--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Certain Gulf Arabs support proxy jihadist…" description: "\"Certain Gulf Arabs support proxy jihadist Sunni groups such as al Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, while Iran supports Shia militant forces such as Hezbolla..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/beb/peter-bergen-1880_al_certain-gulf-arabs-support-proxy-jihadis_2827060.png" --- # Certain Gulf Arabs support proxy jihadist Sunni groups… ![“Certain Gulf Arabs support proxy jihadist Sunni groups such as al Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, while Iran supports Shia militant forces such as Hezbollah.” quote by Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/beb/peter-bergen-1880_al_certain-gulf-arabs-support-proxy-jihadis_2827060.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/beb/peter-bergen-1880_al_certain-gulf-arabs-support-proxy-jihadis_2827060.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/beb/peter-bergen-1880_al_certain-gulf-arabs-support-proxy-jihadis_2827060.png) > “Certain Gulf Arabs support proxy jihadist Sunni groups such as al Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, while Iran supports Shia militant forces such as Hezbollah.” [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Regional powers back opposing militant groups, complicating Middle‑East stability. **In simple terms:** Powers back opposing militants. Key Takeaway Recognize complex proxy dynamics. Themes geopolitics proxy wars regional conflict terrorism Mood serious concerned Type analytical informative When to use this quote - policy making - diplomacy - media reporting Key Concepts international relations security studies political science Questions to Reflect On - How do proxy wars affect civilian populations? - What solutions can reduce external meddling? A Different Perspective Oversimplification may ignore local agency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Al](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/al/) [Arabs Support](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arabs-support-3631930/) [Hezbollah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hezbollah/) [Iran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/iran/) [Iran Supports](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/iran-supports-3631932/) [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) [Militant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/militant/) [Sunni Groups](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sunni-groups-3631933/) [Support](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/support/) [Supports Shia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/supports-shia-3631931/) [Syria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/syria/) ## Related quotes > [Imprisoned by its war on terror framework, the Bush administration supported Israel in a disastrous war against Hezbollah in Lebanon in the summer of 2006.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/imprisoned-by-its-war-on-terror-framework-the-bush-administration/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [The American incarceration of Sheikh Rahman was a hot-button issue for al Qaeda for many years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/the-american-incarceration-of-sheikh-rahman-was-a-hot-button-issue/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [Sheikh Rahman's fatwa was the first time that anyone associated with al Qaeda had given religious sanction to attacks on American aviation, shipping and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/sheikh-rahman-s-fatwa-was-the-first-time-that-anyone-associated-with/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [Bush administration officials, of course, deny that they didn't take the threat urgently enough, but there is no debating that in their public utterances,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/bush-administration-officials-of-course-deny-that-they-didn-t-take/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [The special reverence that al Qaeda had for Sheikh Rahman was underlined by a two-hour propaganda videotape that the group's media division released in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/the-special-reverence-that-al-qaeda-had-for-sheikh-rahman-was/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [When Abu Zubaydah was shown a series of photos of al Qaeda members by Soufan, he identified one of them as the operational commander…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/when-abu-zubaydah-was-shown-a-series-of-photos-of-al-qaeda-members-by/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [Apostasy is a grave crime in Islam and punishable by death in the eyes of members of al Qaeda.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/apostasy-is-a-grave-crime-in-islam-and-punishable-by-death-in-the/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [Without U.S. forces in the country, there is a strong possibility Afghanistan could host a reinvigorated Taliban allied to a reinvigorated al Qaeda.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/without-u-s-forces-in-the-country-there-is-a-strong-possibility/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [Hezbollah must stop this cowardly blending in among women and children. I heard they were making statements that they were proud of losing fewer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-egeland/hezbollah-must-stop-this-cowardly-blending-in-among-women-and/) [Jan Egeland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-egeland/) > [“If you want to judge if a party is a Lebanese enough, let me say we take up arms and fight against the occupation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sayed-hassan-nasrallah/if-you-want-to-judge-if-a-party-is-a-lebanese-enough-let-me-say-we/) [Sayed Hassan Nasrallah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sayed-hassan-nasrallah/) > [“Hezbollah is not a mammoth force, there is only so much they can do in Syria. Iranian role more critical for the regime.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ziad-k-abdelnour/hezbollah-is-not-a-mammoth-force-there-is-only-so-much-they-can-do-in/) [Ziad K. Abdelnour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ziad-k-abdelnour/) > [“He was walking down a narrow street in Beirut, Lebanon, the air thick with the smell of Arabic coffee and grilled chicken. