A Bare Bones History of the
Middle East
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1. How will these revelations affect the
war effort?
2. Should these allegations have been
made public? Why or why not?
3. Are these soldiers sociopaths or does
war create monsters?
1800 BCE
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Judaism Founded
Lineage goes from Abraham to Moses to
David to Solomon, who built his temple in
modern-day Jerusalem.
Jews flourished in the area of modern day
Israel until about 100 A.D. when they
were expelled by the Romans.
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Romans were sick of the uprisings, period
called the Diaspora.
0-33 ad
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Jesus founded Christianity.
Jesus is executed in Jerusalem by the Romans
with support from Jewish elders.
The Christians were heavy proselytizers and
Christianity spread rapidly throughout the Middle
East and Europe, until 375 A.D. when it became
the official religion of the Roman Empire, and
thus the Western World.
During the Middle Ages, many Christians blamed
Jews for the death of Jesus and discriminated
(to say the least) against them.
600 a.d.
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Mohammed founds Islam in Mecca, Saudi
Arabia (current day) and Medina, Saudi
Arabia.
He has a vision that he ascends to heaven
from the rock on top of Solomon's temple.
So Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem are the
holiest sites in Islam, setting up conflict
with Jews and Christian over Jerusalem
and in current day Israel.
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Ramadan is the month in which believers
believe that Mohammed received his
revelations from God. The revelations are
written into the KORAN, the Islamic holy
book.
Al Aqsa
Al Aqsa
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Is Located on the Temple Mount
(Solomon’s Temple, holy to Jews) and is
the place believer’s believe Mohammed
ascended to heaven, on his horse Barak.
At Al Aqsa, circa 1000 a.d., Christian
crusaders massacred Muslim defenders,
making it a rallying point for Muslims in
their fight against “infidels.”
Jerusalem today
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Is the capital of Israel and all parts are
controlled by Israel.
Palestinians want East Jerusalem to be their
capital, but that’s were the wailing wall is, the
Western wall of the temple. Captured by Jordan
in 1948 War, and taken by Israel in 1967,
originally left as international city by Brits.
Israelis are buying and building in that those
religious areas.
Islam Spreads
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Rapidly through the next few hundred
years.
Islam becomes the dominate religion in
the Middle East, many parts of Africa,
including sub-Saharan, Central and
Southern Asia.
Much of the conquest was done at the
point of a sword, convert or die.
Muslim World
Schism in Islam
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Shortly after Mohammed’s death in about 630,
Islam divides in two between the followers of
Mohammed’s cousin, married to his daughter, Ali
and….
the followers of his main disciples, establishing
the caliphates, government protecting
Islam.
Followers of Ali are called Shiites.
Followers of the caliphates are Sunnis
Shiite Sunni split is intense and
exists today
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Sunniism is the dominated group in Islam
covering some 85% of all Muslims.
Shiites are a smaller, but very important
group.
Iran is the almost all Shiite, as is
southeastern Iraq, and Southern Lebanon,
with a sprinkling in Yemen (the southern
part of the Saudi peninsula.)
Main Issue
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Has to do with leadership and religious belief. The difference is enough that
many Sunnis believe Shiites to be infidels because they worship saints.
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Shiites worship holy sites, dead Ayatollahs and Saints.
Shiites believe in an occulted (hidden) Imam who is like a messiah whose
suppose to come back on Judgment Day.
In Sunni Islam, because its leadership are layman, it is governments
responsibility to ensure safety for Islam: Security is more important
than individual freedom! Government is to protect Islam.
In Shiite Islam separation of Mosque and Government would be
ridiculous, if your leader is wired to the Prophet, why would you have a
separate government?
Shiite leaders are called Ayatollahs and are thought to be direct blood
relatives of Mohammed and therefore infallible. You find Ayatollahs in Shiite
areas.
Mullahs are learned men, or men who study the Koran, they are lay people.
Sunniism does not have a hierarchy of their religion.
Assura commemorates Hussein,
Ali’s son’s death at the hand of the
caliphates in Karbala, Iraq.
Iraq
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Has a majority poor Shiite population on
border with Iran.
The most powerful groups in that region
have been Sunni, Saddam was a Sunni.
Iraq also incorporates a large Kurdish (non
Arab) Sunni population.
Iraq
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The “insurgency” against the U.S. was mainly
led by Sunni Muslims who were afraid that the
Shiites would become a majority in a democratic
Iraq, which it did. (Malakki the Prime Minister is
a Shiite).
If Iraq becomes a Shiite dominated state, Iran
probably will become its natural ally, threatening
Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, Sunni states.
Will religion and ethnicity win, or will democratic
ideals?
