Many human communities have their own ancient glories that remind them of days when they used to have more power and dominate more areas than the ones they currently inhabit. The Turks had their Ottoman Empire, Italians had the Roman Empire, and before them, the Greeks, the Persians, the Spaniards and the Portuguese had their own empires. In more recent years, Great Britain had a worldwide empire that was known as "the empire on which the sun never sets", that dominated most lands on earth.

Those old days were ones of military expansions and Arabs were no exceptions. They had their military glories and great conquests. However, Arabs are the only ones worldwide lamenting and complaining about losing this ancient glory, feeling sorry about the past and crying for losing their powers in the Iberian peninsula (Andalusia) as if they are the only nation that had expanded at the expense of other peoples and took control of others' lands.

Arabs sigh of lamenting this 'glorious past' has become a major element for spreading terrorism and psychological barriers with the entire world, simply because people have been confusing history and religion on explaining the reasons behind what happened. Arab conquests have been portrayed as religious holy wars made under the Muslim caliphate during the reigns of Umayyad and Abbasid caliphs. This made those who do not lament or care for losing that 'historic and religious' legacy seem like infidels who would rejoice on seeing the decline of religion, though facts show that we are currently living in countries that impose Islamic regulations more than the Umayyad and Abbasids ever did!

- Translated by Kuwait Times from Al-Anbaa

By Salah Al-Sayer