This time, however, things were not what they seemed, because the Middle East has undergone a significant change in the past two years. The political epicenter of this troubled region has shifted from the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians toward the Persian Gulf and the struggle for regional mastery between Iran on one side and Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and now Egypt on the other.
但是，这一回，事情不像表面上那么简单，因为中东在过去两年里发生了重要的变化。这一麻烦地区的政治震中已从巴以冲突转向波斯湾和地区霸权之争，这场争夺的一方是伊朗，另一方是沙特、土耳其和现在的埃及。在该地区新出现的什叶派和逊尼派势力的斗争中，老中东冲突已不再是大事了。