by sspiker
I think it depends on what your goal is. Keep in mind that the Middle East is tied for the most amount of points for mere "Presence" (at 3, with Europe and Asia), but has the lowest amount for the difference between "Presence" and "Dominaton", at only 2 VPs. So even if the Middle East is all red, as long as you control but one country, you'll cut into ME scoring. Going for parity or domination may take more investment than you can spare.In this instance, then, the Camp David Accords and Sadat Expels the Soviets are your best bets. A lot of Soviet players, post-Nasser, won't bother doing anything with Egypt until Sadat shows up.
If you were unlucky enough to have those events not occur, then Puppet Governments is the next best, followed by Colonial Rear Guards and placement in Tunisia. If you use Voice of America and remove two from Libya and another country (say North Korea or something in the Americas), they'll fix that damage and give you Libya. Finally, AWACS in the late war can help.
If you weren't able to take advantage of any of those cards, then just chalk it up as a really unlucky game.