Exclusive: Betrayal on All Sides

Now it’s obvious that the Iraqis aren’t going to put up a credible fight, and it’s equally clear that as a result the world has changed into pretty much what the Americans wanted it to be. The pride the Arabs felt in the initial stages of the invasion, before those legendary “pockets of resistance” halting the advance of the world’s only superpower were revealed as a myth, has been replaced by immense shame and humiliation. The images of US soldiers taking a picnic in the heart of Baghdad will haunt the Arab psyche for generations to come.
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  thanks to thoughts on the eve of the apocalypse

Arab world riven by fury and despair

As American forces tighten their grip in Baghdad, much of the Arab world appears reluctant to accept the inevitable fall of Saddam Hussein's regime. Some are refusing to believe the news or are sinking into quiet despair.

Some commentators were clinging to a vain hope that the Iraqi leader may have one final masterstroke up his sleeve, while militants view suicide attacks as the Arab world's only chance of escape from American domination.
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