In recent months, several Arab writers have published articles in the Arab press discussing why Israel is superior to the weaker Arab states. The reasons, they said, lie in Israel's strong and effective judicial system that tackles corruption in the country, even investigating and prosecuting leaders and senior officials who have transgressed, while corruption is rampant in the Arab countries and the regimes silence all those who call for integrity. Other reasons they gave are that Israel is a democracy and respects the will of its citizens and voters, and that over the years it has invested a great deal in education, science, health, and technology.

The writers went on to call on their countries to learn from Israel – to develop their judicial systems and a democratic form of government, to stop repressing citizens, and to invest in education. If they do not do so, they added, the Arab countries will be left even farther behind.

The following are translated excerpts from some of these articles:

Former Egyptian Official: Israel Has Advanced Because Of Its Investment In Education, Science, And Industry – And The Arabs Are Left Behind

Reda Abd Al-Salam, former governor of Egypt's Al-Sharqiya province who is today a lecturer at Mansoura University in Egypt, wrote that Israel surpasses the Arab countries in many ways because over the years it has invested in education, health, science, and technology, and in building a democracy, while the Arabs have remained behind, mired in primitiveness and tyranny. He called on Egypt not to blame the gap between them on the U.S. support for Israel, and not to expect supplications to Allah during Friday prayers to defeat Israel, but to invest in education and universities in order to bring the country out of ignorance and darkness into the light of science and industry. He wrote:

"'Allah, punish the sons of apes and pigs, so they will not escape you; Allah, expel them, Allah, show me the wonders of Your might by [punishing them]... 'Our forefathers were born, and we were born and grew up and become old and grey, and we still reiterate this supplication to Allah in Friday sermons, with flowing tears... But what have we accomplished [with this]? Has Allah answered our millions of supplications? Have we seen the wonders of Allah's capabilities in carrying out judgment against the sons of Zion and the sons of apes and pigs, as we plead again and again in our prayers? No, not at all – the result has been great disappointment and shame for the Arab leaders, since the opposite happened! Allah has done the complete opposite: It is the Arabs and Muslims who have been torn to shreds and expelled, and through whom Allah has revealed his signs.

"Yes, Israel is growing stronger, and it is becoming more and more advanced and cohesive, and wins more and more land every day – while it is surrounded by decrepit Bedouin who fight each other and feverishly race to the bottom and atrophy in every area; and [while it is surrounded by] peoples and regimes mired deeply in primitiveness, disease, and dictatorship...

"Why has Israel advanced and the Arabs and Muslims fallen behind? How long will we keep our heads in the sand or stop up our ears and listen only to sorcerers, to idiots in power, and to the mouthpieces [of the regimes] of hypocrisy [as we have been doing] for decades? How long?! To put it bluntly, let the numbers speak for themselves: since they are the best expression of progress and backwardness, and with them we will understand why Allah has not answered our supplications of millions of Arabs and Muslims for 60 years, but has instead done the complete opposite [of what we ask] – the Zionists have advanced and the Arabs and Muslims have been left behind...

"The Arab and Muslim peoples live under regimes that for decades have engaged not in developing their peoples and establishing themselves in economy, society, science, and democracy but in establishing their [own] rule... During this time, those we called 'the sons of apes and pigs' engaged in real building. They focused on education, health, economy, and technology, and of course on democratic process; so often we have heard of the imprisonment of a president or prime minister in Israel... What [heights] have the sons of apes and pigs reached, and where is Egypt, the greatest Arab country, mired? ... This is also true regarding the other Arab countries...

"Israel, which we curse day and night, is among the 20 top countries in all measures of global development – while Egypt... for example, ranks below 100th place in most of these measures – for example in quality of education, competitiveness, corruption, investment, online government services, intellectual property, creativity, human development, and so on...

"Have we education, health services, or social justice? If only we would stop lying to ourselves... because Israel rejoices on high in science and industry, while we are drenched in sweat among the tuk-tuk [motorized rickshaw] drivers, who number over two million in Egypt. Don't say that [this is because] the U.S. supports Israel, because over the past decades Egypt has received tremendous support, in billions of dollars, from its Arab brothers and also from the international institutions in the form of grants and aid for developing education, roads, and the like. Where has [this money] gone and whose pockets [does it line]? ...