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-haynes/he-was-walking-down-a-narrow-street-in-beirut-lebanon-the-air-thick/) [Gary Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-haynes/) > [Israel has good reason to be concerned about its intelligence making its way to Moscow: Russia is a major player in the war in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronen-bergman/israel-has-good-reason-to-be-concerned-about-its-intelligence-making/) [Ronen Bergman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronen-bergman/) > [If we cannot understand the depth of feeling in the Muslim world toward Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood, and Islam as a political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hooman-majd/if-we-cannot-understand-the-depth-of-feeling-in-the-muslim-world/) [Hooman Majd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hooman-majd/) > [There's Hezbollah, there's Hamas, there is a whole range of terrorist targets out there related to Palestine and to Israel that we ought to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-eagleburger/there-s-hezbollah-there-s-hamas-there-is-a-whole-range-of-terrorist/) [Lawrence Eagleburger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-eagleburger/) ## More by Peter Bergen > [So Pakistan is a country that I'm very fond of and have spent a lot of time, but it is a country where conspiracy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/so-pakistan-is-a-country-that-i-m-very-fond-of-and-have-spent-a-lot/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [The Trump administration launched the cruise missile strikes in Syria, an act of war, without a U.N. resolution or Congressional authorization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/the-trump-administration-launched-the-cruise-missile-strikes-in-syria/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [The deep problems that afflict the Middle East are not easy to fix, but they must be dealt with if we are not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/the-deep-problems-that-afflict-the-middle-east-are-not-easy-to-fix/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [The dirty little secret of the intelligence world is that much of what you really need to know isn't exactly a secret anyway.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/the-dirty-little-secret-of-the-intelligence-world-is-that-much-of/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [Abedi appears to be one of the many thousands of Western Muslims who have embraced militant Islam, often as a way of trying to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/abedi-appears-to-be-one-of-the-many-thousands-of-western-muslims-who/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [Trump has claimed he knows more about ISIS than America's leading generals. Clearly, this is also total nonsense; he doesn't seem to have done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/trump-has-claimed-he-knows-more-about-isis-than-america-s-leading/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [If you don't understand what al Qaeda was trying to do on 9/11, if you don't have a sense of who Osama bin Laden…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/if-you-don-t-understand-what-al-qaeda-was-trying-to-do-on-9-11-if-you/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [As early as 1993, members of bin Laden's group had been planning an attack on the American Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/as-early-as-1993-members-of-bin-laden-s-group-had-been-planning-an/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [The reality is that Trump's focus on immigrants is to misconceive of the terrorist problem that exists in the United States.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/the-reality-is-that-trump-s-focus-on-immigrants-is-to-misconceive-of/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [ISIS despises the Russian government for its support of the Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, and so it's no surprise that ISIS began targeting Russia…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/isis-despises-the-russian-government-for-its-support-of-the-syrian/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [The Sunni militants that make up ISIS are not the underlying problem in Syria and Iraq, but rather they are a symptom of other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/the-sunni-militants-that-make-up-isis-are-not-the-underlying-problem/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [Keeping a relatively small, predominantly U.S. Special Forces presence in Afghanistan to continue to train the Afghan army past December 2016 is a wise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/keeping-a-relatively-small-predominantly-u-s-special-forces-presence/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [One of the themes of 'The Longest War,' my book, which came out before the Arab spring happened, was how al-Qaida and bin Laden…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/one-of-the-themes-of-the-longest-war-my-book-which-came-out-before/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [Because 9/11 was carried out by 19 foreign-born Arab hijackers, many assume that all terrorists who attack the West are foreigners.