The Cause of Hatred and Distrust in the Middle East
The war in Iraq is further poisoning the already noxious political
atmosphere between Arabs and Americans. It has intensified and
increased dangerous feelings of humiliation and outrage among the Arab
public, while paranoid rhetoric about Western attacks against Islam
elsewhere is spreading from the religious fringe to the mainstream. It
is simplistic and self- serving for political leaders in the West to
tell us that the terrorists attacks happen because they "hate
freedom," or "hate our democratic values" or "they despise our love of
liberty." Many, in fact, hate what they perceive as materialistic
Western values, but this is not what leads them to kill themselves in
suicide bombings, or to murder thousands of innocent civilians. The
main source of Arabs' anger, since the end of British occupation in
the Middle East to the end of the Iraq conflict, stems from the
partitioning of Palestine, American aid to the Arabs' enemies, Israel,
Israel's control of sites holy to Muslims as well as Israel's work in
developing the "Ethnic Bomb", and the United Nations' sanction on
Iraqi people for more than a decade.
The beginning of the current conflict can be traced back to when the
partitioning process took place. According to CIA data: "After World
War II, the British withdrew from their mandate of Palestine, and the
UN partitioned the area into Arab and Jewish states, an arrangement
rejected by the Arabs. Subsequently, the Israelis defeated the Arabs
in a series of wars without ending the deep tensions between the two
sides." (CIA par.1) As of the year 2000, the Muslim population of the
...
... middle of paper ...
...ealing of
the wounds can begin.
Work Cited
Central Intelligence Agency Fact Book page. 19 March 2003. Washington,
DC May 11 2003
Stephen Zunes, Tom Malthaner, Richard H. Curtiss. US_Aid_to Israel
page. January 2002
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China. April
200
gov.cn/eng/5036.html>
Margolis, Eric. Genes page. Nov. 26 1998
archive/genes.html>
"Iraqi Child Death Rates Soar." BBC News Online August 13, 1999
world/middle_east/418597.stm>
Lind, Michael. Israel Lobby page. April 1, 2002
index.cfm?pg=article&pubID=779>
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.
The relations between the U.S and the Middle East are strained at best. The troops deployed in the area face constant threat of attack by a militant group. These broken relations between the U.S and the Middle East started over 50 years ago, with the Iran Hostage Crisis. Root causes of the crisis were many. One was U.S greed over oil in Iran. The second, the coup in Iran organized and funded by the CIA. The U.S dependence on foreign oil is another cause of the problems. Lastly, should the U.S stop moving into other countries sovereign lands and trying to “Prevent the evil of communism”, the nation would not have so many problems around the world. This worry was even shown in Iran (Kinzer, 10). While often blamed on radicals, the strained relations between the U.S and the Middle East are a direct result of a poor US foreign policy.
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.
Lewis, B. (September 1990) The Roots of Muslim Rage: Why So Many Muslims Deeply Resent The West, and why Their Bitterness Will Not Be Easily Mollified. The Atlantic v.266, pp.47(11).
The knowledge and understanding of blood feuds helps in the develop understanding of the current conflicts in the Middle East. The Middle East conflict started after World War II when the United Nations handed the Jewish people land once owned by the Palestinians. A conflict has occurred with the Palestinians who live together with Israelis that has led to terrorism and tyranny. Israelis believe they must control the Palestinians to stop their terrorism; while the Palestinians use terrorism to seek independence from Israelis. Blood Feuds in Thull are similar to the situation in the Middle East and are violently depicted in Lincoln Keiser's "Friend by Day Enemy By Night."
" The Times of Israel. . 18 Apr. 2013. Web. 19 Nov. 2013.
Since the Arabs were living in Palestine when the Ottoman Empire control it. Since the Arabs defeated the Ottoman Empire with the help of from Germany, “Just short of 6 months the Palestinians were crushed, militarily and psychologically” (document 8) On the other hand, Israel grew beyond the partition lines, gained more defensible borders and they destroyed Arab homes reducing their population. The Palestinians rightly felt that the Israelis were taking over the area and were pushing out of lands promised to them in both the Balfour Declaration and the UN 1947 Partition.
own side for signing a deal which he had decided in 1974 not to sign
The article, “Why Is There So Much Conflict in the Middle East?” written by Mirjam E. Sørli et. al corresponds a great deal with the text Politics and Change in the Middle East as far as the reasons for conflict in the Middle East. Sørli et. al disputes the idea of “Middle East exceptionalism,” which says that there is something different about Middle Easterners that make them prone to violence and conflict (142). Sørli et. al says this is not true, but rather there are very simple reasons as to why there has been conflict in the Middle East. As stated, the lack of regional natural resources such as water, oil, and arable la...
“UN: Israeli Forces Abuse Palestinian Children.” Aljazeera. Aljazeera. Np/ 20 Jun 2013. Web. 10 Feb 2014.
...US support for Israel, contributed in making US interests more magnetic targets for outraged groups. This relation is not the only grievance of these groups, of course, but it is a central one, and it makes advancing other U.S. interests more difficult.
Ethnic conflicts are well rooted in the world's history and perhaps inherent in human nature. This type of conflict is difficult to resolve as is evident in the situation in the Middle East. The ethnic conflict theory explains that it is not territory, politics, or economics that prevents the achievement of peace between the Israeli and Palestinian peoples, instead, it is a deep-seated hatred of one another that neither group can overcome. The Camp David Summit in July 2000, the most recent attempt at fostering a lasting peace is a clear example of how ethnocentrism can prevents success.
between countries in the Middle East. The Israel Lobby is the term used to describe the group
This paper explores the issue of mass violence and it elaborates on what the main cause of mass violence is. As a result of weak gun control, mass violence has become an all - too - common occurrence in the United States. Many people believe that there is no need to make the firearm laws stronger, but I disagree. I think that if everyone were to abide by the gun control laws, the mass violence rates would drastically decrease, causing less death and more lives to be saved. Those who put the laws aside and do as they please, are the main cause for the crimes occurring in our nation. If we were to look back at our history, we would see many events where a gun was obtained legally and then that same gun was used as a murder weapon. If the gun
The Middle East has come along way since the rise of civilization thousands of years ago. Civilization emerged in the Middle East and northeast Africa along the river systems as agricultural societies grew in population and developed new forms of social organization. For the last two thousands years the west has been drawn to the middle east fascinated by the culture, religion, resources and politics. The Middle East has an immense impact on the world globally. My goal in this paper is to explain the ancient and modern significance of the Middle East and how it impacts the world in such a globalizing way.