Chaos In The Middle East Research Paper

The role of the Middle East has been very crucial to the United States, especially after WWII. The U.S. had three strategic goals in the Middle East and consistently followed them throughout various events that unfolded in the region. First, with the emergence of the cold war between the Soviet Union and the U.S., policymakers began to recognize the importance of the Middle East as a strategic area in containing Soviet influence. This also coincides with the U.S. becoming increasingly wary of Arab nationalism and the threat it posed to U.S. influence. Secondly, the emergence of the new Israeli state in 1948 further deepened U.S. policy and involvement in the region while also creating friction between the U.S. and Arab states which were

While the aftermath of World War II is often referred to as one of the primary creators of deep rooted turmoil in the Middle East region, the effects of the Cold War and the United States often over-zealous battle against communism is just as much a contributor if not more. The Arab world and the Middle East region were clearly going through quite an extraordinary period throughout World War II and its conclusion, primarily with the creation of most of the states we recognize today and struggling with the continuation of colonialism. These factors set the stage for the emergence of strong nationalist sentiments and Pan-Arab movements across the Middle East. Unfortunately, and much to the detriment of the region, the leaders of these young

Often called “The Crossroads of the World”, the Middle East stands between three continents: Asia, Africa, and Europe. Over thousands of years, migrating traders and conquerors crossed this region and spread the ideas, inventions, and achievements of many civilizations. It is an incredibly important part of the world with rich history, important resources, and deep religious and cultural traditions. However, in the past decades up to today, the Middle East has been consumed by conflict and chaos. Although different circumstances surround each issue, religion, terrorism, disputes over the control of natural resources, and weak governance primarily allow conflict to persist in the Middle East.

The Sunni and Shia conflict is currently the longest running feud in the world. Both groups possess an extreme hatred for one another. Over the years, these two groups have openly expressed their hatred with one another through violent killings. This split between the Shia and Sunni originates all the way back in the 7th century. Their difference was based on political differences. As a part of my essay I will explain the difference and origins of the split between the Shi’a and Sunni and also cover the current issues between them.

The contemporary world of Islam faces an uphill battle defending itself from modern day misconceptions and the forced involvement with geopolitics. Islam struggles with the western world’s perception of the religion and cultural understanding. Modern day Muslims will have to overcome insurmountable hurdles in an attempt to rebuild the diversity and complexity within the Islam faith. Islam is in a constant battle with Western Civilization and its forced power and ideology on the Middle East. The current religious struggle between the Middle East and the West derives from thousands of years of bloodshed and conflict between the worlds three major religions; Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. Blood that was shed during a period of holy wars and the ever expanding ruling powers such as Greece and Rome. The candle of hatred burns in modern times with the presences of radical extremist groups like the Taliban and Al-Qaeda that continue to ignite hatred towards the West by manipulating the Qur’an and preaching concepts that conflict with the laws of Islam.

The centuries-old Sunni-Shia divide is exacerbated by “contemporary concerns over power, freedom and equality” (8). Many Sunni countries are prejudiced against Shiites and at the same time, are scared of Shiism spreading. Sunni-dominated governments such as Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Jordan have worked to keep Shiites and Sunnis divided and specifically, to keep Shia subjugated (8,9). For example, the government of Saudi has worked to build a network of mosques, seminaries, schools, and writers that emphasize Sunni identity (8). In Algeria, the minister of education dismissed teachers in the fear that they were spreading Shiism. The Sunni’s fear of Shia spreading that it controls even the potential of Shiism to spread makes the divide even bigger and has caused anti-Shia propaganda “with renewed virulence” (9,11). The prejudice that Sunnis hold against Shiites is illustrated in this example. A man who was to give a guest lecture in Pakistan on Sunni-Shia relations told a group of Muslim professors, when asked, that he was Christian. One of them replied, “Well at least you’re not Shia”

Conflict between the U.S. and the Middle East has gone on for too long. Starting in the reagan administration and continuing until now. In the book “Fool’s Errand” Scott Horton, the author, writes about what has caused this conflict to last so long and why the U.S. is involved anyway. Horton believes that the problem in the Middle East will get worse before it gets better, and that it will last for generations to come.

