Hilf Al-Fudul (Alliance of the Virtuous) set a precedent before the advent of Islam, which then endorsed it. According to the most common narrative, a merchant came to Mecca to trade when a man from an influential tribe took his merchandise without paying. Unable to find recourse, the merchant recited poetry from a hilltop, describing the injustice he had suffered. Moved by his account, the nobles of Mecca assembled and signed a pact vowing to protect visitors from such wrongs and redress their grievances.
The Arab leaders who concluded the Hilf Al-Fudul, which dates to around 590 AD, were said to have “engaged in a noble matter.” Their effort to help victims of injustice secure their rights has become part of the collective heritage of the region. It is reminiscent of such Western traditions as the legend of King Arthur of Camelot, who formed a round table where no knight would prevail over others, and all had to commit to championing the oppressed.
The tradition of joining forces to fight the strong has long shaped international relations. The Graeco-Persian Wars (499-449 BC) involved two major alliances of this nature. So did the Peloponnesian War (431-404 BC), where one alliance backed Athens and another supported Sparta. Moving into the modern era, European nations allied against Napoleon Bonaparte following his invasion of Europe and advance to Moscow. Their combined efforts culminated in his defeat at Waterloo. In like manner, the allied forces in World War II freed Europe of Hitler’s tyranny, going on to build a new world order.
During the subsequent Cold War (1949-1989), a “balance of power” secured peace between NATO and its rival, the Warsaw Pact. Afterwards, the Gulf War gave rise to the most successful Arab, Islamic, and Western alliance, which liberated Kuwait from the Iraqi occupation.
The dawn of the 21st century had initially kindled the widespread hope that the world would be a better place, free of global divisions, civil wars, social upheavals, and populist identity politics that fuelled hatred and violence. It was believed that globalisation had turned the world into a “small village” where trade, technology, and humanitarian values could flourish. Over a billion people — primarily from India, China, and other parts of Asia and South America — were lifted out of poverty. Eastern Europe emerged from communist despotism, and even Africa — long plagued by civil wars and massacres — was set on the road to recovery.
Since the end of the Cold War, warfare, violence, famine and epidemic diseases declined remarkably. The early 2000s were infused with optimism; peaceful coexistence seemed within reach. Although global problems persisted, various formal and informal mechanisms were now in place to address them.
Sadly, the current decade has frustrated all such high expectations. The Covid-19 pandemic threatened the health of millions. While this inspired a degree of global unity, as manifested in the COP conferences, that spirit was interrupted by a wave of conflicts, starting with the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022 and followed by a series of war projects in Africa and Asia. However, the most unjust and aggressive began on 7 October 2023, with the fifth Gaza war. While Hamas, exploiting Palestinian suffering, exploded the Palestinian cause in Israel’s face, the latter responded by igniting seven fronts, escalating an initially local engagement into a regional war involving Iran, the US, and Houthi militias threatening international trade in the Red Sea.
Like Europe, the Middle East is teetering on a knife’s edge. The region where the Abraham Accords had been expected to expand cooperation, prosperity, and peaceful steps towards a Palestinian state is fraught with potential eruptions of violence in countries where militias refuse to disarm.
But the most dangerous threat comes from Israel, which, after emerging from a shock, began to invest its surplus power in new wars against the West Bank, Syria, Lebanon, and Iran. Equally if not more alarmingly, Israeli leaders have now begun to boast of a new phase of military campaigns, with Netanyahu proclaiming plans to reshape the Middle East in Israel’s image. Just as Hitler once launched invasions in pursuit of “Lebensraum,” Netanyahu now frames his ambitions beneath the banner of “Greater Israel,” threatening expansions into several Arab countries.
This threat can no longer be ignored. What is needed is a new Arab Hilf Al-Fudul — an alliance to deter a belligerent tyrant, prevent war, and establish peace and justice for all.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 28 August, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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