Damascus, Syria -- The late Yasser Arafat changed his image from that of a freedom fighter to a man of peace. He had enough war medals to do so. Hamas was on the verge of repeating what Arafat did, but the latest standoff in Gaza removed the opportunity. The only solution to the crisis is to recognize and empower Hamas so that it can repeat what Arafat did: carry an "olive branch and freedom fighter's gun," not out of conviction, but out of helplessness. Don't let the olive branch fall from their hand.

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Damascus, Syria -- The world is divided on Nasrallah. Did he miscalculate and drag Lebanon into a senseless war? Or has he prepared a strong Iran-backed army that he plans on unveiling today? Regardless of the outcome, patriotism was the objective.

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Damascus, Syria -- Some observers, who believe in conspiracy theories, argue that some outside party convinced Hezbollah into this offensive. The purpose was to give Hezbollah enough rope to hang itself and commit "political suicide." The objective, at a very high cost for Lebanon, was to destroy the Lebanese resistance.

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Damascus, Syria -- Anybody in the Arab world who believes that Hezbollah will win this war, liberate the Sheba Farms or destroy Israel is simply nurturing a fantasy. I am amazed at the number of people who argue that "miracles can happen, because God is on our side!" God has nothing to do with this war. Had God been involved in the Middle East, then so much bloodshed would have been avoided over the past 100 years. And if God was involved in the Middle East, then he definitely was not on our side of the conflict since 1948. I have been hearing stories all over Syria about how Muslim leaders through the ages commanded and won terrific battles, from Omar Ibn al-Khattab to Khalid Ibn al-Walid. This talk, if anything, shows how naive we are in the Arab World.

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Damascus, Syria -- A common argument heard in the Middle East, advocated by many Israelis, is that Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and Hezbollah must disarm and join the political process in Lebanon and Palestine. They argue that all of the Jewish military groups that operated in the 1940s were forced to disarm after the creation of Israel in 1948 and were incorporated into the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). Prime Minister David Ben Gurion did not tolerate that armed groups exist within Israel, effectively becoming a "state within a state."

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