The escalating confrontation between the US, Israel and Iran is being framed in much of the international discourse as a battle between opposing camps: one defending stability and deterrence, the other resisting Western and Israeli dominance. But for the Arab world, this framing is dangerously misleading. The reality is far more troubling. For decades, the Arab region has repeatedly found itself trapped in conflicts designed, driven or manipulated by external powers. The current escalation is another example of this grim pattern.