Free Essays on Middle East

Conflict on Holy Ground The Arab-Israeli conflict is one of the most prolonged and bloody conflicts in not only modern history, but in the ancient world as well. The roots of the conflict, as well as the arguments on both sides, are as diversified and complicated as the conflict itself. The conflict between the Arabs and the Israelis has gone on for many years with both sides believing the other to be the cause. The aftermath of the First World War saw the worlds first foreshadow of things to come. Many Arabs believe that the existence of Israel is an act of war. Therefore making the mind set that permeates throughout the region irrational at best. To better understand the conflict. The history of the two parties involved must first be understood. To better understand we must first think of the conflict as a clash between two separate but equally powerful ideologies, the Arab or Islamic and the Jewish or Zionist ideology. Arabs have a long history in the Middle East but that history is not easily explained. Before there was Islam and the area was unified the Arabs were conquered and ruled over by various groups, including the Romans at one point (Glubb 23). At this point in history, most of the Arabic peninsula was inhabited by nomadic tribes who raised various livestock (Glubb 25). There are few accurate historical accounts about the Arabic people. Most of what is known about the Arabic people in that region comes from travelers such as Herodotus, who although he a great historian, did not fully understand the peoples way of life, and therefore could not accurately paint a picture of what their lives were like (Payne 3). The accounts that he does give are not to be taken as accurate truth about the land or the people. One account of the landscapes demonstrates Herodotus’ lack of knowledge on the subject; he says, â€Å"frankincense trees are always surrounded by a swarm of winged and bright ly colored serpents† (Payne 3). The fac... Free Essays on Middle East Free Essays on Middle East Conflict on Holy Ground The Arab-Israeli conflict is one of the most prolonged and bloody conflicts in not only modern history, but in the ancient world as well. The roots of the conflict, as well as the arguments on both sides, are as diversified and complicated as the conflict itself. The conflict between the Arabs and the Israelis has gone on for many years with both sides believing the other to be the cause. The aftermath of the First World War saw the worlds first foreshadow of things to come. Many Arabs believe that the existence of Israel is an act of war. Therefore making the mind set that permeates throughout the region irrational at best. To better understand the conflict. The history of the two parties involved must first be understood. To better understand we must first think of the conflict as a clash between two separate but equally powerful ideologies, the Arab or Islamic and the Jewish or Zionist ideology. Arabs have a long history in the Middle East but that history is not easily explained. Before there was Islam and the area was unified the Arabs were conquered and ruled over by various groups, including the Romans at one point (Glubb 23). At this point in history, most of the Arabic peninsula was inhabited by nomadic tribes who raised various livestock (Glubb 25). There are few accurate historical accounts about the Arabic people. Most of what is known about the Arabic people in that region comes from travelers such as Herodotus, who although he a great historian, did not fully understand the peoples way of life, and therefore could not accurately paint a picture of what their lives were like (Payne 3). The accounts that he does give are not to be taken as accurate truth about the land or the people. One account of the landscapes demonstrates Herodotus’ lack of knowledge on the subject; he says, â€Å"frankincense trees are always surrounded by a swarm of winged and bright ly colored serpents† (Payne 3). The fac... Free Essays on Middle East The Middle East has been a hot bed for political unrest since the end of World War I, when the Western Powers initially divided it up. Today is no different. Saddam Hussein, leader of Iraq, is a constant threat to the countries that surround him. The United States’ top officials believe that he has weapons of mass destruction, and he has shown that he has the will to use them. However, going to war unilaterally is not the best route for dealing with Hussein. It will only further destabilize the region, distract efforts against the war on terrorism, and cost both too many lives and too much money. Iraq is a country located in south-west Asia. It has a population of 22,345,000 and the official language is Arabic. It is not a third world country, and 70% of the country is urban. The main import is military weapons and the main export is oil. Since 1968, Iraq’s government has been a dictatorship, the Baath Party, led by Saddam Hussein. They have managed to eliminate any opposing political activity. In 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait, a small neighboring country that is rich with oil. Kuwait was a US ally and produced much of the petroleum that was consumed by the United States. The United Nations demanded that Iraq withdraw from Kuwait, but they did not. A coalition of 39 countries sent troops and aid to Kuwait, including the United States, which sent 100,000’s. The other leading countries were Egypt, France, Great Britain, Saudi Arabia, and Syria. The war lasted for just over one month. Following the war, US troops entered North Iraq, where they helped fleeing Kurdistans. The Kurds had tried to rebel against the Iraq government while they were struggling mightily against the UN coalition, but they were put down. Iraq suffered greatly from the war. It is estimated that 100,000 Iraqis died, as opposed to only 370 coalition troops. However, Saddam Hussein stayed in power because it was feared his removal would hurt the c...