West Asia News and Discussions

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 21 Feb 2011 23:26

Bade watch Bahrain and the events in Manama. They have more bearing on KSA than any other protests. The reason is oil rich Eastern KSA is Shia. And Bahrain is Shia seeking self-determination ie get rid of the Sunni Sheiks ruling Bahrain. All of them are Arab Shias and not Iranian Shias.

In one way this is return of the Fatimids!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fatimid_Caliphate

pgbhat · Post by **pgbhat** » 21 Feb 2011 23:38

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/stor ... =133940091

The source, who insisted he not be identified further, said the jet pilots — both Libyan air force colonels — had communicated from the air that they wanted political asylum. They had left from a base near Tripoli and had flown low over Libyan airspace to avoid detection, the source said.

suryag · Post by **suryag** » 22 Feb 2011 00:14

I think if unkil does the needful in Shri Davis' case we might be facing an unlikely situation of enormous civil unrest fanned by mullahs against the PA giving us an opportunity to get Kashmir, Gilgit and Baltistan. Hope RAW is doing something other than nothing to make this possibility a likely event. Ideal case would be pakis and saudis both facing civil unrest. I will vote for Shri MMS/INC if they do this

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 22 Feb 2011 00:32

Bade, KSA will implode when King Abdullah dies (not. Too long as he is old and suffering from cancer, crown prince can't do any more work he is in so much pain).
They are going to face serious unrest in a few years when young educated people return from abroad to find that they have no work, high rents, women can't work.
The way things are going the arab world is going to implode. Bahrain will hold it together as their sunni population is not that small and most are satisfied with the benefits provided by the royal family.
Bahrain will be fine for now, it has low unemployment too.

------------------------

There are bodies literred in the street in Libya. Al Jazeera has got pictures that are too graphic to show.
Shocking that such a scumbag would do this to his own people. The guy is not mentally stable.

Apparently the Italian military MAY intervene! This is going to be interesting.

If I was India right now, I'd get those Il-76's with some commando's to go and rescue the 18000 Indians and many BD's, SL's or send a naval warship to pick them up from Tripoli.
I think lines have been crossed. BP and all other businesses are pulling their staff out.

Video of Libyan Mirage fighters that defected to Malta. Also note item on French fleeing in helicopters. http://bit.ly/gvWZtz

Venkarl · Post by **Venkarl** » 22 Feb 2011 01:14

suryag wrote:..enormous civil unrest fanned by mullahs against the PA giving us an opportunity to get Kashmir, Gilgit and Baltistan...

Can you elaborate on this on an appropriate thread?

Sriman · Post by **Sriman** » 22 Feb 2011 01:50

shyamd wrote: Shocking that such a scumbag would do this to his own people. The guy is not mentally stable.

Apparently the bodies of soldiers who refused to shoot at the protestors in Libya:

Warning: Graphic content. NSFW

http://muscvlvs.blogspot.com/2011/02/th ... ibyan.html

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 22 Feb 2011 02:22

The guy in the video is screaming, "I swear to God that guy is a dog!". "That Dog!"
______________
Iranian Clerics are telling Bahraini shia's to accept King Hamad's call for dialogue. All political prisoners have been released by the way.

brihaspati · Post by **brihaspati** » 22 Feb 2011 02:27

The mullahs have little or no role to play in this "revolution" in its initial phase. They were after all in complete cahoots with the respective "dictators". No, this is a common phenomenon in all of the Islamic countries - where the rulers turn autocratic naturally given the submission-dominance theme of Islam, and the large part of the mullahs come to an understanding with the rulers.

But mullah-cracy is always in a tussle with the personal ambitions of rulers, and from time to time power struggle becomes bloody. However, a really open and representative democracy that is also demanding transparency from the regime is not really the best model for an Islamic state as well as for mullahcracy. So in all of the Arab-world conflicts between regime and people, the push for reforms and popular empowerment always were led by the leftists in the interwar period, and then once the popular anger weakened or stunned the rulers a bit - the rulers, the mullahs and the European colonial power with a current interest [mostly the Brits] - always came to an understanding and turned uprisings into a renewal of Islamic theocracy.

This time around, as far as I know - the youth are [at least a part of it] conscious of this historical burden. But the mullahs [as MB] are finding it difficult to establish control over the internet generation.

