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The Israel-United Arab Emirates deal will be felt throughout the region. //
The Israel-United Arab Emirates deal will be felt throughout the region.
Thomas L. Friedman
By Thomas L. Friedman
Opinion Columnist //
I have followed the Middle East for too long to ever write the sentence “the region will never be the same again.” The forces of sectarianism, tribalism, corruption and anti-pluralism run deep there. But there are other currents — young men and women who are just so tired of the old game, the old fights, the old wounds being stoked over and over again. You could see them demonstrating all over the streets of Beirut last week demanding good governance and a chance to realize their full potential.
The U.A.E. and Israel and the U.S. on Thursday showed — at least for one brief shining moment — that the past does not always have to bury the future, that the haters and dividers don’t always have to win.
It was a breath of fresh air. May it one day soon turn into a howling wind of change that spreads across the whole region.