Trying to make sense of terror

THE BIG NEWS in the Mideast may be the bombings of three hotels in Jordan, but today only a handful of editorial pages in the region focus on the tragedy.

The Jordan Times, an English-language daily based in Amman, trumpets the inner strength of the country in the face of terror, highlighting its role as “a model of stability and security in a constantly turbulent area.” Jordanians practice “the true Islam of tolerance, dignity, respect for human life and understanding of the other,” the editorial proclaims. “Terrorists hit Jordan because it embodies what they despise the most: Peace.”

The Gulf Today, based in the United Arab Emirates, delves further into policy questions raised by the attacks, condemning the U.S. for stoking violence in the region. The paper also notes that Abu Musab Zarqawi, leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq and purported mastermind of the bombings, was freed, along with other political prisoners, under an amnesty from Jordan’s King Abdullah II in 1999. The paper condemns Zarqawi for targeting “the kingdom that showed mercy on him.”

Other papers in the region look at issues closer to home. Haaretz, a Tel Aviv-based daily, considers the ramifications of Amir Peretz’s election to head the Labor Party at a time of trouble for Ariel Sharon’s Likud Party. Peretz wants Labor to pull out of the coalition government, which could prompt a new election.

The Daily Star, based in Beirut, condemns Syrian President Bashar Assad as a hypocrite who bashes the West for oppressing Arabs while his regime does exactly the same in the name of self-preservation.

Swati Pandey