US President George W. Bush talks to the media after touring the Church of the Nativity in the West Bank city of Bethlehem. (Haytham Othman, Maan Images)

One of the frightening lessons one learns from spending time in Washington is that most of the men and women who make, or influence, American policy in the Middle East actually have little or no first-hand experience of the region. They know very little about its people or its political trends at the grassroots level, as the Iraq experience reconfirms so painfully.

American policy-making throughout the Middle East remains defined largely by three principal forces: pro-Israeli interests and lobbies in the United States that pander almost totally to Israeli government positions; an almost genetic, if understandable, need to respond to the 9/11 terror attack against the US by politically and militarily striking against Middle Eastern targets; and a growing determination to confront and contain Iran and its assorted Sunni and Shiite Arab allies.

A significant consequence of Washington's deep pro-Israeli tilt has been to ignore public sentiments throughout the region, which in turn generates greater criticism of the US. It is not clear if American policymakers ignore Middle Eastern public opinion because of ignorance and diplomatic amateurism, or because of the structural dictates of pro-Israeli compliance.

This is a regrettable situation, given that we now know quite well the sentiments of majorities of people in Middle Eastern lands. A significant factor in people's attitudes toward the US is its policy toward Israel and Palestine. Other issues also influence how Middle Easterners see the US - such as Iraq, oil, and promoting democratic or autocratic regimes - but the Palestinian-Israeli conflict remains a huge determinant of America's standing in Middle Eastern eyes.

A historic new mindset has developed in recent years as a result of the consistent and often growing criticism of the US and Israel: a penchant for militancy and defiance that continues to spread around the Middle East, transcending Iranian-Arab, Shiite-Sunni, or secular-religious divides that are so often highlighted and exaggerated in Washington's distorted view of the Middle East.

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