ISRAEL HAYOM
by Mudar Zahran
July 21, 2015

As a Jordanian-Palestinian politician, I and many other Arab politicians and decision-makers have come to learn that Israel is vital for our own existence. In fact, Israel has saved us, and the world, from two global disasters. The first time Israel saved us all was at the beginning of the 1980s, when Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was one of the West’s strongest Arab allies. He was against the Islamic Republic of Iran and was viewed as a necessary asset for Western governments and as a regional balance against Iran’s might. The West was in love with Saddam to the point of allowing him a nuclear program, which he obtained with France’s help. Just as Iran does today, Saddam said his nuclear program was for “peaceful and civilian use.” Saddam’s nuclear reactor was built with the approval of the United States. Israel, however, did not buy Saddam’s claims, and in 1981 sent its pilots on a mission — which they were unlikely to return from — to destroy Saddam’s nuclear reactor. READ MORE