What to make of President Obama's apathy towards a Middle East in turmoil?
Judging by recent statements and actions, President Barack Obama might be concerned by the unparalleled proliferation of al-Qaeda. However, he is hardly alarmed that it has become a rallying cry for Jihadi movements, from the Atlantic to the Indian Ocean affiliates, controlling larger territories, with more fighters and with greater appeal. And he's unruffled by the fact that his administration's prediction of its demise proved imprudent, if not naive.
Nor is the US president terribly alarmed by the fact that three years after the withdrawal of American forces, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has occupied towns and cities in Iraq and Syria. Nor does he seem overly concerned about the terrible violence and suffering in Syria with its far-reaching repercussions on the instability in the Middle East region.
Obama looked the other way as the political system that Washington left behind in Iraq collapsed and led to almost 10,000 deaths last year. And he wouldn't get the US militarily involved in the Syrian conflict, which is spreading to neighbouring countries, despite the domestic and international pressure to do so.
And if you expected the White House to react to Iran and Hezbollah's military involvement in favour of the Assad regime, think again. Although he's gotten a Congressional approval to strike the Syrian regime after its use of chemical weapons against its people, Obama backed off at the last minute in favour of a diplomatic initiative to disarm Assad of his chemical arsenal. Now, he wants to work through, not against, Assad's backers to arrive at a solution in the devastated country.
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