By Dr Faisal Al Kassim
Large numbers of Shias and Sunnis in the Arab and the wider Islamic world are under the impression that the US has become a strategic ally of Shias because of Sunnis.
Some cite the negotiations between Iran and the US on the Iranian nuclear programme and, more generally, on the reconciliation between Iran and the West.
Some also think that America presented Iraq on a platter to Iran, and that the US has let Iran do whatever it wants in Syria, in the sense that after Baghdad Iran is focused on Damascus.
Not only has Iran controlled Lebanon via Hezbollah, its influence has reached Yemen, where Sana’a has fallen to Iran’s allies, the Houthis.
Moreover, Shias in the region began thinking that they must fight the Sunnis, as a result of America encouraging them to expand.
On their part, the Sunnis have the impression that America is allying with the sect that opposes them in the Arab and Islamic world. No doubt America is very happy with this environment of mistrust; this makes things very clear to those able to read between the lines.
Modern history hasn’t witnessed a sectarian war like the one taking place between Sunnis and Shias. If you surf social media sites visited by millions of Arabs every day, you will find that most Sunnis consider Shias their main and worst enemy.
Similarly, Shias started to fight Sunnis considering them their enemy. The proof are the brutal operations against the Syrians, Lebanese, Iraqis and Yemenis launched on a sectarian basis.
The question is, when will the Sunnis and Shias realise that they are being used as pawns in a new political game? When will they understand that America does not favour one Islamic sect against the other unless its interest are allied with one of them, no matter what Sunnis and Shias do to each other?
When will the Sunnis and Shias know that they are the same in the eyes of the superpowers and that there is no difference between them except that one can better serve the superpower?
When America pretends that it supports Shias against Sunnis, this does not mean it loves Shias and hates Sunnis or vice versa, but it means that it basically wants to foster hatred and enmity between them. America does manage to achieve this goal very well, and we can feel this in our region, which is built on sectarian strife.
When will the Islamists understand that they are seen as terrorists, scum, backward and extremist? I want to tell Shias and Sunnis that the enemies of Muhammad (PBUH) and Ali are one and the same; their bombs and guns do not differentiate between Sunni and Shia.
O Sunnis and Shias, it is not only Muslims who have sects and religious groups, Christians do, too, but they stand together in hardship. The Vatican is their sole direction, whether they are Catholic, Protestant or evangelical; the Jews are the same.
By God, did you ever hear that a Jew allied with a Muslim against a Jew, even if the latter was following a devilish sect? Did you ever hear that a Catholic allied with a Muslim against an evangelical or a Protestant? Does an American Jew or Christian accept being a tool used by Muslims to kill or fight another American Christian?
So why do we kill each other based on our sect and identity? Why do we engage in wars to fulfil their plans and plots? When will we become open-minded and mature so that we can stop fighting and risking our souls, blood, wealth and beliefs?
The author is a columnist and presenter on Al Jazeera TV channel