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 22 Feb 2011 03:23

There is talk of protests ocurring for the release of political prisoners in eastern KSA.

Facebook group has been started for protests in KSA. These are their demands:

The People want to Reform the Government Campaign

To support the right of the Saudi people and their legitimate aspirations:
1 – a constitutional monarchy between the king and government.
2 – a written constitution approved by the people in which governing powers will be determined.
3 – transparency, accountability in fighting corruption
4 – the Government in the service of the people
5 – legislative elections.
6 – public freedoms and respect for human rights
7 – allowing civil society institutions
8 – full citizenship and the abolition of all forms of discrimination.
9 – Adoption of the rights of women and non-discrimination against them.
10 – an independent and fair judiciary.
11 – impartial development and equitable distribution of wealth.
12 – to seriously address the problem of unemployment

The organisers commit to no sectarianism, no violence and no religious driven speeches.

brihaspati · Post by **brihaspati** » 22 Feb 2011 03:30

There are some hints given by some contacts that "western" rogue think-tank/money/fund-moguls had funded the effort at an inner level. But could be a counter smear move. Whatever be the fund-mogul's intention, real or imaginary - the outcome is not bad, so I support it. Have to go through the two-phase cleaning up process. But even if fund-moguls started it or were enticed into it - they should realize that the situation will not be under their control! So I am inclined not to believe in this entirely.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 22 Feb 2011 03:51

Pioneer Op-Ed....

What triggered the Arab unrest?

OPED | Tuesday, February 22, 2011 |

What has triggered Arab unrest?

February 22, 2011 4:20:04 AM

Gwynne Dyer

The revolution of 1989 was the outcome of people’s realisation that the Soviet Union would no longer intervene militarily to preserve the Communist regimes in eastern Europe. Now the Arabs know that the US will not intervene militarily to protect the regimes that rule them

Why now? Why revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt this year, rather than last year, or 10 years ago, or never? The protestors now taking to the street daily in Jordan, Yemen, Bahrein, Libya and Algeria are obviously inspired by the success of those revolutions, but what got the process started? What changed the Middle East?

Yes, of course the Arab world is largely ruled by the autocratic regimes that suppress all opposition and dissent, sometimes with great cruelty. Yes, of course many of those regimes are corrupt, and some of them are effectively in the service of foreigners. Of course, most Arabs are poor and getting poorer. But that has all been true for decades. It never led to revolutions before.

Maybe the frustration and resentment that have been building up for so long just needed a spark. Maybe the self-immolation of a single young man set Tunisia alight, and from there the flames spread quickly to half -a-dozen other Arab countries. But you cannot find anybody who really believes that this could just as easily have happened five years ago, or 10, or 20.

Yet, there is no reason to suppose that the level of popular anger has gone up substantially in the past two or five or 10 years. It’s high all the time, but in normal times most people are very cautious about expressing it openly. You can get hurt that way.

Now they are expressing their anger very loudly indeed, and long-established Arab regimes are starting to panic. The fall of President Hosni Mubarak in Egypt, by far the largest Arab country, makes it possible that many other autocratic regimes in the Arab world could fall like dominoes. The rapid collapse of the Communist regimes in Europe in 1989 is a frightening precedent for them. But, once again, why is this happening now?

‘Social media’ is one widely touted explanation, and the Al Jazeera network’s wall-to-wall coverage of the events in Tunisia and Egypt is another. Both are plausible parts of the explanation, for the availability of means of communication that are beyond the reach of state censorship clearly makes mass mobilisation much easier.

If people are ready to come out on the street and protest, these media make it easier for them to organise and easier for the example of the protestors to spread. But this really does not explain why they are ready to come out at last.

The one thing that is really different in the Middle East, just in the last year or two, is the self-evident fact that the US is starting to withdraw from the region. From Lebanon in 1958 to Iraq in 2003, the US was willing to intervene militarily to defend Arab regimes it liked and overthrow those that it did not like. That’s over now.

This great change is partly driven by the thinly disguised American defeat in Iraq. The last US troops are leaving that country this year, and after that grim experience US public opinion will not countenance another major American military intervention in the region. The safety net for Arab regimes allied to the US is being removed, and their people know it.

