{"id":132328,"date":"2026-08-08T17:05:00","date_gmt":"2026-08-08T15:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=132328"},"modified":"2026-08-05T07:49:56","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T05:49:56","slug":"24-05-123","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=132328","title":{"rendered":"Iran&#8217;s War on the Arabs: Time for the Gulf to Stand with Israel"},"content":{"rendered":"<hr>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gatestoneinstitute.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"center alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gatestoneinstitute.org\/images\/gatestone-logo-1000.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"50%\"><\/a><span style=\"text-decoration: underline; color: #000080;\"><span><strong><a style=\"color: #000080; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gatestoneinstitute.org\/22715\/iran-war-on-arabs\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Iran&#8217;s War on the Arabs: Time for the Gulf to Stand with Israel<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/h5>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>Khaled Abu Toameh<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<hr style=\"height: 15px; background: #d0e6fa; width: 100%;\">\n<ul class=\"content_preface_bullets\">\n<li>Over the past week, the Iranian regime has demonstrated once again that its ambitions extend far beyond destroying Israel.<\/li>\n<li>It is a war against the entire Middle East and, ultimately, against the United States and the West.<\/li>\n<li>Tehran then launched missiles and drones not only against US assets but also against infrastructure in Arab countries across the Gulf, in addition to Jordan, presumably so they would pressure US President Donald J. Trump to call off US firepower and return instead to waste-of-time negotiations for a waste-of-time &#8220;deal&#8221; that Iran would not honor in the first place.<\/li>\n<li>In reality, the negotiations have been worse than a waste of time&#8230; The negotiations actually caused harm. They gave the regime time to retrieve missiles it had hidden and to resume firing, with targeting assistance from China and Russia, on US forces and allies in the Gulf.<\/li>\n<li>Iranian regime ideology rejects peaceful coexistence and normalization between Arabs and Israelis &#8212; as does the ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood, currently embodied by Qatar and Turkey.<\/li>\n<li>Taken together, these terrorist organizations form what Tehran proudly calls the &#8220;Axis of Resistance.&#8221; It is, in reality, an axis of terrorism. Its purpose is not just to destroy Israel. Its objective is to spread Iran&#8217;s revolutionary Shiite Islamist ideology, undermine moderate Arab governments, expel American influence from the Middle East, and ultimately wage&nbsp;<i>jihad<\/i>&nbsp;(holy war) against the West.<\/li>\n<li>The Arab states therefore have every reason to openly align themselves with the United States and Israel in confronting the Iranian threat.<\/li>\n<li>This is not about choosing sides in someone else&#8217;s conflict. It is about defending their own sovereignty, their own interests, their own citizens, and their own future.<\/li>\n<li>The lesson of the past week: So long as the regime in Tehran remains committed to exporting its &#8220;Islamic Revolution&#8221; and maintaining its network of terrorist proxies, there can be no genuine security or stability in the Middle East.<\/li>\n<li>Until the Iranian regime abandons its expansionist ambitions or loses the capacity to pursue them, the Middle East will remain trapped in recurring cycles of violence. Until then, the Arab states would be wise to recognize that this is their fight as much as Israel&#8217;s.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gatestoneinstitute.org\/pics\/5659.jpg\" width=\"100%\"><span style=\"color: #808080;\"><em>Over the past week, the Iranian regime has demonstrated once again that its ambitions extend far beyond destroying Israel. Tehran has launched an unprecedented campaign of missile and drone attacks against several Arab states, targeting critical infrastructure, ships, airports, oil facilities, power stations, desalination plants, ports and even residential neighborhoods. Pictured: Flames and smoke from an Iranian drone attack next to Dubai International Airport on March 16, 2026. (Photo by AFP via Getty Images)<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"article_body itemprop_articlebody\">\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">For decades, governments of many Arab states have viewed Iran&#8217;s aggression primarily through the prism of its conflict with Israel. That illusion has now been shattered.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Over the past week, the Iranian regime has demonstrated once again that its ambitions extend far beyond destroying Israel. Tehran has&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/7\/12\/iran-attacks-five-gulf-nations-shuts-hormuz-after-us-bombing-all-to-know\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">launched<\/a>&nbsp;an unprecedented campaign of missile and drone attacks against several Arab states,&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.al-monitor.com\/originals\/2026\/07\/us-says-military-personnel-killed-jordan-irans-leader-issues-warning\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">targeting<\/a>&nbsp;critical infrastructure, ships, airports, oil facilities, power stations, desalination plants, ports and even residential neighborhoods.