The Modern Middle East

1
The Modern Middle East

• Chapter 16
• Section 4

2
Middle East
3
Middle East Religions and Ethnic Groups

• Most people are Muslim
• There are also Christians, and Jews in Israel
• Most countries have large ethnic or religious
  minorities
• The Kurds are an example of an ethnic minority
• Kurds live in Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey
• Kurds have been frequently discriminated against

4
Distribution of Kurds
5
Israel

• The Holocaust created worldwide support for a
  Jewish homeland after World War II
• In 1947, the UN drew up a plan to divide
  Palestine into an Arab and a Jewish state
• Arabs rejected the plan Jews accepted the plan
• In 1948, Jews proclaimed the independent state of
  Israel
• Arab countries sent their armies to crush Israel
  beginning in 1948
• Arabs believe that all of the land belongs to them

6
UN Partition Plan
Israel has fought four wars against her Arab
neighbors in 1948, 1956, 1967, 1973, and other
minor conflicts since Israel declared statehood
in 1948. In each war, Israels military has
successfully defeated the Arab countries. The
goal of the Arab countries is to destroy and wipe
Israel off the map. Israel, since 1948, has
concluded peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan.
Insurgents (rebels) still launch rockets from the
Gaza Strip and Syria.
7
Israel (continued)

• The wars between Arabs and Israel forced 700,000
  Palestinians from their homes
• The Arab countries invited many Palestinians to
  join the fight to destroy Israel after Israel
  declared independence in 1948
• After Israel defeated the Arabs, the Arab
  countries refused to accept the return of the
  Palestinians
• Many Palestinians become refugees and demand
  their own country
• Despite the ongoing conflicts, Israel has
  developed rapidly due to a skilled workforce and
  a modern democracy
• Kibbutzim work on what is called a kibbutz, or
  collective farm (Mr. Tilles lived on a kibbutz in
  the 1970s)

8
State of Israel
9
Resources and Religion

• Resources and religion have led to conflicts in
  the Middle East
• The Middle East has the worlds largest oil and
  gas reserves
• Consequently, it has strategic importance because
  the world operates on petroleum
• Some Middle Eastern countries have adopted
  secular, or non-religious, government and laws

10
Oil
11
Resources and Religion

• However, many Muslim leaders argue that a renewed
  commitment to Islamic doctrine is needed
• In Iran and Saudi Arabia, women are required to
  wear hejab, the traditional Muslim garments

Many Islamic countries make their laws based on
Islamic doctrine and beliefs. These countries
are secular (religious). Iran and Saudia Arabia
are two examples of secular countries. These two
countries are anti-democratic.
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Egypt

• Most populous Arab country in North Africa
• Egypt controls the Suez Canal
• Under Gamal Abdel Nasser, Egypt fought two
  unsuccessful wars against Israel
• Nasser wanted to nationalize (control) the Suez
  Canal
• Nassers successor, Anwar Sadat, made peace with
  Israel
• Islamists were angry about government corruption
  and the failure to end poverty
• In 1981, Muslim fundamentalists assassinated Sadat

13
Suez Canal
14
Egypt
Nasser, the Egyptian leader, wanted to
nationalize (control) the Suez Canal, a vital
waterway that links the Mediterranean Sea with
the Red Sea.
15
Iran

• In Iran, Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi ruled with
  the support of the United States, which helped
  oust one of his opponents, Mohammad Mosaddeq
• The shahs secret police terrorized critics
• In the 1970s, the shahs enemies rallied behind
  Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, a radical Islamic
  cleric
• Radical Iranian, anti-American students stormed
  and overtook the U.S. embassy in Tehran, Iran
  (1979)
• Protests forced the shah into exile, and Khomeini
  established an Islamic theocracy, or government
  ruled by religious leaders

16
Ayatollah Khomeini
A radical Islamic cleric who became the leader of
Iran following the Islamic Revolution and ouster
of the Shah (king).
17
Mohammad Mossadeq
18
The Shah
19
Saudi Arabia

• Has the worlds largest oil reserves
• The location of Islams holy city (Mecca) is
  located in Saudia Arabia
• Kings from the Saud family have ruled Saudi
  Arabia since the 1920s
• Fundamentalist Muslims have criticized Saudi
  Arabias close ties to Western nations like the
  USA
• Some opponents have adopted violent tactics that
  threaten to disrupt the Saudi oil industry

20
Saudi Arabia
21
Powerpoint Questions (16 points)

• 1. What is the dominant religion in the Middle
  East?
• 2. What two other religions originate and exist
  in the Middle East? (2 points)
• 3. What discriminated ethnic group resides in
  Iran, Iraq, Turkey, and Syria?
• 4. What was the U.N. plan in 1947 toward
  Palestine?
• 5. In what year did Israel proclaim itself a
  state?
• 6. What is a kibbutz?

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Powerpoint Questions (16 points)

• 7. What natural resource does the Middle East
  have?
• 8. Another word for non-religious is ???
• 9. What are Muslim women required to wear?
• 10. What body of water flows through Egypt?
• 11. Who was the Egyptian leader who wanted to
  nationalize the Suez Canal?

23
Powerpoint Questions (16 points)

• 12. What Egyptian leader was assassinated by
  Muslim fundamentalists?
• 13. What is a theocracy? Explain.
• 14. What Iranian leader established a theocracy
  in Iran?
• 15. What country has the worlds largest oil
  reserves?

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The End