarify the totally uncertain results of sanctions. Particularly when applied through unilateral decisions. There is traditional enmity between Saudi Arabia and Iran. It is in the context of "Arabi" vs. "Ajam." Its religious Islamic base is a sheer hoax. Its political motivation is a constant factor of friction across the Gulf. Bear in mind that the parties to the oil war producing those sanctions seem to count only three: Saudi Arabia, backed by America's Trump, on one side; Iran on the other side. Trump is loathe to lose the presidency in 2020 and Iran's assets are diffuse, localized, locked and ready. Trump's intemperate and vituperative la...