The Times of Israel: Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit warned Monday that Iran and Israel were the main beneficiaries of turmoil across the Arab world, which he described as the worst he has ever seen.
“I’m 74 years old, and I have never seen anything worse than what we are now seeing,” Aboul Gheit said at the Arab Media Forum in Dubai.
Israel stood to benefit from conflicts across the region, Aboul Gheit said.
“Israel was under enormous pressure to find a solution with the Palestinians,” he said.
“If I were the prime minister… I would have thought these were the happiest days for Israel.”
Long-stalled peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians have been overshadowed by global concerns over the Syrian war and Islamic State group jihadists.
Iran is also gaining from the turmoil brought about by the region’s turmoil.
“Iran is enjoying what the Arab world is going through. There are those in Iran who are watching and waiting for us to destroy ourselves,” he said.
Ties between Iran and Arab states have grown increasingly tense in recent years, with Tehran backing Syrian President Bashar Assad, Yemen’s Shiite Houthi rebels and armed Shiite groups in Iraq.
Arab governments largely back Syrian opposition groups.
Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies have for the past two years battled the Houthis, who control the capital and strategic ports along the Red Sea coastline.
