Thread by @_AhmedQuraishi

Destabilization by #Israel+#SaudiArabia+#UAE in the Middle East is equal to the destabilization by #Iran. Is it?

I listened to @PeterBeinart on @FareedZakaria's show. He used this contrast to justify rejecting the idea of a #JCPOA rethink to include Iran's malign activities. /1

Are #Israel #KSA #UAE destabilizing the Middle East equally to or more than #Iran? This juxtaposition is used by Iran govt and sympathizers who suggest Tehran's wide network of proxies & operations in the region is not unique. Rather, it's normal. /2

Keeping #JCPOA intact is a legitimate goal but not on the basis of a fallacy. Moral and political equivalency that @PeterBeinart suggested [b/w #KSA/#Israel/#UAE and #Iran] is worth discussing. In short bursts, just key points, for the sake of informing. /3

#Iran controls four #Arab capitals, according to senior govt officials.

The #KSA/#UAE and #Israel do not occupy #Iranian territories. Or the capital of any country. /4

thetower.org/1195-iranian-o…

41 years ago, #Iran's new post-1979 govt introduced violence into the annual Muslim pilgrimage #hajj, probably for the first time in centuries, in a rude awakening for both peaceful ordinary Iranian pigrims and for #KSA and other states in the region. /5

rasanah-iiis.org/english/monito…

There is not a single incident in 42 yrs since #Israel embassy closed in #Tehran in 1979 where Israel attacked #Iran. A lot can be said about Israeli operations in the region, the Palestinian occupied territories. But none on Israel attacking Iran, yet./6

voanews.com/world-news/mid…

The biggest victims of #Iran's foreign ops in 42 years have likely been peaceful #Shia Muslim citizens of other states recruited for #IRGC's foreign projects. One of them rebelled against Iranian govt in the holiest Shia Muslim city, #Karbala, in #Iraq /7 france24.com/en/20191114-in…

There is no record of #KSA/#UAE meddling inside #Iran (some reporting to the contrary in recent yrs exists; could be retaliation if true). However, for citizens in #Iraq, the 2nd largest #Shia Muslim state, to attack Iranian targets, this says a lot. /8 aljazeera.com/news/2019/11/2…

In decades under sanctions, #Iran used #UAE ports as a gateway to the world. Today, 42 years later, #Emirati oil money goes into human development, while Iranian oil wealth is squandered in a regional religious project & sectarian wars. No equivalency here. /9

Mr. @PeterBeinart's point was simple: that #JCPOA should not be expanded to include #Iran's proxy operations. Fair point & debatable. But to grant legitimacy to those ops by equating them to what #KSA/#UAE or #Israel do, that's unfair & incorrect. /10 @threadreaderapp unroll