The pundits this week focussed on the Palestinian-Israeli peace process and Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's visit to the US. But in the London-based daily Asharq Al-Awsat, Mshari Al-Zayed also criticised the mingling of politics and religion as happened in the involvement of the religious institution of Al-Azhar in Palestinian inter- reconciliation. In "Grand Sheikh of Al-Azhar, why?" Al-Zayed wrote, "It wasn't long before Egypt's Grand Sheikh of Al-Azhar, Ahmed El-Tayeb found himself involved in the problems of political fatwas in our Arab world." Al-Tayeb recently issued a fatwa that "inter- Palestinian reconciliation is a religious obligation and sacred duty" and that "whoever obstructs or impedes this is committing a sin". "I am not against the idea of reconciliation or deny the importance of mending Palestinian fences... in order to spare the residents of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank from being used in the bazaar of politics and regional bargaining," Al-Zayed wrote. However, Al-Zayed argues that the rift between Fatah and Hamas is more than just an ethical issue, but rather something that is political at heart. "The inter-Palestinian reconciliation card is being used in a game played by the axis of power in the Middle East," he wrote. Al-Zayed also stressed that pundits complain about political Islamist groups utilising religion to achieve their political aspirations. "Therefore, how could the grand sheikh of Al-Azhar, who is known to be a rational and wise scholar, fall into the same trap?" Al-Zayed wrote. "I wish that our wise Sheikh El-Tayeb would devote his time and efforts to explaining an all- encompassing Islam, tolerance and the new school of jurisprudence, and avoid involving religion in political conflict. "In the end, I sincerely hope, from the bottom of my heart, that inter-Palestinian reconciliation is achieved as soon as possible, but that is a different story," Al-Zayed concluded. Also in Asharq Al-Awsat, Abdel-Rahman Al-Rashid wrote about "Netanyahu's historic visit" to the US. In the article which was published before Netanyahu's trip to the US Al-Rashid quoted an Israeli official who described Netanyahu's scheduled meeting with US President Barack Obama as being an event that will change the history of the region. "So what is this news that will change history?" Al-Rashid wondered. "Netanyahu could say that he ruined the region in a historic manner. He has helped Arab and Islamist extremists emerge in the region at the expense of moderates. He weakened Mahmoud Abbas's government and distorted its reputation among its own citizens, despite all of its efforts to institute domestic reform and promote a peaceful solution to the Palestinian- Israeli conflict," Al-Rashid charged. "Netanyahu also spoiled the crucial relationship between Israel and Egypt, and pushed others like moderate Turkey towards Iran, Hamas and others," he added. Al-Rashid argued that regardless of Netanyahu's agenda in Washington and his promise of "historic change", enthusiasm has waned due to Israel's stalling and procrastination, and as a result of the US administration's failure to manifest a political figure capable of getting things done on the ground. "Due to Netanyahu's reputation, there is not much hope that his visit will live up to its promise," Al-Rashid wrote. Al-Rashid advised Obama that, "if he does not want a battle with the Israeli lobby at a time when US mid-term elections are fast approaching", then he must at least allow the Europeans to try out their plan to vote in favour of the establishment of a Palestinian state, and for this issue to take its legal course through the corridors of the United Nations. "The Europeans are eager to test the idea of establishing a Palestinian state via the UN, in a form that is expected to be accepted by all countries in the world except for Netanyahu's Israel," Al-Rashid wrote. "This is a Palestinian state within the pre-1967 borders in the Gaza Strip, along with the return of the Golan Heights to Syria. This is the same form adopted by the Arabs in the historic Arab peace initiative, and endorsed by an international majority, in return for which the Arab states officially recognise Israel and formally announce the end of the conflict," Al-Rashid concluded. In the daily Al-Hayat Maged Al-Sheikh wrote on the prospects of a Turkish regional role. He argued that the increased Turkish role in the Middle East is to compensate for its failure to join the EU rather than a genuine endeavour to defend the national causes of the region. Al-Sheikh argued that in the process of transition to a multi-polar world, Turkey knew how to prepare the Middle East to its growing role in the region, and gain public acceptance. Turkey attempted to overcome all problems with its regional neighbours as part of its "policy of zero problems" after the Europeans turned down Turkey's membership in the European Union, after half a century of Turkish demands. "Turkey thus turned to the East in a compensatory bid, but without decoding its partnerships with the West, or ending full diplomatic relations with Israel," Al-Sheikh wrote. The UAE newspaper Al-Bayan praised the visit by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to Algeria to offer condolences to the Algerian president whose brother passed away. Relations between both countries were strained following last year's World Cup qualifying matches in Egypt and Sudan. "What the Egyptian president did was end months of strained relations. It is an example of how the Arab world should tackle its problems," the editorial wrote. The editorial also praised the statement by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry which stressed that, "the two countries have been working closely for the past 60 years and still have the will to maintain a strong relationship capable of defending the rights of the Arabs and the security of the region."
