From: Ad 

You know things are pretty bad when you see this:

http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=18398"

"
DUBAI - The Omani foreign minister accused the United States in comments
published Tuesday of delivering Iraq to the Islamic militants of Al-Qaeda
and called for a change of strategy.

"US policy in Iraq has handed the country to the Al-Qaeda
network," Yussef bin Alawi bin Abdullah told the London-based Arabic
daily Al-Hayat.

"The root of the US predicament in Iraq ... is Al-Qaeda which has
established itself there and now controls whole regions," he said.

"We hope that they will rethink their policy," the pro-Western
Gulf state's top diplomat added.

He denied that the growing influence in Iraq of Shiite Iran was the key
concern of Gulf Arab states.

"It's not so much the expansion of Shiism that they fear as the
deteriorating security inside Iraq."

He ruled out the possibility of US military action against Iran in the face
of US and Israeli suspicions about its nuclear programme.

"I don't think that anyone is going to threaten Iran militarily," he said.

The minister said Oman had no plans to resume trade ties with Israel broken
off after the renewed Palestinian uprising broke out six years ago.

"There's no reason to reopen (our trade office) at a time when Israel
is not making the slightest move towards peace and is continuing its
aggression against the Palestinians," he said.

In August 1996, the sultanate became the first Gulf state to exchange trade
offices with the Jewish state, but it closed its own office in Tel Aviv the
following year and closed Israel's in Muscat in 2000."

A) The Omani are Ibadi ergo both Sunni & Shia are jonny-come-lately
pseudo-heretics.....

B) The Omani on principle never get involved like this which means they
must be mucho dismayed.

C) As the country on the other side of the Hormuz, the comments wrt iran
are interesting. Attack Iran, lose goat island, masirah, thumrait &
Seeb.

Adam

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