Sunday, August 27, 2017

Middle East Christians and US foreign policy

From Alfred: "This stupid article by Newsweek is trying to suggest that Middle East Christians support "America" meaning American foreign policy (run by the American Israeli lobby) and they like Trump more than former American presidents. The article mentions that in Iraq before the American invasion in 2003 there were more than 1 million Christians and now there are less than a quarter a million Christians. Many Iraqi Shiites did celebrate the overthrow of Saddam Hussein when the US invaded and destroyed Iraq, but NOT Iraqi Christians.  Who do you think they blame for this other than US foreign policy? Most of the Christians who have fled Iraq did not come to America. They immigrated to neighboring Arab countries like Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, or to Europe like Sweden, and Switzerland...states that have least supported US foreign policy.  Trump has not done ANYTHING to help Iraqi Christians! In Syria, there used to be a large number of Christians who criticized president Assad (including some of my relatives), but now they almost all support Assad. Syrian Christians blame the destruction of Syria and their community not only on pro-Israeli states like the US and Britain, but also Gulf Arab States. Trump is hated more than Obama by Syrian Christians  for bombing Syria. In Lebanon, right wing Christians have traditionally supported US foreign policy. But, since 2005, for the first time in Lebanon's history you have the largest Christian party Aoun's FPM, not only allied with Hezbollah who the US calls "terrorist", but is allied with the Syrian and Iranian regimes. Also, since 2005, the "M14" Christians have supported the US (except for US support of Israel), but have been MORE critical of Trump because of his relations with Russia. Russia has supported Assad and Iran, who "M14" Christians oppose. In Egypt, the situation of Egyptian Christians started to go bad when Egypt became an ally of the US after Nasser's death and Sadat became president who he helped strengthen the Ikhwan. The only thing Trump has done since he became president was cut American aid to Egypt, which indirectly hurts the Egyptian people, Muslims AND Christians. In Palestine, Palestinian Christians have been ethnically cleansed and colonized no differently than Palestinian Muslims. Trump is surrounded by more extremist Zionist Americans...who want to even more persecute Palestinians...Muslims and CHRISTIANS."  Of course, we can't generalize on all communities but there are some valid points: I know from the Assyrian community in Central Valley in California that what Alfred is saying is true--whether you like it or not--that many of them in fact supported Saddam and many now support Asad in Syria out of fear of the alternatives.