The winner of the terrible tragedy of October 7, contrary to what some claim, is not Hamas. The abominable crimes that this terrorist movement committed, far from a simple armed incursion which if it had only concerned military targets could have appeared as an act of resistance for its supporters, have made it forever unforgivable and indefensible. . No, the real winner is Iran. He urgently needed to put a stop to the Abraham Accords, this process which should allow the Gulf countries to find a strategic security agreement with Israel. If these agreements had prospered, this would signify the marginalization of Iran and its armed wing Hamas. Because Shiite Iran has always been the hereditary enemy of the Sunni Arabs. He is the friend of the “bad guys” – Syria, Russia, China – but also of Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen. So Iran hopes to play a winning role by presenting itself as Israel’s No. 1 enemy to make their hatred towards it take second place in the eyes of the Sunnis.
It is difficult today in the context of the Israeli army’s intervention in Gaza to predict how things will evolve. Of course, the disaster scenario, that of the total conflagration of the region, is on everyone’s minds. The Sarajevo attack, which triggered the First World War on a ground of hatred methodically maintained since 1870 between European powers, showed us that the lessons of the past are not always learned as they should be by today’s leaders. today. But there is the Other scenario.
The one that makes Iran the source of our problems, but Saudi Arabia a possible solution. The Saudis, like the Emiratis, are more silent than other countries in the region. They well understood the trap that the Iranians set for them. Because in fact their alignment of interests is much more obvious with Israel than with Iran. It is in the interest of the Saudis, as the Egyptians have done, to continue the stages of a partnership with Israel, both economically (we must prepare for the post-oil era) and strategically. The Gulf countries, with the assistance of the United States and perhaps Europe, can provide a clear framework for resolving the Palestinian problem. This would be more reassuring for Israel than a purely bilateral dialogue with a discredited Palestinian Authority. It is also the best way to reduce Hamas which, whatever happens, will never give up its terrorist fight.
In this very serious context for democratic countries (Israel included) which fully benefits the trio Iran, Russia, China, a call for recovery is essential. Western leaders must tell their respective peoples. We pay a high price – as always – for our successive cowards. The spirit of Munich is never far away when it comes to buying short-term tranquility in rich countries. We showed it vis-à-vis Putin from 2008 to 2023 on Ukraine, and we are proceeding in the same way today by letting – absolute shame – anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism flourish without seeing that this has also harms our own interests, worse, threatens our survival just as much as that of Israel. A return to reality is necessary! Our enemies want our destruction and sneer at our debates: wokization, decarbonization, human rights, are important issues… if we do not die first under the impact of their bullets, their bombs and their cyberattacks, social networks conspiracists included.
Our public opinion is perfectly ready to hear it and to remobilize. We attach far too much importance to the Mélenchonist discourse, the weight of which in the media is inversely proportional to its impact among our fellow citizens. But this requires a coming together of all the parties of the republican arc, that is to say non-populist, to finally coordinate our resistance to this mortal peril. To do this, we must put an end to our ridiculous naivety and re-establish a balance of power through a common front. From politicians to soldiers, from intellectuals to professors, from old people who have experienced war to young people who must build the free world of tomorrow, it is a sacred union that must prevail.
* Jean-François Copé is a former minister and LR mayor of Meaux