There is also a major strategic reassessment going on in Washington, and it will almost certainly end by downgrading the importance of the Middle East in US policy. The Arab masses do not know that, but the regimes certainly do, and it undermines their confidence.

The traditional motives for American strategic involvement in the Middle East were oil and Israel. American oil supplies had to be protected, and the Cold War was a zero-sum game in which any regime that the US did not control was seen to be at risk of falling into the hands of the Soviet Union. And quite apart from sentimental considerations, Israel had to be protected because it was an important military asset.

But the Cold War is long over, and so is the zero-sum game in the Middle East. The Arab oil exporters choose their customers on a purely commercial basis, and they have to sell their oil to support their growing populations. You don’t need to control them or threaten them to get oil from them; just send them a cheque. Besides, less than a fifth of America’s oil imports now come from the Arab world.

As for Israel, its military value to the US has gone into a steep decline since the end of the Cold War. Nor does it need American protection: It is a dwarf superpower that towers over its Arab neighbours militarily. So, remind me again: Why, exactly, should the US see ‘stability’ in the Middle East as a vital national interest?

The revolutions of 1989 became possible when people in the Eastern European countries realised that the Soviet Union would no longer intervene militarily to preserve the Communist regimes that ruled them. Is another 1989 possible in the Arab world? Well, the Arabs now know that the US will not intervene militarily to protect the regimes that rule them.

-- Gwynne Dyer is a London-based independent journalist.

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 22 Feb 2011 05:09

Ramana, I disagree with the Pioneer Op-ed. A far simpler explanation is (a) demographic bulge (b) several years of preparation and (c) rising food prices.

Regarding the preparation:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/14/world ... tests.html

CAIRO — As protesters in Tahrir Square faced off against pro-government forces, they drew a lesson from their counterparts in Tunisia: “Advice to the youth of Egypt: Put vinegar or onion under your scarf for tear gas.”

The exchange on Facebook was part of a remarkable two-year collaboration that has given birth to a new force in the Arab world — a pan-Arab youth movement dedicated to spreading democracy in a region without it. Young Egyptian and Tunisian activists brainstormed on the use of technology to evade surveillance, commiserated about torture and traded practical tips on how to stand up to rubber bullets and organize barricades.
...
The Egyptian revolt was years in the making. Ahmed Maher, a 30-year-old civil engineer and a leading organizer of the April 6 Youth Movement, first became engaged in a political movement known as Kefaya, or Enough, in about 2005. ...

I'm sure it also drew inspiration from the attempted Green Revolution in Iran.

SwamyG · Post by **SwamyG** » 22 Feb 2011 06:29

The situation in Libya is turning to something irreversible.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/2 ... 26272.html

1. Air force pilots defect (to whom ?)
2. Military officials call for removal of Gaddafi.
3. Government building ablaze in Tripoli.
4. Government officials in Libya and outside Libya resign.
5. Warplanes and snipers targeting Libyans.

Last battle in Tripoli that decides the fate? If Tripoli falls Gaddafi is toast. Else he gets a lifeline.

Added:
Al Jajzeera reporting "Gaddafi's hold on Libya weakens": http://english.aljazeera.net/news/afric ... 42497.html

Look at the below photo; me thinks definitely someone outside is helping. Gaddafi's caricature must have been printed and posters created quickly and distributed, it requires good organization skills no?

RamaY · Post by **RamaY** » 22 Feb 2011 06:43

I am thinking in lines of Pioneer op-ed.

The US is leaving the region and it is ensuring that other "interested" powers cannot have same control as it did in that region.

It is like US's stated policy of nuking ME if USSR were to achieve control of that region.

If arab silent majority is just interested in roti, kapda, aur makaan as our liberal brothers say, Israel should have nothing to worry.

Bade · Post by **Bade** » 22 Feb 2011 06:46

Gaddafi is already toast. Even the Qatari PM has come out openly on Al-Jazeera criticizing the Libyan govt actions. Very interesting indeed. Was wondering if Qataris are positioning themselves in the fast changing Arab world, or trying to avert any local protests. Al-Jazeera being Doha based gives them quite a moral edge among the mango Arabs.

Ramana, the Pioneer article is what I think is the closest reason to the truth. USA pulling back and staying back seat has a big part in all that is happening. POTUS is smarter than I had given credit for.