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/because-9-11-was-carried-out-by-19-foreign-born-arab-hijackers-many/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [I was the only outsider to visit the Abbottabad compound where bin Laden lived before the Pakistani military demolished it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/i-was-the-only-outsider-to-visit-the-abbottabad-compound-where-bin/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) [Explore all 201 Peter Bergen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) ## More Al quotes > [I like 'The Usual Suspects'. Great film. I also like 'Scarface', films like that. Lots of gangster films. I really like watching all kinds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barkhad-abdi/i-like-the-usual-suspects-great-film-i-also-like-scarface-films-like/) [Barkhad Abdi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barkhad-abdi/) > [Al Jazeera is a representation of, you know, diversity in the Arab world. In our newsroom, we have every single nationality, we have every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wadah-khanfar/al-jazeera-is-a-representation-of-you-know-diversity-in-the-arab/) [Wadah Khanfar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wadah-khanfar/) > [If the practice is torture for the al Qaeda operative who masterminded the killing of three thousand Americans, why weren't there court-martials in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-a-rodriguez-jr/if-the-practice-is-torture-for-the-al-qaeda-operative-who/) [Jose A. Rodriguez, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-a-rodriguez-jr/) > [Searches of al Qaeda sites in Afghanistan, undertaken since American-backed forces took control there, are not known to have turned up a significant cache…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/searches-of-al-qaeda-sites-in-afghanistan-undertaken-since-american/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [Nobody had race savvy like Al Unser in his prime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-andretti/nobody-had-race-savvy-like-al-unser-in-his-prime/) [Mario Andretti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-andretti/) > [There are many causes of violent deaths in America - murders and traffic accidents - that we do not approach with the same 'no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-c-blair/there-are-many-causes-of-violent-deaths-in-america-murders-and/) [Dennis C. Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-c-blair/) > [If you want to join the Republican party, they have to let you in. There's nothing they can do about it. I mean, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/if-you-want-to-join-the-republican-party-they-have-to-let-you-in/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [Brian came back in on the road and Al stayed, but Al's the original member of the group.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-johnston/brian-came-back-in-on-the-road-and-al-stayed-but-al-s-the-original/) [Bruce Johnston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-johnston/) > [News is the backbone of our network; the main commodity and the main successes of Al Jazeera came out of our involvement in covering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wadah-khanfar/news-is-the-backbone-of-our-network-the-main-commodity-and-the-main/) [Wadah Khanfar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wadah-khanfar/) > [And beyond that, the next issue is how do we guarantee one of these weapons, not necessarily this missile, but nuclear weapons ends up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-eagleburger/and-beyond-that-the-next-issue-is-how-do-we-guarantee-one-of-these/) [Lawrence Eagleburger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-eagleburger/) > [I started, actually, as an analyst on African affairs, mainly on Al Jazeera. I remember the first few series were about Saudi students, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wadah-khanfar/i-started-actually-as-an-analyst-on-african-affairs-mainly-on-al/) [Wadah Khanfar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wadah-khanfar/) > [That is because the conflict with al Qaeda is not governed by the Geneva Conventions, which applies only to international conflicts between states that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/that-is-because-the-conflict-with-al-qaeda-is-not-governed-by-the/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) > [Bin Laden is dead, and most of his friends are dead. But did it need to cost a trillion dollars and two land wars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-engel/bin-laden-is-dead-and-most-of-his-friends-are-dead-but-did-it-need-to/) [Richard Engel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-engel/) > [Mistreatment of al Qaeda members and their friends and hangers-on is something I number among my moral concerns. But it's number 1,000,000,001.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/mistreatment-of-al-qaeda-members-and-their-friends-and-hangers-on-is/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [Success means eliminating Al Qaeda's ability to launch terrorist attacks against the United States and our allies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-greitens/success-means-eliminating-al-qaeda-s-ability-to-launch-terrorist/) [Eric Greitens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-greitens/) [Browse all 218 Al quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/al/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Certain Gulf Arabs support proxy jihadist Sunni groups such as al Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, while Iran supports Shia militant forces such as Hezbollah.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Peter Bergen" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/certain-gulf-arabs-support-proxy-jihadist-sunni-groups-such-as-al/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Al" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/certain-gulf-arabs-support-proxy-jihadist-sunni-groups-such-as-al/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/beb/peter-bergen-1880_al_certain-gulf-arabs-support-proxy-jihadis_2827060.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/beb/peter-bergen-1880_al_certain-gulf-arabs-support-proxy-jihadis_2827060.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/beb/peter-bergen-1880_al_certain-gulf-arabs-support-proxy-jihadis_2827060.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Certain Gulf Arabs support proxy jihadist Sunni groups such as al Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, while Iran…” — Peter Bergen", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Peter Bergen", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Certain Gulf Arabs support proxy jihadist...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/certain-gulf-arabs-support-proxy-jihadist-sunni-groups-such-as-al/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/certain-gulf-arabs-support-proxy-jihadist-sunni-groups-such-as-al/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```