Why is Iran "hated" by neighboring Arab nations?

The current war in the Middle East witnessed the unprecedented attacks by Iran against Dubai, Qatar and Kuwait, which are Muslim nations like Iran. Of course, we know that Iran is Shia Muslim while Saudi Arabia and other Arab nations belong to Sunni Islam. But is religion more important than oil? Is power stronger than faith in Allah?

The term "Arab Nations," which definitely excludes Iran, usually refers to the 22 members of the Arab League, namely Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, Syria, Libya and Lebanon. It even includes the State of Palestine, the mortal enemy of Israel, as well Algeria, Comoros, Djibouti, Mauritania, Morocco, Somalia, Sudan, Tunisia and Yemen. Thus, we can say that Iran, like Israel, is surrounded by unfriendly neighbors.

The Arab League or the Jami al-ad Duwal al-Arabiya is a regional organization among similarly-minded Arab nations. It was founded in Cairo, Egypt on March 22, 1945 with only seven original members, namely: Egypt, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and North Yemen. It has currently 22 full members and the following seven observer states: Armenia, Brazil (yes, faraway, Brazil), Chad, Eritrea, Greece, India and Venezuela.

Egypt was suspended from the Arab League on March 26, 1979 for entering into the historic Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty brokered by US president James Carter and known as the Camp David Accords. That historic treaty led to the return of Mount Sinai and the whole Sinai Peninsula by Israel to Egypt and more importantly, it marked the recognition by Egypt of the legitimacy of the State of Israel. The Arab League forgave Egypt in 1987 and accepted it back and also returned the Arab League headquarters to Cairo, after transferring it to Tunisia,

Both Libya and Syria were also suspended but were later on, restored. The Arab League is a political organization with goals to share resources and information to serve common interests. The Arab League, based on fundamental principles of international law, possesses elements of a state and in fact, is recognized in the United Nations, like the NATO and the ASEAN, where member nations usually consult each other before voting on strategic issues on security, economic, social and political questions among states.

What are the reasons leading to such uncharacteristic antagonism between the League of Arab Nations and the Islamic Republic of Iran? The Arab League is dominated by member states populated by ethnic Arabs both in the Middle East and in North Africa. On the other hand, Iran is predominantly populated by ethnic Persians, heirs to the historically most powerful Persian empire of ancient history. They are a people intensely proud of their history and who passionately love their country.

Majority of the Arab League people are Sunni Muslims while Iranians are largely of Shia theocracy. The Shia Muslims have always asserted that theirs is the true and legitimate Islamic religion founded and envisioned by the Prophet Mohammad. But the Sunnis led by Saudi Arabia insist that theirs is the true Islam especially because the Holy Cities of Mecca and Medina are located within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The relations between the Arab League and Iran had been like that of a roller coaster ride alternating between peaceful coexistence and open hostility. Today, we all know that the Arab League is more aligned with the US and Israel against Iran. of course, Muslims are Muslims and they all believe in Allah. However, the Muslims are not united. They have their strong differences and they fight for supremacy.

And oil is oil and it means life, it means survival, it means national security. Blood is thicker than water. But oil is thicker than blood.  Just as the descendants of Abraham's sons: Ishamel and Isaac, are killing each other, men continue to kill other men for money, malice and oil.  In the same manner that Cain murdered Abel, brothers are against brothers and fathers are against sons.

At the end of the day, the conflicts in the Middle East are still the same old story: the fights for love and glory, oil is still oil, money is still money, power is still power, and honor is still honor.