The countries present their ideologies to the outside world as holy nations. Recently there has been significant evidence on major shifts with increasing polarization and creation of new alliances. These strategic actions produce both risks and opportunities; however, in the Middle East, there has been growing sectarianism in the conflicts (El Fadl, 2005). The sectarianism plays a great role in the political conflicts within Saudi Arabia and Iran. While both Saudi Arabia and Iran claim to have theocracy model states based on Islam, Saudi Arabia is considered a Theo-monarchy with strong relations to Wahhabism, a branch of Sunni Islam, while Iran’s political system has democratic components and is based on Shiism (Al-Rasheed, 1996). The differences in religious practices and ethnicity between the two nations have contributed to the dilemma of instability in the Middle

Disagreement between Shias and Sunni have been the most important splits in Islamic religion, which are ongoing problems since the 7th century to present-day, conflict in Islamic history has initiated blood spills from generations to generations and is still taking life’s while differences in social and equal opportunities that have taken deep roots in the minds of future leaders.

The Middle East is far from monumental and homogenous. Its differences have been a source of both strength and inspiration. The most visible, most pervasive, and the least recognized aspects of

Countries in the Middle East has been engaging in wars for 2,000 years. Such conflicts are caused by ethnicity, religion, ownership of land and even oil production. Each nation states their disagreements to each other on these factors, therefore sparking up a civil or an international war. In addition, these wars have taken their tolls on the economies and political structures of the fighting countries. An example of this is the country of Iraq. I will start off with religion. There are two sects of Islam called the Sunni and Shia Muslims living adjacently. They separated due to disputes soon after the death of the Prophet Muhammad over who should lead the Muslim community. They were in a state of agreement on the fundamental principles and

Another source of conflict as reported by Sørli et. al stems from the religious differences. As a whole, the Middle East is comprised of followers of Islam. But within the Islamic religion are the Sunni (which account for the majority), and the Shia. Tension lies between the two sects, especially given the fact that the Shia often hold the positions of power (Sørli, 147). Another major

that religion and politics have a long history in the Middle East does not mean that religion is always, or even most of the time, a crucial factor driving political conflicts. Most of the politics of the Middle East have been viewed by those inside and outside the region as driven by religious difference. From the Arab-Israeli conflict to the Iranian revolution to the emergence of

Since many religions have started in the Middle East, it has become the center for erupting conflicts. For instance, the Palestinian-Israeli conflict has been in the news for many reasons. Both groups want control of the God given land that they both claim is theirs, according to God, and what had happened in the past. The result of the conflict is religious terrorism (PBS, 1). Continuing, some Middle Eastern politics have been in conflict, even dividing communities of the

How does the presence of three different sectarian groups (Christian, Sunni, Shiite) affect the political, economic, and social stability of a nation is an interdisciplinary research question because it seeks to understand the relationship between the economics and its key insights while examining the political environment can led to conflict and how that conflict was exacerbated by the involvement of many different cultural sects. Analyzing the case of Lebanon requires an interdisciplinary approach for several reasons. First, the problem is complex, meaning that there are several components and each components has a different disciplinary character. Second, important insights into the problem have been produced by expects from multiple disciplines. Third, no single disciplinary approach has been able to address this problem comprehensively. Fourth, the case of Lebanon falls within the research domains of several disciplines. By establishing these links across disciplinary knowledge domains requires creating common ground and performing integration, which is a distinct feature of interdisciplinarity. The scope of this study will focus on the nation of Lebanon with the events unraveling sense the early 1970 's until today. The composition of the Lebanese society allows us to examine how the presence of Christian, Sunni, and Shiite camps can lead to social instability with war being the most extreme manifestation of civil strife. Instability in a nations political