The changing mood of the Arab League

In response to Tehminah’s post I found this article in the New York Times. It offers an explanation for the changing mood of the Arab League.

According to the author, the support given by the Arab League to the no-fly zone was probably only a personal revenge from some of the Middle East rulers against Kaddahfi:

It was clear that those backing the no-fly zone, the analysts said, especially the king of Saudi Arabia and the emir of Qatar, most likely drew personal satisfaction from the effort to push Colonel Qaddafi from power, though they did not say so.

The question is then what kind of legitimacy does this organization has anyway? Is it supporting the “Arab Street” or is it just a club of angry leaders wanting to punish the villain Colonel who claimed to be the King of the kings of Africa?

In any case, as I wrote in Tehminah’s blog I honestly think that some of the leaders might have wanted a western intervention because they knew  that they were the only ones who could stop Kaddafi . However, obviously, when the intervention started and civilians got killed they did not want to be held responsible for the collateral damages.

Not only, this proves the inconstancy of the decisions made by the League, but it also shows a recurrent tension with the West that they don’t how to deal with. In their everlasting fight against Western imperialism it is truly hard for them to admit that they need a Western coalition to save their civilians. Furthermore, as Tehminah mentioned, with the current unstable situation, each decision they take can be crucial for the evolution of the situation in their own country.

It is essential to understand their ambiguous relation with the West and I acknowledge that it is hard to deal with such a long history of imperialism. Furthermore, cynics claim that the Western “humanitarian” intervention is an imperialist move to control the revolution and the natural resources that are in Libya.  However, whether that is true or not, I think that people were being killed on the ground and someone had to act. It is too easy to ask for help and then withdraw support.