Shyamd, you seem to be closer to the happenings. British arms being used against protesters. The decaying moral empire, isn't it.

SwamyG · Post by **SwamyG** » 22 Feb 2011 06:53

RamaY wrote: If arab silent majority is just interested in roti, kapda, aur makaan as our liberal brothers say, Israel should have nothing to worry.

India and us should be wary of this artificial modern construct called Israel. One of the two countries created based on religion/ethnicity in 1940s that have caused lots of PITA directly or indirectly to this World. The other being our "friendly" Pakistan. Sometimes, we consider the enemy of enemy as friends; and we have been sympathizing with them disproportionately. Israel, as we know it, is West's baby.

Added:
I am unable to exactly position Al Jajzeera. It has hard hitting articles on America, and then it also has extensive coverage of the "revolutions". The opinions and news material are not bad. They have made a mark. I saw Jaswant Singh's article there. Definitely have been attracting lots of journalists.

RamaY · Post by **RamaY** » 22 Feb 2011 07:04

SwamyG garu,

There is a huge difference between the foundations of Israel and Pakistan. The first one is the home coming of a displaced civilization (for whatever reasons), where as the second one is land-grabbing of an invading ideology (again for whatever reasons).

I am watching AJ live as we speak. Reading its back ground, it is an interesting media outlet; reminded me uNDTV within first 10 mins; a local BBC.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 22 Feb 2011 07:05

Bade, The Pioneer op-ed is by Gwen Dyer a British columnist. If she is right it means the current crisis in Arab dictatorial allies is due to the US defeat in Iraq and the 2008 financial meltdown. In that it resembles the end of Warsaw pact Communist regimes after the FSU defeat in Afghanistan and the fall of Berlin Wall.

SwamyG, They might not have outside help. The inner resentment has been bottled up for decades if not centuries.

After colonial rule ended both Soviets and US propped one dictator after the other in name of stability. After FSU collapsed the regimes just turned a new leaf and got US support or benign neglect. Now with US in retreat we can see a new wind blowing thru ME.

That means the wind hopefully becomes a whirlwind and lows the TSP system down.

Bade · Post by **Bade** » 22 Feb 2011 07:26

From the Indian pov, all that has happened in the immediate past, like end of cold war, 9/11, Iraq, US presence in TSP has not really made a very big difference to the security in our neighborhood. Now even PRC is to be accounted for with their oil interests in the ME. Hence, any change should be welcome even if the outcome is not known a-priori with a certainty that it will help us necessarily. We can see what this will do for us with time.

habal · Post by **habal** » 22 Feb 2011 07:49

brihaspati wrote:There are some hints given by some contacts that "western" rogue think-tank/money/fund-moguls had funded the effort at an inner level. But could be a counter smear move. Whatever be the fund-mogul's intention, real or imaginary - the outcome is not bad, so I support it. Have to go through the two-phase cleaning up process. But even if fund-moguls started it or were enticed into it - they should realize that the situation will not be under their control! So I am inclined not to believe in this entirely.

It may be a part of the riddle.

Commodities manipulation (fund-moguls/rogue money) -> Price rise -> Popular unrest -> trigger (money/funds) -> mobilised youth against rotting regimes -> balance in ME shifts from Sunni to Shia.

there are also some 'false charges' here. Some regimes are being targeted to serve as a warning for others to not intervene in the neighbouring unrest. For example Bahrain may be to keep Saudi on backfoot.

handing over balance of power in ME to Shias is important incase Sunni-majority countries like Pakistan need to be attacked/invaded.

Gagan · Post by **Gagan** » 22 Feb 2011 08:17

The natural gut tendency of the youth in the arab world would be to critisize the US. Anti americanism is reflexly ingrained in the youth there.
An example is the fact that during the heydays of the Al Qaida movement and at the peak of his popularity OBL tapped onto this widespread feeling to the fact that the 9/11 hijackers were arabs, and the young arabs mostly rejoiced when 9/11 happened.

Yet we have revolution after revolution happening today, against leaders who have ALL been holding onto power due to the support of the western nations, and yet we don't hear anti-west anti-american slogans?

It would appear that the west is quick on its feet and very early on decided to put in its weight with the public, and might even be the soundless drummer to whose tune the abduls are revolting.

