The recent violent attacks by Islamic fundamentalists on the American Embassy in Cairo and on the American Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, were stark reminders of the nature of the conflict spinning off anti-American sentiment in the Middle East and North Africa. The attacks left the U.S. Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens and three other U.S. consulate staff dead.

The violence was sparked by a short video made in the United States, of which a trailer was put onto online video site YouTube, that was declared "insulting" to the Prophet Mohamed, but it underlines a much deeper current of simmering tension in the region.

While both U.S. President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton have been at pains to condemn the violence and the video, stating that was in no way sanctioned or produced by the current administration, this has in no way appeased sentiment on the ground.

The core reasons for the violence go deeper than the video. The ongoing anger at the U.S. support for Israel, namely the double standards in regard to enforcing UN resolutions against Israel while enforcing others in favor of American interests, the subjugation of Palestinians, and the Iraq war waged on the lies of weapons of mass destruction, all lie at the heart of current events.

Arabs are disappointed, because on the ground, it seems U.S. policy has not changed significantly from the Bush era. A sense still exists that Obama shows disregard for the plight of Palestinians, and many observers suggest that the murders at the U.S. consulate on the anniversary of 9/11 are far too specific to be a coincidence.

The U.S. and NATO forces, who together "liberated Libya from Gaddafi's tyrannical rule," would be expecting some form of gratitude for their efforts. Instead they are being faced with violence and murder. Benghazi in particular, the city where so much fighting took place by NATO to prevent a massacre of its people, is ironically the city now under siege by anti-American protesters.

It is obvious that while there are counter protests in Tripoli showing outrage at the killing of the U.S. ambassador, the NATO intervention did nothing to remedy a deeper grievance that exists, namely the perceived arrogance and ignominy that Western and particularly U.S. authorities bring in terms of culture and politics in the Arab world.

As violent demonstrations spread to Khartoum and Tunis, there is also another side to the current anti-American sentiment in North Africa. With the continent coming more and more into its own economically and politically, interference in Africa's affairs by the United States is pressing all the wrong buttons. In contrast it is an area where China's policy of non-interference in the affairs of other sovereign states and treating trading and political partners as equals is being far more well received and mutually beneficial.

Ultimately many in the Arab world still see the United States as a great place to study, live in or visit, but this positive image is constantly being dominated by resented unjust policies that adversely affect their lives in their region. The values that are the beacon of what America always says it stands for, specifically freedom, are being overshadowed by a foreign policy that consistently gives the country a negative, poisoned image.

The Editor