Securitization, Legitimization, Rhetoric, and Regional Organization in the MENA Region: Learning from the League of Arab States

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region remains one of the least integrated regions globally and is characterized by persistent fragmentation, a lack of cohesive unity, and the absence of structured regional security mechanisms. Existing scholarship has highlighted how negative perceptions, deep-seated prejudices, and mutual distrust—particularly among influential political elites—have contributed to divergent regional interests and obstructed cooperation. These dynamics have fostered dominant discourses of inclusion and exclusion, perpetuating political rivalries and undermining collective action. Against this backdrop, this article examines the role of the League of Arab States (LAS) and its longstanding aim of unifying the Arab population under a shared political and social framework. Despite its historical significance and ambitious founding vision, the LAS has largely failed to advance meaningful regional integration. To investigate this failure, the article employs a qualitative content analysis (QCA) of the LAS’s legitimization rhetoric alongside a descriptive analysis of public opinion data drawn from the World Values Survey and the Arab Barometer. The findings reveal a critical lack of both normative and social legitimacy for the LAS, as reflected in its inability to meet the aspirations of the populations it claims to represent and protect. Theoretically, this study contributes to broader discussions of regionalism by arguing that the social legitimacy of regional organizations is closely tied to their success in fulfilling normative commitments. These insights offer valuable lessons for other regional organizations, illustrating how ambitious visions of unity can falter when legitimacy is not consistently cultivated through effective and inclusive governance.