Super Tuesday Through Arab Eyes

The American presidential election season is so big, even in the Arab world, that Al Jazeera, the Arab satellite network, has its own permanent web portal devoted to it. Then again, "If it were not for Barack Obama," Alaa Bayoumi, Al Jazeera Middle East analyst, writes, "many Arabs would not even bother to follow the results of the US presidential race on Super Tuesday." Why so?

For one, Arabs aren't thrilled about politics in general, being overwhelmingly disenfranchised by authoritarian regimes, many of them, Bayoumi reminds readers, allies of the United States. "And the US's traditional support for Israel's illegal occupation of Palestinian land, coupled with the war on Iraq, has meant Arab mistrust of the US has dipped to new lows in recent years." In addition, few differences exist, at least in Arab eyes, between Republican and Democratic candidates. "However, many Arabs look at Obama differently," Bayoumi adds, noting:

Many Arabs are all too familiar with the discrimination and inequality that Africans-Americans have traditionally suffered in America. Consequently, they may believe that an African-American president is more capable of understanding their grievances when it comes to the negative impact that US foreign policy has on their lives. However, Obama's foreign policy positions are still unclear to many Arabs hoping to a see a different kind of US president.

That, of course, could be said of more than one candidate in these races. Super Tuesday, in which 24 states hold primaries, is around the corner.

Where Each Candidate Stands on Middle East Issues:

• Hillary Clinton
• Mike Huckabee
• John McCain
• Barack Obama
• Mitt Romney