At times the present reminds you of the past. It is an old dialogue I heard and didn't expect to remember two decades later. Indeed, I remembered in Beirut a dialogue I had heard in Tunisia. The Arab situation was gloomy. Saddam Hussein's regime had invaded Kuwait, and it was no secret that war was looming on the horizon. I contacted the member of the Fatah movement's central committee Salah Khalaf (Abou Iyad) to hear his viewpoint about the prevailing catastrophic situation on the Arab scene. I entered the Palestinian leader's headquarters, not expecting him to make any revelations that go beyond political generalities, as there was no close relation between us. Incidentally, the man was in the mood of making disclosures and confessions, as if his intuition told him what awaited the cause for which he had fought for decades in the Fatah wars and the security background. I wanted to talk about the Arab situation in general, but he insisted to direct the dialogue towards the situation in Lebanon. He said: “Truth be said, the most annoying thing about the Lebanese is that they do not know the value of their country. They are certainly smart, but they have tragic flaws. They also do not know the value of Beirut, a true jewel on the Mediterranean.” I smiled, and he realized that I had a question in mind: Why didn't you spare this jewel either? He hastily said: “We are all, without exception, criminals regarding Beirut. Those who fired, those who connived, those who encouraged, those who conspired, those who lived an illusion, and also those who executed in goodwill. After Beirut, we are bare. We will not find another Beirut, and we shall pay a high price for this.” He added: “Don't ask me about some of my rash and impulsive statements, as I regret making them, as well as many other things: from disrespecting the Lebanese state to provoking some of the Lebanese and taking advantage of the weakness of others; from working on dismantling the army to pressuring some Christians and letting them fall in the devil's embrace. Our enemies were not innocent. America, Israel, and many sides conspired against us and ensnared us, and we fell in the trap because of our divisions and outbidding.” I was astonished, as I wasn't expecting this kind of confessions. However, what mattered was the message Abou Iyad wanted to convey as he went on: “We acted badly, and made erroneous calculations and wagers. We conducted ourselves like desperate people who were expelled from their country. What amazes me is the way the Lebanese acted, regardless of their allegiances, and whether or not they supported us. They acted as if they owned another country, while in fact they have nothing but the land they burned and that we burned with them. Let me tell you something painful: If the Lebanese do not learn, they could wake up one day and realize they have no country anymore. There are criminals who have no mercy on their case, and there are criminals who have no mercy on their country.” I remember Abou Iyad's words today, as Beirut is going through times filled with fear, anticipation, and concern. The Lebanese are acting as if they owned other countries, and alternative countries, while they have nothing but a tent that a storm is threatening to uproot.
