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Mon 13 Jan, 2003 12:35 pm
I haven't found a link yet, but I may come back and add one later.
On Fox News a few minutes ago, there was a snippet about a new Saudi Peace Plan to prevent US/Iraq hostillities. Detals of the plan are sketchy as yet, but a spokesman said the plan was about to be circulated omong the Arab Nations, and "solved many problems without the use of force".
So, are the Saudis trying to set up a buying group of nations to tender a purchase of Iraq? A "Hostile Takeover" business deal of sorts could offer an attractive alternative. The nation gets bought, the former executives retire to congenial climes, and business returns to normal. Makes sense.
timber
Not sure such a hostile take-over would be good for all concerned in the long run, given current uncertainties re where, exactly, the Saudis stand on global terrorism.
Besides, weren't hostile take-overs, kinda an '80s thing? Maybe we need to think out of the box. Iraq as a U.S. colony, perhaps. An idea so out-of-fashion, it's almost fresh! Besides, GWB et al are into the retro approach...
I would not think that this plan is so much favorable.
First of all, I am not a great admirer of the Saudi ruling dynasty. It is a very corrupt and obsolete monarchy, and its stability is dubious: it may fall a victim to militant Islamists just as Iranian monarchy did.
Second, we must consider possible ramifications of Saudis taking over Iraqi oil. This will enable them to enjoy total control over global oil prices, and this may cause different abuses. If the relatively moderate (though, obsolete and oppressive) regime is replaced with Islamists, and the latter take control of the global oil markets, the WWIII will become inevitable...
It all sounds nice. Except where will Saddam's family move to?
steissd: "If the relatively moderate (though, obsolete and oppressive) regime is replaced with Islamists, and the latter take control of the global oil markets, the WWIII will become inevitable...
ergo the government of Iraq should be replaced with a non-islamic govenment?
Of course. The people that will replace Saddam may be Muslims, but they should not involve their faith into policies of the government. Islam is a religion, Islamism is a political movement.
About Saddam's family: I would prefer Iraqi president and his sons to be extradited to the Kurdish leaders. The latter know what to do with Saddam, Udai and Kussai Hussein. Women and minors could be given a political refuge in some Arab country.
What about Israel? I misunderstood your question.
for sure steissd like the Kurds are big on democracy and international good will.
Kurds are not. In fact, they have the same approaches the rest of Iraqis have on the issues of the human rights and the stuff. Therefore, being unrestricted by different conventions etc., they can take care of Saddam and his sons better and faster than the court of the democratic country can.
Is Islam the only religion in Iraq?
If so, then the new rulers would have to be Muslim.
Absolute majority of Iraqis are Muslims. There is a small Christian minority, though. But the American Governor-General that will represent the USA after the defeat of Saddam is likely to be a Christian.
I'm surprised the Muslims have allowed Christians to live in Iraq.
Is Saddam's wife a Muslim? I've never seen her with either a veil or a head scarf.
One more question:
Is the Bedouin population in Israel strictly Muslim?
Iraqis are much less observant than Iranians or Saudis, and their women, at least in the urban areas, do not cover their faces. By the way, majority of the Palestinian women do not do this either. In fact, Saddam's regime is rather secular than religious, just like regimes of Assad in Syria or of the late Nasser in Egypt.
All the Bedouins, both in Israel and abroad (Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia), are Muslims. Majority of the Israeli Bedouins are loyal to the State of Israel, and they serve in the IDF.
Interesting. Then we could assume that Osama and the Taliban wouldn't be welcome in Iraq?
Tariq Aziz, a member of Saddam's "Inner Circle" and Iraqi Foreign Minister, is a Christian. Most Bedouin are Moslem; not all Moslems are Islamist.
timber.
As to Osama/Saddam ... ideologic differences do not always preclude pragmatic, if often covert, cooperation.
timber
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