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Religions in the middle east
Current middle eastern conflicts
Religions in the middle east
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The current Instability faced within the Middle East Sparks numerous Theories as to why the region is facing instability so furiously. Two of the leading theories state that either 1. the current geopolitical challenges faced are due to the unravelling of the agreements established during the first world war and that we are witnessing the failings of the crude border-lines drawn by those who placed them in the the Sykes - Picot Agreement. The latter theory states that the unravelling of the World War I agreement is not the cause of the challenges faced but rather nationalism, local politics, and other smaller scaled ordeals are the cause of the modern instability.
Sykes - Picot was created during WWI to benefits the French-British relations and to strengthen their influence in the MIddle East. The agreement stated that the two powers would draw the borders of the regions that they would control. Britain influence would be an indirect control established by advisors however, the French ocontrol would be fully direct and would mirror traditional French colonialism. The borders drawn within the agreement would be set to become the modern states within the Middle East (Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan). From this agreement the current affairs may be simply the failings of the borders. Local religious practices in the MIddle east are not easily characterized or mapped. The extensive traditions that vary from village to village are nearly limitless in number and diversity. When the SPA(Sykes - Picot Agreement) was written the two powers in position did not account, nor care for this diversity or the possible effects that placing differing tradition within the same stratified border could have within the region, instead the powers drew th...
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...are falling apart? Far from it. They are receiving more attention today because everyone’s eyes are on Syria, but back in 2005 pan-Islamic movements also operated in this area, including an Islamic emirate in al-Qaim near the Syrian-Iraqi border” (Dammit, It Is NOT Unravelling: An Historian’s Rebuke to Misrepresentations of Sykes-Picot. Reidar Visser, 2013). Scholars suggest that the reason SPA is so easily blamed for instability in the MIddle East is because it 's been done many times and provides an easy quick answer to a problem that continues with no clear answer.
Suggesting or denying that SPA plays a role within the infrastructure of the MIddle East and its Current geopolitical affairs remains a debated subject with both sides attempting to supply a definitive answer for the cyclic rate of instability and conflict within the SPA drawn states of the MIddle East.
The first is the sectarian conflict. The sectarian conflict was a conflict dealing with the race and religion of the sects. The two sects are Islam and Muslim. The conflict went nowhere because it is self perpetuating. The rate of casualties is too high, making it hard to tell how many people have been killed. This is partly caused by the death of civilians, which is 30% of the casualties. Also, there are people that are being forced to leave from their homes because of their government and just war in their area. The Sunni are dominating the other force, but are also hurting civilians, and the alawite heavy regime are holding up to them, but they are getting hurt
In this book, Friedman presents a coherent picture of forces in the Middle East that have led to the Israeli- Palestinian confrontation and to bin Laden and his group of terrorists. Friedman’s articles describe meetings, discussions, and arguments he had with people at all levels of society through out the Middle East. From his extensive travels and through dynamic interactions with the people he derived intense insights into how 9/11 came about, why, and what should be done about it.
In the novel War and Peace In the Middle East, author Avi Shlaim argues that Arab nations have been unable to escape the post-Ottoman syndrome. In particular he describes how the various powers inside and outside the region have failed to produce peace. While some of Shlaim's arguments hinder the message, I agree with his overall thesis that the Middle East problems were caused and prolonged by the failure of both powers and superpowers to take into account the regional interests of the local states.
The Middle East has since time immemorial been on the global scope because of its explosive disposition. The Arab Israeli conflict has not been an exception as it has stood out to be one of the major endless conflicts not only in the region but also in the world. Its impact continues to be felt all over the world while a satisfying solution still remains intangible. A lot has also been said and written on the conflict, both factual and fallacious with some allegations being obviously evocative. All these allegations offer an array of disparate views on the conflict. This essay presents an overview of some of the major literature on the controversial conflict by offering precise and clear insights into the cause, nature, evolution and future of the Israel Arab conflict.
To say the cause of political friction in the Middle East is due to religious differences is too simplistic as well as unduly inflammatory. Other things come into play, such as protection of US interests involving energy production, and even control of the water supply by Israel and its neighboring countries. However, to say the violence has nothing to do with religious differences denies the past 4,000 years of history.
Since the inception of an Israeli nation-state in 1948, violence and conflict has played a major role in Israel’s brief history. In the Sixty-One year’s Israel has been a recognized nation-state, they have fought in 6 interstate wars, 2 civil wars, and over 144 dyadic militarized interstate disputes (MIDs) with some display of military force against other states (Maoz 5). Israel has been involved in constant conflict throughout the past half century. Israel’s tension against other states within the Middle East has spurred vast economic, social, and political unity that has fostered a sense of nationalism and unity in Israel not seen in most other states. Over the next several pages I will try and dissect the reasons for why the nation state of Israel has been emerged in constant conflict and how this conflict has helped foster national unity and identity among the people of Israel.