"The Zionists have never been smarter than us; it is only how they run the state, and the dream of and loyalty to the homeland. Accordingly, I stress that after two revolutions, and following years of destruction, burnout, and vandalism... the gap between us and those we call the sons of apes and pigs is now very great... and it is they who are now making a mockery of us. But with a genuine, clear, and determined will, we will change the face of Egypt – yes, we can...

"Education, education, and again education is our first problem... [What we need is] the development of official institutions and the final elimination of the organizations that direct the country, such as the Muslim Brotherhood and others like them, since the nation does not need [these] organizations to acquire knowledge of religious matters but does need universities to spread enlightenment and bring us out of our ignorance and darkness into the light of science and industry... Supplications to Allah from the preachers' pulpits [to punish Israel] are not enough, because if they were, Israel would have disappeared from the map after one Friday sermon...

"[The fact is that] Israel has advanced and we [Arabs] will remain behind – unless we fear Allah in our homeland and in our nation, and present a model by means of which we will lift our heads among the nations"[1]

Jordanian Politician: The Arabs Are Incapable Of Prosecuting Corrupt Officials – Which Israel Does

Jordanian politician and intellectual Rahil Ghorayba, who writes for the Jordanian Al-Dustour daily, stated in a March 7, 2018 article that he yearned for the day when the Arab countries investigate officials who embezzle state funds, as Israel is investigating Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife for corruption. He stated that Arab countries must have a way to conduct such investigations, in order to restore sovereignty and strength to their peoples. He wrote:

"Investigating a prime minister is one of the manifestations of justice in any country – even an enemy country – that shows strength, not weakness. This is because the official state institutions are powerful enough to enable them to summon the prime minister and his wife for questioning and to prevent them from leaving the country so that the investigation can be completed, following suspicions about them in several reports submitted by authorities. Moreover, we have seen the Israeli justice system prosecute, and sentence to prison, top influential figures, some of whom are still serving their sentences in the depths of prison ...

"Israeli society has an ability that Arab societies do not. It is to easily prosecute officials and influential figures, without causing an uproar and without this being out of the ordinary or some kind of miracle – even though the scope of the corruption [in the Arab countries] cannot be compared with what is called 'suspicion of corruption' in the occupying state. In modern Arab history, there is no [case] of a trial or investigation of this kind of a leader or influential figure. Therefore, it can be said frankly that this is a highly significant weak point in the Arab homeland, and that there is no chance of revival and advancement of Arab society until we reach a stage where it will have the capability to prosecute officials who embezzled state and public funds without any oversight, who caused economic collapse, and who obstructed the Arab peoples [' ability] to regain their power and sovereignty over their resources and to protect them.

"This issue, that is worthy of attention, means bringing officials to trial when they are in office – not after they leave office and have no power – which is the greatest possible expression of the rule of law and the clearest possible sign of justice, that promise real stability and prosperity."[2]

Palestinian Writer: Instead Of Rejoicing Over The Netanyahu Investigation, We Should Cry Over Our Infallible Rulers

Similarly, Palestinian writer Suhail Kiwan wrote that one of the foundations of Israel's strength is its judicial system that can call corrupt individuals to account, while the Arab regimes that are plagued with corruption never acknowledge their mistakes and persecute those who warn about them. He wrote:

"The [Israeli] judicial system is the final arbiter, because it remains an independent institution, despite all that is said and that we say against the racist apartheid anti-Arab Zionist regime. Indeed, this regime is criminal, murderous, and barbaric against the Arabs, but with respect to the Jewish citizens, it is still very good, and it cannot be compared to the regimes that murder Arabs because they are Arabs, wiping out civilians for the sake of the interests of the homeland and indiscriminately oppressing people and the homeland. [I] regret this deeply, for it leads us to the situation in which my nation is mired, to our wretchedness. I do not enjoy self-flagellation, but that is the painful truth – they [in Israel] surpass us in managing their affairs and identifying their interests...

