Back on Jan. 26, the St. Louis Jewish Light published my op-ed column, “Twenty Days That Shook the World,” on the chain reaction of events convulsing the Middle East: protests in Tunisia that resulted in the ouster of the dictatorial President Zine el-Abindine Ben Ali, after an iron-fisted 23-year reign; the vote in Sudan which overwhelmingly approved splitting the nation, effective in July, when South Sudan will become independent; the leadership change in Lebanon, in which a Hezbollah-backed candidate, Najib Miqati will take over from the pro-Western Saad Hariri.

All of these events influenced, but took place prior to the stunning 18 days that truly shook the world in Cairo’s Tahrir, or Liberation Square. The Egyptian drama resulted in the resignation and semi-exile of President Hosni Mubarak, an autocratic ruler, longtime ally of the United States and observer of the Egypt-Israel peace treaty which his predecessor, Anwar Sadat had signed in 1979.

With a stunning swiftness that caught everyone off guard, including pundits, professors, and a vast assortment of talking heads, the increasingly massive protests, initially comprising young, educated Egyptians who were frustrated by the oppression of their government and the dead end they faced in seeking meaningful employment, gained momentum day by day. Events moved back and forth and rumors were rampant as to whether Mubarak would cling to office or resign. At first Mubarak announced that he would not seek a sixth term, would not position his son Gamal Mubarak to succeed him, and named a vice president, Omar Suleiman. That gesture, which might have been welcomed months earlier, was too little, too late.

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Within hours after Mubarak’s bizarre speech last week in which he made one last attempt to cling to the remnants of power until September elections, Suleiman, the de facto Egyptian president, took less than a minute to announce that Mubarak had indeed resigned. The protesters on Tahrir Square burst into wild celebrations that last for nearly 18 hours.

Suleiman, whose name will probably be on trivia contests as the shortest-termed president in Egyptian history, also announced that the respected Egyptian Army, which showed remarkable restraint during the 18 days of protests, would take over the Egyptian government on a temporary basis, would suspend the constitution and dissolve parliament along with setting plans for elections within six months. Very significantly the army also announced that Egypt would honor all international commitments including the Egypt-Israel peace treaty. What a relief!

For now, the highly regarded and trusted Defense Minister, Field Marshall Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, is the acting head of Egypt, and the incumbent prime minister Ahmad Shafiq will continue in office along with other non-controversial Cabinet ministers. Tantawi reportedly has spoken directly to Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak to assure him that Egypt will continue to support the Egypt-Israel treaty.

A few speculations going forward, despite the risks of predictions in the cloudy crystal ball of the Middle East:

* While we are relieved that the immediate crisis has been resolved with the removal of Mubarak and his replacement by seemingly sensible and trusted military leaders, what happened has been described as a “soft coup.” Should we really applaud a military takeover even though it might benefit Egypt in the short term? Also, the long-standing “state of emergency” imposed by Mubarak 30 years ago after the assassination of Sadat remains in place. Should we hold our applause until the transition is accomplished?

* George Will on Sunday’s “This Week with Christianne Amanpour” on ABC,observed that when Communism fell in Eastern Europe in the late 1980s, Poland had Lech Walesa and the Czech Republic had Vaclav Havel, respected leaders who could take the reins of leadership in the new regime. So far, the only visible “leader” of the Egyptian revolution has been the 30-year-old Egyptian Google executive and “cyberactivist” Wael Ghonim, who had been released from a totally unjust prison sentence because of his insistence on free speech. While Ghonim is impressive, he himself says he is “not a hero” and there is no indication that he either wants to or could lead a new Egypt.

* The fallout from events in Tunisia and Egypt are now threatening regimes throughout the Middle East and North Africa, including those in Algeria, Libya, Jordan, Syria, Yemen and once again Iran. These events, along with the unfolding political drama in Lebanon will bear careful watching, especially in Iran, where leaders of the crushed “Green Revolution,” inspired by the successes in Tunis and Cairo, have launched renewed demonstrations. Indeed, Vice President Joe Biden explicitly called on the dictatorial theocratic rulers in Iran to allow their citizens the right to march in support of an end to the ruthless regime under which they are forced to live. Last time the regime of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad used the government-sponsored goon squads of the Revolutionary Guards and Basiqs to crush the Green Revolution. Despite the regime’s hollow “endorsement” of the protests in Egypt, it is trying to crush the renewed protests in Iran.

As this week’s print edition of the St. Louis Jewish Light goes to press, Iranian protesters have indeed taken to the streets by the tens of thousands. The Tehran protests began peacefully, but later were met with the brute force of the Republican Guards and the vicious thugs of the Basiqs who beat back protesters with metal batons, tear gas and some live ammunition. Protesters vowed to continue their resumption of the 2009 “Green Revolution” which had been crushed by the theocratic regime, while hard-liners in the regime demanded the execution of opposition leaders. To her credit, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made clear her support of the Iranian protesters.

This is a welcome contrast to the hesitant response by the U.S. administration to the 2009 protests. In contrast to Egypt, Iran is not ruled by a longtime ally of the United States, but by a regime that took hostages in the U.S. Embassy in 1979, and which considers the United States to be the “Great Satan” and Israel the “Little Satan.” It would be most welcome if the Iranian regime, like that of Mubarak were toppled by a popular uprising.

* We have heard reassurances from the likes of Mohammed ElBaradei that we have nothing to fear if the Muslim Brotherhood is part of the new Egyptian government. ElBarradei was regarded as ineffectual or even complicit when he headed the International Atomic Energy Agency, allowing North Korea to develop nuclear weapons on hiswatch, and generally helping Iran stall for time with endless and fruitless “talks” while it went forward with its own drive for nuclear weapons. If the Muslim Brotherhood, which sponsors its branch, Hamas, in the Gaza Strip and which opposes the very existence of the State of Israel joins a new Egyptian government, how secure will the Egypt-Israel peace treaty be?

The above are only a few of the concerns we have as the post-Mubarak era begins in Egypt and the entire Middle East. We can only hope and pray that the events unfold as they seem to have in Egypt with wise and seemingly moderate leaders making the decisions on their future. In Israel, the word for hello or goodbye is “Shalom.” In Arab and Muslim nations, it is “Salaam.” And in the United States and the English-speaking world the translation of Shalom and Salaam is “Peace.” As we say in our prayer book: “Grant us peace, Thy most precious gift.”

Robert A. Cohn is Editor-in-Chief Emeritus of the St. Louis Jewish Light.