“One Arab nation from Gulf to the Ocean,” gives meaning to the term “Pan-Arabism” in the Middle East. A notion where Arab nations transcend their state boundaries to form political mergers with other states and achieve an ‘Arab unity.’ The existence of Arab states had been tumultuous throughout the decline of the Muslim order, the end of the Ottoman Empire, the Palestinian defeat, Six Day War and Arab-Israeli war in 1973. This essay will critically examine Foud Ajami’s case for a raison d’état in the Middle East and his claim that there were six broad trends leading to the alteration of the balance of power away from Pan-Arabism and towards the state. It will be argued that Pan-Arabism was a romantic ideology that Arab states found convenient to support, all in advancement of their nationalistic state agendas. It was never a realistic endeavor that was physically undertaken by the Arab states and was thus never alive in a tangible sense. However, Pan-Arabism as an ideology had a place in the Middle East and was thus alive in an ideological sense.
Iraq's invasion of Kuwait called forth the "lessons of Munich" against the uselessness of comforting hostility. The Renaissance, Reformation, and Enlightenment, once treated as transnational phenomena that shaped the modern world, are now deconstructed and denounced as myths invented to serve Western imperialism. These conflicts come about from two key factors, the dimension of ethnic identity and the dimension of cultural/religious identity. Ethnic identity can be defined as a group of people conceiving themselves as a race, community or society. Generally, ethnicity is based on a vertical emotional border. This emotional boundary can create a barrier against co-existence and give rise to potential conflict with other ethnic groups all the time. This general definition could be applied to any kind of...
The Sunni and Shiite branches of Islam have been feuding for hundreds of years dating back to the beginning of the Islamic religion. The deity or god of the Sunnis is Allah. The Sunni branch of Islam is the larger of the two branches with over 80% of the Muslim population. The Sunni are the majority in most of the countries that have Islamic followers. There are a few different translations of what Sunna stands for, one of which is “Habitual Practice.” The differences between the two branches can be traced all the back to the 7th century CE when the disagreements as to who should succeed Muhammad. Sunnis believe that the Muslim community should maintain the right to select who the successor to Muhammad is going to be. The Shiite branch maintains the belief that Muhammad has selected his son-in-law to be the successor. Even though the two branches agree on most matters, the Sunni put more power behind god and his determination of fate, and are more inclusive about their definition of being Muslim. The Sunni place heavy belief in the role of religion in some aspects of life and a lot of weight is put on the Islamic law known as Shariah as the standard for a vast range of social issues including marriage and divorce. (Patheos.com)
During the Middle Ages, the politics and religious systems of the former western Roman Empire changed in many ways due to a number of events and interactions. One of the most important and defining events of this period was the rise of both Latin Christendom and the rise of the Islamic Caliphates. More specifically, is was the ensuing interactions between the two as both faiths struggled to establish their dominance. The rise of the heirs to the Roman Empire, Byzantium, the Caliphates and Latin Christendom, led to conflict and a more clearly defined and structured western world. This “new” western world was no longer simply divided along geographical and political lines, but was now demarcated by an additional principal characteristic:
Andersen, Roy, Robert F. Seibert, and Jon G. Wagner. Politics and change in the Middle East: sources of conflict and accommodation. 9th ed. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1982. Print.
Ben-Gurion, David. “Status-Quo Agreement.” In Israel in the Middle East: Second Edition, edited by Itamar Rabinovich and Jehude Reinharz, 58-59. Waltham: Brandeis University Press, 2008.
Gerner, Deborah J., and Philip A. Schrodt. "Middle Eastern Politics." Understanding the contemporary Middle East. 3rd ed. Boulder, Colo.: Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2008. 85 -136. Print.
Political uprisings in the Middle East, especially in Muslim nation states have placed Arabian politics back on the focus point of international politics. Political events in certain Arab countries had an excessive impact on the political development of other neighboring states. Resistances and anxieties within different Arab countries triggered unpredictable actions, sometimes sorely to observe and believe. The authoritarian governments of Arabian countries led from various dictators have created a precarious situation for their people, especially in providing national security and maintaining peace in the region. Jack Goldstone argues that the degree of a sultan’s weakness has been often only visible in retrospect; due in part to the nature of the military-security complex common across Middle East states (Goldstone 1). In addition, the existence of various statesmen with political affiliation is concerned in faithfulness of its armed forces. Usually, the armed national forces of several states, mainly those in Arab countries are loyal and closely affiliated to their leaders, which have a major role in state regimes. Arab uprisings in their early spreading appeared legally responsible and with concrete demands from representatives’ peoples, calling for a more open democratic system and reasonable governance. Even though, the system in which popular frustration with government imposes alters considerably from one state to another. These public revolts against different authoritative governments didn’t halt just in Arab states, but they sustained also in the Far East and in the Eastern Europe. Can we say that the popular uprisings in Arab countries could be attributed to the term of globalization? In fact, globalization is a multi...
...nd Politics." Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa. Ed. Philip Mattar. 2nd ed. Vol. 2. New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 2004. 890-895. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 24 Jan. 2012.