Why spring Saban support Arabic?

By Maidhc Cathail

Test of a first-rate intelligence, f. Scott Fitzgerald famously wrote, "is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function." When it comes to what has been called the "Arab spring", pass most Middle East analysts Fitzgerald test with flying colours.

Hardly anyone would dispute the claim, Haim Saban cares deeply about Israel. After all, Egyptian-born isrælsk-American media mogul admitted to the New York Times, "I'm a one issue guy, and my problem is Israel." A New Yorker profile drawn up last year:

"His greatest concern, he says, is to protect Israel, by strengthening United States-Israel relationship. At a conference described last autumn in Israel, Saban his formula. His three ways to be influential in American politics, he said, was: make donations to political parties, establishing think-tanks and manage media. "

Think tank, part of Sabans tripartite Israel-protection formula was launched in 2002 with a pledge of almost $ 13 million for the Brookings Institution to establish Saban Center for Middle East policy. In 2007 extended Saban Center operations with the launch of the Brookings Doha Center. Its Qatar-based project was inaugurated in February 2008 by Saban Center, Martin Indyk founding Director. A former research director at the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), Indyk had previously founded Institute Washington AIPAC-created for Middle East policy (WINEP).

All three experts on the Brookings Doha Center — its Director, Deputy Director and Director of research — is fellows in the Middle, while Saban calmly two of the three has close ties to Washington's "democracy promotion" enterprise. Center's Assistant Director, Ibrahim Sharqieh, succeeded former a long term USAID development project in Yemen, as well as a US State Department Middle East partnership initiative (MEPI) civic education project. According to a March 12 report in the Washington Post describes the U.S. support for the Arab Democrats, USAID grants "showed crucial for activists in a half-dozen Arab lands," funding, for example, training of groups such as the National Democratic Institute (NDI), International Republican Institute (IRI) and Freedom House of up to 80 percent of the leaders of the Egyptian rebellion. MEPI, according to an April 18 Washington Post report, have funneled up to $ 6 million to Syrian opposition groups since 2006. As further Testament Haim Saban contribution to Middle East democracy from MEPI currently Tamara Wittes, former Director of the Saban Center Middle East democracy and development (MSG) project.

Shadi Hamid, Doha Center's Director of research, is aptly described as an expert on democratization in the Middle East. Prior to working for Saban Center, he was a Hewlett Fellow at Stanford University Center on democracy, development and rule of law (CDDRL). CDDRLS Director, Larry Diamond, is the founding co-editor of the National Endowment for democracy's Journal of democracy and a lifelong advocate of Arab democracy. Hamid was also Director of the research on the project on Middle East democracy (POMED), whose Board of advisors, reading like a who's who of establishment to promote democracy includes Diamond and NDI and IRI Chairmen. Hamid has also served as a program specialist on public diplomacy at the u.s. Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. James Glassman, the former Undersecretary for public diplomacy, which brought the Middle Eastern pro-democracy activists to New York for the first Alliance of youth movements (AYM) Summit in 2008, are considered public diplomacy as "direct or indirect involvement of foreign publics to support national security objectives" subjectthat "it is much easier to be influential, when others do opinions."

On its international Advisory Council boasting Brookings Doha Center such nobel prizes of the promotion of democracy by Madeleine Albright. The former US Secretary of State at the moment, NDI, leader of the democratic affiliate of the quasi-governmental National Endowment for democracy (NED). As Kenneth Temmerman candidly admitted in 2009, "the National Endowment for democracy has spent millions of dollars in the past decade to promote the ' color ' revolutions in places like Ukraine and Serbia, training political workers in modern communications and organisational techniques." During protests in Egypt, was Albright interviewed by Rachel Maddow on MSNBC, one of Movements.org, AYM'S online hub that supports pro-democracy activities in digital activists corporate sponsors. In the light of her lack of scruples about sanctions-induced death of 500,000 Iraqi children has Albright's condemnation of the Mubarak regime's brutality should be taken with a grain of salt. More important, recognized NDI Chairman, however, that her democracy-promoting organisation had "worked in Egypt for a long time."

From the beginning of the Arab incursions, Brookings Doha Center has kærning out comments with titles like "Saleh falls," "in Syria, Assad must complete phase" and "If the United States does not make the Qaddafi go, who will?" which leaves doubt as to their position. In a recent Washington Post report, which reads more an editorial in support of Arab spring, warns the Center's Director, Salman Shaikh, "If these Arab revolutions is a footnote, and if people become frustrated and see any light at the end of the tunnelenJeg do not knowwhere it could result in people thinking on the al-Qaeda. "

Even some Middle East observers seem to ask: If Arab spring supported so unreservedly by Haim Saban think tank, which was created to protect Israel, and then how could it possibly true isrælske interests?

-Maidhc Cathail is an investigative journalist and Middle East analyst. He contributed this article to PalestineChronicle.com.