Goodbye, decade. Hello, flip off!

by Yara Al-Wazir

10 years ago today, Middle East Youth would have probably been backing up all their information on paper with the fear of the Y2K lingering. As we dawned on the Y2K era we were scared – very scared. We thought that if computers could survive it, then we’ll live happily ever after.

Looking back at the past decade, the Middle East certainly didn’t live happily ever after. Let’s look at a year by year account of the decade:

2000: The big 2 triple O saw the start of the Second Intifada. Intifadat Al-Aqsa was instigated after the Camp David negotiations between Ariel Sharon, Yasser Arafat, and Bill Clinton failed with each party blaming the other. NOW we know where kids get that from.

2001: This was the year that Georgey Bushy decided to turn his dolls (*cough* action figures) to real life and start the war against the Arabs.
After carefully orchestrating the September 11 attacks, which led to the loss of 2973 lives, Gassy Georgy pointed his finger at Osama Bin Laden, yet managed to have the media frame Muslims for the attacks.
Alas, the attacks against the Muslim world and Middle Easterners around the world began.

2002: March 12^th marked the then U.N Secretary General, Kofi Annan, passing a resolution that recognises Palestine as an independent state “living side by side with Israel within secure and recognised borders”
Perhaps another stand out of 2002 was  the commitment shown by the Arab countries at the Arab League meeting in Lebanon. On March 27^th, Egypt and Jordan refused to show up for the international conference that discusses issues of… well their countries. The Palestinian delegation walked out because of Lebanon’s crappy internet connection that stopped Yasser Arafat from skyping in his hopes to free Palestine. Tough crowd, eh?

2003: After Iraq referred to September 11 as being “the American cowboys reaping the fruit of their crimes against humanity”, Georgy Boy accused them of having weapons of Mass Destruction (something he admitted owning proudly), and decided to wage war on Iraq – a war for peace. Georgey Boy doesn’t share toys, just like Joey doesn’t share food!

2004: The loss of the great leader Yasser Arafat; president, one of the founders of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation, father, and a loved one. Arafat was allegedly poisoned.

2005: Rafic Hariri passed away after his car was bombed. Rafic led Lebanon out of war, and made it the great country it is today.

2006: Hezbollah-Israel war. Harb Tamuz started on the 12^th of July, and lasted till August 14^th. The war saw over 1191 murdered lives. One thing that definitely stands out in my memory was the fact that Israel was throwing football shaped bombs to target young boys and murder them

2007: Civil war erupts between Fateh Al-Islam and Lebanon’s defence army. Fateh has been allegedly linked to Al-Qaeda. Attacks started with militants slaughtering 27 Lebanese soldiers in their sleep after a raid on a town.

2008: Gaza ended 2008 and rang in the New Year with bombs and rockets, courtesy of the Israeli ‘defence’ army who were fighting ‘Khamas’. Over 1400 lives were lost throughout the 22 day massacre.
See Gazan’s are stubborn! We’re not giving up our sea!

2009: The Dubai financial crisis’ effects rippled throughout the gulf. Construction in many countries has been halted. Don’t you wish you were like Lil Wayne and ‘down like the economy’. At least then you’d know what the economy is like, and where it’s going.

So as we welcome the year of the flip off, we say goodbye to the decade that has seen more hardships, deaths, and wars starting (and ending in record time). One can only hope that 10 years from now, I’ll be looking back smiling – and not because I managed to survive this warzone, but because it’s no longer a warzone.

Remember; kill for peace and peace will die