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">These&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.straitstimes.com\/world\/middle-east\/iran-renews-attacks-on-gulf-states-after-another-night-of-us-strikes\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">attacks<\/a>&nbsp;should remove any doubt: Iran&#8217;s war is&nbsp;<i>not<\/i>&nbsp;only against Israel. It is a war against the entire Middle East and, ultimately, against the United States and the West.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">The latest escalation also exposes the fatal flaw in the Memorandum of Understanding signed between Washington and Tehran only weeks earlier. The agreement was supposed to reduce tensions and guarantee safe navigation through the Strait of Hormuz. Instead, Iran immediately&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jpost.com\/middle-east\/iran-news\/article-901878\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">violated<\/a>&nbsp;its commitments.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Beginning on July 6, Iran resumed&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.axios.com\/2026\/07\/07\/iran-resumes-hormuz-attacks-us-officials\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">attacks<\/a>&nbsp;on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz, despite pledging to ensure safe passage for international vessels. The attacks prompted American military&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/us-strikes-iran-again-after-irgc-attacks-ship-in-hormuz-and-declares-strait-closed-until-further-notice\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">strikes<\/a>&nbsp;against Iranian targets. Tehran then launched missiles and drones not only against US assets but also&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/7\/13\/new-iran-strikes-on-gulf-as-us-attacks-escalate-what-we-know\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">against<\/a>&nbsp;infrastructure in Arab countries across the Gulf, in addition to Jordan, presumably so they would pressure US President Donald J. Trump to call off US firepower and return instead to waste-of-time negotiations for a waste-of-time &#8220;deal&#8221; that Iran would&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.unitedagainstnucleariran.com\/irans-disregard-for-international-law-and-agreements\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">not honor<\/a>&nbsp;in the first place.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">The Iranian regime has never demonstrated any willingness to abide by agreements if they conflict with its revolutionary ideology or strategic objectives. The latest memorandum of understanding between Iran and the US has gone the way of countless previous understandings with Tehran: reduced to little more than worthless paper.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">In reality, the negotiations have been worse than a waste of time, except to see if&nbsp;<i>any<\/i>&nbsp;deal might be possible with a regime that just murdered&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=5bPl0Z--ofc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">more than 50,000<\/a>&nbsp;of its own citizens in January alone. The negotiations actually caused harm. They gave the regime time to retrieve missiles it had hidden and to resume firing, with targeting assistance from&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/china\/iran-used-chinese-spy-satellite-target-us-bases-ft-reports-2026-04-15\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">China<\/a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/national-security\/2026\/03\/06\/russia-iran-intelligence-us-targets\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Russia<\/a>, on US forces and allies in the Gulf.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">This chain of events is hardly surprising, and the same disaster applies to Iran&#8217;s terrorist proxies.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Hamas repeatedly&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.il\/en\/pages\/protective-edge-hamas-violations-of-ceasefires-a-chronology\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">violated<\/a>&nbsp;ceasefire agreements before launching its October 7, 2023 invasion of Israel.&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/middle-east\/israel-continue-operations-lebanon-now-despite-ceasefire-defence-minister-says-2026-06-04\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Hezbollah<\/a>&nbsp;has&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/middle-east\/israel-continue-operations-lebanon-now-despite-ceasefire-defence-minister-says-2026-06-04\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ignored<\/a>&nbsp;international resolutions demanding its disarmament while repeatedly violating ceasefire agreements. Yemen&#8217;s Houthis have&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/middle-east\/why-are-houthis-threatening-attack-red-sea-shipping-what-does-it-mean-oil-2026-07-15\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">continued<\/a>&nbsp;attacking international shipping despite multiple diplomatic initiatives and understandings.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Negotiating with terrorist organizations or the regime that sponsors them has consistently produced the same result: more violence and terrorism.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">The current wave of Iranian attacks illustrates precisely why.