SwamyG · Post by **SwamyG** » 22 Feb 2011 08:26

RamaY wrote:SwamyG garu,

There is a huge difference between the foundations of Israel and Pakistan. The first one is the home coming of a displaced civilization (for whatever reasons), where as the second one is land-grabbing of an invading ideology (again for whatever reasons).

I disagree about the home coming part....I have ZERO sympathy for both countries....but I empathize with the actual people living in those two countries. European guilt, Christian Ideology, Zionism ityadi were some factors.
http://blogs.christianpost.com/endtimes ... ophecy-20/

Frankly, the Big 3 have caused immense takleef to this World for a long time now. The difference between the takleef caused by these 3 vs rest of the other religions/ideologies are that these have been ongoing for thousands of years now and have impact more people across this planet.

Gagan wrote:Yet we have revolution after revolution happening today, against leaders who have ALL been holding onto power due to the support of the western nations, and yet we don't hear anti-west anti-american slogans?

That is why I have been on the look out for any signs of protest against Amir Khan.

Bade · Post by **Bade** » 22 Feb 2011 08:38

See how weak Secy of State Clinton's statement was. Lot of Oil companies (not BP alone?) operate in Libya, no ? Even though it is the Italians and Brits who have been the most pally friends of late with the Libyan regime and quite circumspect too with their remarks.

Look how well fed the people look who are supposed to be poor(?) by whose standards, in the streets rioting and putting their lives on the line. No bearded ones either. The middle east looks nothing like the neighbor to the west.

habal · Post by **habal** » 22 Feb 2011 09:08

to note is fact that until now only regimes close to Saudi rulers have been targeted. Pakistan's chance will come at fag end.

maybe they got wind of that and got hold of RD as bargaining chip.

Samudragupta · Post by **Samudragupta** » 22 Feb 2011 09:28

It seems Hezbollah cadres has been despatched ti Iran, if there can be civil war in Libya, whay can't it be in Iran where the condition is much more volatile?

Sriman · Post by **Sriman** » 22 Feb 2011 09:36

Samudragupta wrote:It seems Hezbollah cadres has been despatched ti Iran, if there can be civil war in Libya, whay can't it be in Iran where the condition is much more volatile?

I'd assume because the Iranian security forces are much more competent and loyal (esp Pasdaran and Basij in particular) to the regime.

Vikas · Post by **Vikas** » 22 Feb 2011 10:16

I Guess every few decades, the wind blows in a particular direction causing unrest, revolts, new ideas and then new crop. Half a century back, it was Indian subcontinent, then came Africa, later East asi and then in the end it was East Europe and FSU.
Now 2 decades later, it is the last bastion of autocracy,mullahcracy,dictatorship all rolled in one which is ME. It's the idea whose time has come.
We may again see similar leaders few years down the line in ME, but the youth of ME have tasted blood and there is no going back this time.
More than Qadhafi whose time is up, it should be rest of the rulers in Arab world who should be getting their undies in twist not knowing when there number would come. The military was the joker in the pack for these regimes and Military this time has thrown its lot with the people power this time.

India should welcome these movements because there is no animity against India. On the contrary, most of the folks in ME have pleasant and friendly idea about India. The new govt would not carry the baggage of the past where lot of stuff was seen thru tinted glasses of 70's,80's and 90's.
Remember the regimes which are falling have rulers when Swaran Singh used to be the FM and IG was the PM and India was still the land of snake charmers and dirt poor people with no claim to fame.

The only thing that makes me wonder is that most of the protests are happening in the capitol city and the regimes are falling.
It is like protest in I'bad and Groper's govt. collapses.

habal · Post by **habal** » 22 Feb 2011 10:20

every movement needs 3 pre-requisites.

*conducive environment
*protestors need funding & back-up
*external support

no movement works on basis of simply being idelogically inspired, though that is the impression all of them bar none, seek to convey.

Bade · Post by **Bade** » 22 Feb 2011 10:27

external support can be the expats, and not necessarily outside govt or their agents.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 22 Feb 2011 10:53

Vikas, Protests in capital spreading to provinces is a sign of regime change due to political dynamics. A true revolution originates in the periphery and collapses the center. Libya would fit that model.

habal · Post by **habal** » 22 Feb 2011 11:00

they can be invited by media to support views held by protestors and eventually they can become pawns of those actually orchestrating the show.

that being said one can't make the case for automatically suspecting individual govts, eventhough they may hold power to make these changes. US for instance seems to be chasing the tail wind of this agitation with the aim to give an impression to surfing the waves of the agitation.

