https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/15500/arabian-gulf-citizens-israel
Whenever there is any hope of good relations with Israel, Qatar tries to embarrass Saudi Arabia by mentioning that the kingdom is the keeper of the Two Holy Mosques. Conversely, when Saudi Arabia says something negative about Israel, such as that Israelis may not visit the kingdom, Qatar quickly publishes it in English to show Westerners how intolerant Saudi Arabia is.
Disappointingly, the Western mainstream media is no different from the Arab Gulf media in weakening the position of pro-peace advocates in the Arab Gulf countries.
Members of the mainstream media seem, in fact, to have an interest in perpetuating conflict, perhaps as more newsworthy, telegenic or enticing to advertisers. Members of the mainstream media also seem, wrongly, to regard anti-Semitic advocates of political Islam as representative of “moderate” Islam. Worse, they actually appear to be against anyone who is promoting peace.
The worldwide lack of support for those who advocate peace or the reform of Islam has brought about exactly what the extremists want: a fear of speaking up. Many of us Muslims do not want to be viewed as traitors, labelled “enemies of the nation”… and have our lives put under threat…
The views of Gulf Arabs towards Israel have been marginalized by a lack of support from both the Arab and Western media, indicating a need for greater emphasis on “digital diplomacy” from the public… and “normalization”….
Since General Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, was killed by an American airstrike, it has become even clearer that the Middle East is divided. We find some here were supportive of the strike that rescued the world from a most dangerous terrorist; others were completely outraged. Is the Middle East, then, on the verge of new alliances and further fragmentation?
The reactions of the Arab Gulf countries, including their citizens — especially Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain — are the same as Israel’s. Other Arab countries and the Palestinian territories — mainly Hamas, which is a client of Iran — have responded quite differently.