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Over the past few months, Iran has carried out sustained missile and drone&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.turkiyetoday.com\/region\/iran-launched-917-missile-attacks-on-us-linked-sites-in-arab-countries-since-feb-28-3216218\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">attacks<\/a>&nbsp;against at least&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.yenisafak.com\/world\/iran-targeted-7-arab-countries-with-over-6400-missiles-drones-in-41-days-anadolu-tally-shows-3716904\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">seven<\/a>&nbsp;Arab countries.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz were struck. Kuwait, Bahrain, and Jordan came under coordinated missile and drone attacks. Qatar was targeted for a second time in one week. Kuwait suffered direct hits on an oil facility, a power station, and a desalination plant, and was forced to suspend flights at Kuwait International Airport. Saudi Arabia issued emergency missile alerts as Iranian projectiles threatened its territory.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Even Oman, which has long maintained cordial relations with Tehran and served as an intermediary between Iran and the US, was not spared.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Tehran claims that it targets only American military facilities. Reality tells a different story.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Civilians have been killed, residential areas struck, and airports, hotels, ports, oil facilities and other civilian infrastructure have suffered significant damage.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">These are not attacks on military facilities. They are acts of state terrorism, targeting purely civilian infrastructure and designed to intimidate entire societies.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">The Arab League was correct in&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.voiceofemirates.com\/en\/news\/2026\/07\/18\/arab-league-strongly-condemns-iranian-attacks-on-gulf-states-warns-of-disastrous-repercussions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">condemning<\/a>&nbsp;the attacks as &#8220;heinous and reckless&#8221; violations of Arab states&#8217; sovereignty. It&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.voiceofemirates.com\/en\/news\/2026\/07\/18\/arab-league-strongly-condemns-iranian-attacks-on-gulf-states-warns-of-disastrous-repercussions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">warned<\/a>&nbsp;that Iran&#8217;s actions represent &#8220;a serious and unprecedented escalation threatening the security and stability of the entire region.&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">The Arab League also&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.voiceofemirates.com\/en\/news\/2026\/07\/18\/arab-league-strongly-condemns-iranian-attacks-on-gulf-states-warns-of-disastrous-repercussions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">reaffirmed<\/a>&nbsp;its &#8220;full solidarity and unwavering support&#8221; for the Arab countries targeted by Iran.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">These statements are welcome, but words alone will not stop the Iranian regime.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">For years, Iran has systematically built an empire of armed proxies across the Arab world. Iran dominates Lebanon through Hezbollah. It exercises enormous influence over Iraq through Shiite militias. It transformed Yemen&#8217;s Houthis into a heavily armed force capable of threatening one of the world&#8217;s most important maritime trade routes. It continues to bankroll Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Iran&#8217;s influence extends&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.geopoliticalmonitor.com\/syrias-next-chapter-iran-reshapes-its-influence\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">deep into Syria<\/a>&nbsp;as well.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Taken together, these terrorist organizations form what Tehran proudly calls the &#8220;Axis of Resistance.&#8221; It is, in reality, an axis of terrorism. Its purpose is not just to destroy Israel. Its objective is to spread Iran&#8217;s revolutionary Shiite Islamist ideology, undermine moderate Arab governments, expel American influence from the Middle East, and ultimately wage&nbsp;<i>jihad<\/i>&nbsp;(holy war) against the West.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">That agenda was underscored this week in a statement attributed to Iran&#8217;s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei,&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/liveblog_entry\/in-name-of-supreme-leader-iran-warns-axis-of-resistance-will-teach-us-unforgettable-lessons\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">declaring<\/a>&nbsp;that &#8220;the American enemy&#8221; should prepare for &#8220;unforgettable lessons&#8221; from Iran and the &#8220;Axis of Resistance.&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">This is not the language of a regime seeking peace. It is the language of a regime openly threatening continued war.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Iran&#8217;s aggression is steadily&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/alhurra.com\/en\/27792\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">eroding<\/a>&nbsp;whatever sympathy it once enjoyed among many Arabs. The regime&#8217;s true face has become impossible to conceal. This new belligerence should be a turning point for Arab governments.