I don't believe this movement has sprung overnight, there needs to be considered planning and co-ordination and players in the respective miilitaries of these countries need to be taken into confidence. No aam aadmi organization from within these countries can manage all this by themselves. Libyan pilots would have dared to jump ship if only they were secure in the knowledge that they would be backed-up. There have been opinions by some observers suspective supra-organizations like CFR, Trilateral comission etc behind the string of these revolts.

http://www.youtube.com/user/RussiaToday
from :40

abhishek_sharma · Post by **abhishek_sharma** » 22 Feb 2011 11:10

Why Saudi is now in play

http://oilandglory.foreignpolicy.com/po ... ow_in_play

abhishek_sharma · Post by **abhishek_sharma** » 22 Feb 2011 11:12

The wealthy, unaccountable monarchs of the Persian Gulf have long thought themselves exempt from Middle East turmoil. No longer.

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2 ... _the_realm

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 22 Feb 2011 11:18

Looks like schadenfruede from US media towards their now "lords of realms" or rather "Lords of Flies!"

It was an American Reporter who pumped up Ibn Saud as freedom fighter in NYT and got oil concessions that led to ARAMCO.

Do look him up.

In the movie Lawrence of Arabia, he is the American along with that cameraman!

Apost on the Curse of Lawrence of Arabia

abhishek_sharma · Post by **abhishek_sharma** » 22 Feb 2011 11:47

Kingdom Come: The United States may need Saudi Arabia -- but do they need us?

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2 ... ngdom_come

abhishek_sharma · Post by **abhishek_sharma** » 22 Feb 2011 11:52

On US veto of UN resolutions on Israeli settlements

http://walt.foreignpolicy.com/posts/201 ... hite_house

abhishek_sharma · Post by **abhishek_sharma** » 22 Feb 2011 12:10

Reform or the flood in the Gulf

http://mideast.foreignpolicy.com/posts/ ... n_the_gulf

Vikas · Post by **Vikas** » 22 Feb 2011 12:36

Lot of us (including me) tend to view Arab states thru the glasses of Pakis i.e. We know and understand Paki behavior and then we extrapolate the same and apply same constraints and narrative to Arab world.
I used to assume that youth of Arab world too is of the nature 'Jeehard" at the drop of a hat and that they are leading a life of debauchery and multiple wives and hidden western life styles.
The more I look at these revolutions, the more I realize that most of the Arabic youth are just like us in terms of what they want from society and what they are willing to do for it.
The basic needs are mostly about Freedom, right to life and decent sex life, be it the youth in Seattle or the one standing in front of tank regiment in Tienanmen square or the one who spent all his life in A&M island for this vague idea of Freedom.
Unfortunately for ME regimes, With the advent of WWW and facebooks and twitters, the world is becoming flatter than ever and all the dissatisfied souls are going to ask for answers and change.

My only hope is that the Mid-eastern regimes don't somehow do a packi on their population and attack Israel. There is a fair chance that an ebattled sheikh/dictator might open a front with Israel just to divert attention.

PS: Did someone notice that there were lots of women on the street when protests erupted in Tehran but there aren't that many woman in Egyptian or Libyan protests.

svinayak · Post by **svinayak** » 22 Feb 2011 12:43

VikasRaina wrote:
PS: Did someone notice that there were lots of women on the street when protests erupted in Tehran but there aren't that many woman in Egyptian or Libyan protests.

That is the diff between the shia and sunni

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 22 Feb 2011 13:15

Vikas, arabs come in many different ways, characters differ regionally. The Gulf in general is fairly similar, you'll find people who drink all day and you'll find people who woudn't shake a women's hand. This is the Gulf world.
Then in some elite families, they are modern yet very conservative. It really depends who you are, region environment etc. Arabs are no paki abduls.
North Africa is a different kettle of fish.

There was also a comment earlier that they thought people would be shouting "allah o Akbar" and burning US flags. This wasn't really the case.