The latest conspiracy theories of Mubarak and Ahmedinajad
By Aladdin Elaasar
Austin, Texas/ Once again, Mubarak’s state media is crying wolf. This time it is claiming another big conspiracy theory against, not only Egypt, but the whole Arab and Islamic worlds.
Mubarak’s media claims that Egyptian security had busted a net of spies- first claiming to work for Hezbollah, and then now claiming an Iranian connection. According to Mubarak’s media, Iran plans to convert, not only Arabs, but Muslims, or perhaps the whole world, into Shiism.
There is no doubt that those spies were working for Hezbollah and they admitted that they were trying to smuggle weapons to Hamas- which should be stopped by all means. Egyptian borders should not be used to smuggle weapons through tunnels in Rafah to Hamas’ terror masters who hide in schools and mosques and shoot rockets on civilians in Israel.
But the latest cry of the Mubarak regime follows a pattern of weaving and spreading conspiracy theories beyond reason; first against the Americans, then the Israelis, and now Iran.
There is no doubt that the Mullas in Tehran have been playing a subversive role towards U.S. interests in the whole region and they have been pumping lots of cash into Hezbollah and Hamas, Afghanistan, and especially in Iraq. They are the spoilers of the whole Middle Eastern politics. But the fact is both Mubarak and Ahmedinajad are two sides of the same coin. They know how to play their international and local audience, and especially the gullible Arab and Muslim masses who buy into those conspiracy theories.
Dictators do that to deflect their people’s attention from nagging domestic issues such as poverty, failing economies, grave human rights abuses, unemployment, etc.
It is very tragic that a demagogue like Ahmedinajad, after delivering his despicable speech at the U.N. on the eve of the Holocaust remembrance, would be depicted as a hero in Tehran!
But Mubarak does the same. On one hand, he is presenting himself to his allies as a partner in the War on Terror. On the other hand, Mubarak presents himself to Egyptians and Arabs as their only savior of them from those imperialist American and Zionist designs. That’s of course after cashing $2.5 billion of American taxpayers money every year that he has been receiving in foreign aid since 1981. Well, nice try Mr. Mubarak.
(Excerpts from The Last Pharaoh by permission of Beacon Press)
Aladdin Elaasar is a columnist and lecturer. He wrote “The Last Pharaoh: Mubarak and the Uncertain Future of Egypt in the Volatile Mid East”. Elaasar has been a frequent commentator on Middle Eastern affairs on several local American TV and Radio networks and media and cultural consultant. Email: omaraladin-AT-aol.com