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">According to the news website MBN:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>&#8220;Ahmed Alkhuzei, a leading analyst in Bahrain, said that as the war drags on, people increasingly experience its consequences in their daily lives. As a result, he said, they are more likely to see Tehran not as a victim but as a destabilizing force whose actions directly threaten their security and prosperity.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>&#8220;&#8216;Iran is being recast from a distant geopolitical actor into the immediate source of instability,&#8217; he told MBN.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Iran is not merely Israel&#8217;s problem. Its missiles threaten Gulf capitals. Its proxies destabilize Arab governments. Its attacks endanger Arab economies. Iranian regime ideology rejects peaceful coexistence and normalization between Arabs and Israelis &#8212; as does the ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood, currently embodied by Qatar and Turkey.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">One of Tehran&#8217;s principal strategic&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.muslimnetwork.tv\/iran-denounces-abraham-accords-as-pharaohs-pact\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">objectives<\/a>&nbsp;has always been to sabotage the Abraham Accords and prevent further normalization between Israel and its Arab neighbors. Iran understands that regional peace and cooperation weaken its revolutionary narrative and diminish the influence of its terrorist proxies.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">The Arab states therefore have every reason to openly align themselves with the United States and Israel in confronting the Iranian threat.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">This is not about choosing sides in someone else&#8217;s conflict. It is about defending their own sovereignty, their own interests, their own citizens, and their own future.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">The lesson of the past week: So long as the regime in Tehran remains committed to exporting its &#8220;Islamic Revolution&#8221; and maintaining its network of terrorist proxies, there can be no genuine security or stability in the Middle East.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">The Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding has already collapsed: it rested on the false assumption that the Iranian regime could be trusted to honor its commitments. The Islamic Republic&#8217;s own history, and its latest missile and drone attacks against the Arab world, prove otherwise.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Peace cannot be built upon deals with a regime that views every agreement merely as another tactical pause in its long war against the US, Israel, and its Arab neighbors.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Until the Iranian regime abandons its expansionist ambitions or loses the capacity to pursue them, the Middle East will remain trapped in recurring cycles of violence. Until then, the Arab states would be wise to recognize that this is their fight as much as Israel&#8217;s.<\/span><\/p>\n<hr>\n<p><span style=\"color: #808080;\"><em><strong>Khaled Abu Toameh<\/strong> is an award-winning journalist based in Jerusalem.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #808080;\"><em>Follow Khaled Abu Toameh on&nbsp;<a style=\"color: #808080;\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KhaledAbuToameh\">X (formerly Twitter)<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr style=\"height: 15px; background: #d0e6fa; width: 100%;\">\n<div id=\"content\" class=\"content-alignment\">\n<div id=\"watch-description\" class=\"yt-uix-button-panel\">\n<div id=\"watch-description-text\" style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<p><em>Zawarto\u015b\u0107 publikowanych artyku\u0142\u00f3w i materia\u0142\u00f3w nie reprezentuje pogl\u0105d\u00f3w ani opinii Reunion&#8217;68,<\/em><em><br \/>\nani te\u017c webmastera Blogu Reunion&#8217;68, chyba ze jest to wyra\u017anie zaznaczone.<br \/>\nTwoje uwagi, linki, w\u0142asne artyku\u0142y lub wiadomo\u015bci prze\u015blij na adres:<br \/>\n<\/em><span style=\"color: #000080;\"><strong><em><a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"mailto:webmaster@reunion68.com\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">webmaster@reunion68.com<\/span><\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr style=\"width: 100%;\">\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Iran&#8217;s War on the Arabs: Time for the Gulf to Stand with Israel Khaled Abu Toameh Over the past week, the Iranian regime has demonstrated once again that its ambitions extend far beyond destroying Israel. It is a war against the entire Middle East and, ultimately, against the United States and the West. Tehran then [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[6],"tags":[33,24],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/132328"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=132328"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/132328\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":132421,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/132328\/revisions\/132421"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=132328"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=132328"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=132328"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}