"There is much corruption in Israel... [and] a judicial system that can take the corrupt to task is one of the most important secrets of Israel's power – not the advanced technology, the advanced aircraft, the sizeable army, or the compulsory [military] service for young Jewish men and women, but the capability of the regime itself to identify and rectify flaws.

"To those who want the destruction of Israel and wish for its annihilation in their prayers, I suggest that you not wish earthquakes, floods, or military defeats upon it – [instead,] wish upon it the collapse of its judicial system Then it will be nibbled away at and weakened.

"There is a tremendous difference between a regime with its own internal purging mechanism that protects itself daily from rot and rust, and a regime that does not acknowledge its mistakes, but instead accumulates and conceals them, represses the honest voices calling for integrity, throws them into prison and levels accusations against them, and may even attempt to assassinate them. Imagine an Arab police chief investigating an Arab minister or president for corruption – what would he [i.e. the police chief] be accused of? I leave to you the pleasure of thinking [about it]...

"Corruption exists in every regime everywhere in the world, including in democratic countries in Europe, at various levels. But these countries have the power of the constitution and independent judicial apparatuses, and no sacred cows. [In those countries,] a president who rapes a clerk in his office or takes bribes goes to prison; a head of the ruling party who has ties to an underworld gang resigns or is fired. Exposing graft and corruption is a strength, not a weakness. This does not mean that the regimes that conceal corruption are any better, because many of these do so after the damage has already been done – and this is what happened and is still happening in our Arab homeland.

"It is regrettable that some Arab media are victorious and gloating over the exposure of Netanyahu's corruption – [instead], we should be crying about our own situation and about the pitiful state that our infallible leaders have come to."[3]

Lebanese Writer: Israel Is Stable Because It Is A Democracy That Respects The Will Of The Citizen, Unlike Arab Countries

Against the backdrop of U.S. President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, Lebanese writer Abd Al-Rahman Abd Al-Mulla Al-Salah analyzed, in an article in the Egyptian Al-Hayat daily, why President Trump had done so without fearing the reactions of the Arab countries. He argued that Israel is a country of law and institutions, and the only stable democracy in the region, while the political and constitutional conduct of the Arab countries is deeply flawed: "We stand before helpless regimes, and, most unfortunately, Israel is, relative to them, the only stable one in the region...

"Israel is stable, and despite all its racism, it is a democracy for the Jews within it. Whether we like it or not, Israel is a country of institutions, law, and a constitution, in which the transfer of power is carried out [in an organized fashion]... Since its establishment in 1948, it has held 19 elections, which played a very important role in its political development... while in the Arab world, the presidential and parliamentary elections are a mere formality...

"[For example,] in Egypt, after much effort, the regime managed to find a rival [to run against] the current president of the republic [Al-Sisi], when suddenly Egyptian Al-Ghad ['Tomorrow'] Party chairman Moussa Moustafa Moussa popped up [and entered] the presidential race – which sparked a controversy with regard to how serious the race really was...[4]

"Iraqi parliamentary elections are set for May, at a time when cities such as Mosul and Al-Anbar remain empty... These elections are clearly connected to a specific religious stream [i.e. the Shi'ites] and, surprisingly, the [Shi'ite] Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi has candidates.

"With respect to Lebanon, the claims regarding the formulation of an election law whose flaws and disadvantages outweigh its advantages, if there really are any, are not exaggerated – because the outcome [i.e. who will win 110 of the 128 seats] is already known. Unfortunately, the Lebanese law under which the parliamentary elections are to be held this May was drawn up with a regional ethnic [Shi'ite] perspective.

"I mention [this] to present one of the defective aspects of the Arab regime – the instability in the Arab world... in comparison to the stable situation in Israel, the enemy... Israel's stability draws its strength from its democracy and its regime, which is derived from respect for the Israeli citizen and his choices. The situation in our Arab world will not stabilize unless the Arab citizen regains his respect, and until his repression ends."[5]