Wahhabism
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In the 18th century, a very conservative
Sunni sect rose to power in current Saudi
Arabia and has been dominate there ever
since.
This explains the conservatism of the
Saudi nation.
Osama Bin Laden and his Saudi followers
are Wahhabis.
Appropriate Saudi attire for women
Ottoman Empire
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Ottoman Turks controlled the Middle East
from 1300 to 1917
19th and early 20th Century
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Britain took over a major portion of the
Middle East from the declining Ottoman
Empire. The Capitulations.
20th c. Iran
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By the 1920s Britain dominated the oil
production of Iran, the only place where
oil had been discovered by Brits with
British capital. (Europe has no oil)
Iranian Oil was essential for the Western
Industrial Revolution once the internal
combustion engine was dominate.
After World War II
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Britain was in decline
Saudi Arabia had found oil and was still
dominated by Western oil companies.
Many colonies of the Western Europeans
and U.S. began demanding independence.
Israel
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Israel was formed (1949) out the British
possession in current day Israel. (close U.N. vote
gave it legality)
Secular Socialist Jews called Zionists had begun
to buy land in the area of Present-day Israel at
the beginning of the 20th century in an attempt
to establish a safe, socialist state there.
Other places had been considered, including
Uganda and Argentina.
Israel
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Land is the Palestinian Mandate (Israel)
was available for sale because much of it
was owned by absentee Ottoman
landowners.
Palestine has never, in modern times,
been controlled by the Palestinian Arabs
who live there: Ottoman Turks, British
Mandate, Zionists.
Israeli Green line 1949
<<<< West Bank of Jordan River
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I think the British thought the formation of
Israel might be doable, because of the
Palestinian population was majority poor
farmers. The underestimated the reaction
of the rest of the Arab world. Since then,
the Israel/Palestinian issue has been a
cause celeb in the Islamic world.
1952
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Iran kicked out the monarch who was seen as a
western puppet and elected a guy named
Mossadeq as Prime Minister.
Mossadeq nationalized the BP oil fields.
The U.S. and Britain orchestrated a coup there
to install Shah Reza Pahlavi, a puppet of the
U.S., who was particularly brutal, effectively and
ironically ending democracy in Iran.
1967
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Israel fought another war with Arabs, and took
the lands on the west bank of the Jordan river
from Jordan, this area was all Arab and is now
referred to as the West Bank.
Israel still controls the majority population with
martial law.
Israel has slowly but surely built all Jewish
developments throughout the West Bank,
making the creation of an Arab/Palestinian/Sunni
Muslim state there next to impossible to build.
West Bank Taken by Israel in 67
Palestinian/Israel issues
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Settlements: Israel continues to build
settlements on the West Bank, Palestinians
believe that to be future homeland.
Right of Return: Palestinians wish the right to
reclaim lands owned/occupied by them before
1948: non starter for Israel.
Jerusalem: Palestinians want E. Jerusalem for
their capital.
Israel’s security: more radical Palestinians,
Hamas, do not believe Israel has right to exist
and therefore no negotiations.
Freeze expired Sunday, Israeli
settlers get busy.
Palestinian woman holds son up
To look at Israeli settlement
Iran makes mischief
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Iran has funded Hezbollah, the party of God, on
Israel’s northern border, a Shitte enclave in
Lebanon.
Israel has invaded Lebanon twice. Currently
Hezbollah as thousands of rockets supplied by
Iran, ready to launch.
Iran supplies Sunni Hamas in Gaza (on Egyptian
border) with missiles that they used on civilian
Israel populations.
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Israel invade two years ago, atrocities on both sides.
Areas of violence
Lebanon Is a very complicated
place
1973
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Arabs oil producers embargo the U.S. and
Western Europe in protest of another Arab
Israel War.
1979: All Hell Breaks Loose
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Iranian Revolution occurs as Shah is
deposed and American hostages are
taken.
The Soviet Union fears the spreading the
revolution to it’s ‘stans and invades
Afghanistan to prevent the spread.
With encouragement of U.S., Iraq invades
Iran (Sunni Saddam all for slapping down
Shiite Iran).
1983
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U.S. sends marines to Beirut in an attempt
to protect Americans amid the civil war.
Shiite extremist blow up barracks killing
nearly 300 Americans.
We pull out.
1988
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Soviet Red Army leaves Afghanistan with
tail between legs. U.S. has helped this
along by supplying Stinger missiles to the
Mujahedeen, including a young Jihadist
named Osama Bin Laden.
Shortly there after, the Soviet Union
dissolves, leaving the U.S. as sole
superpower.
Iraq-Iran War ends
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Both sides end up exactly where they
started
Million or more died.
Saddam used war as an excuse to use
chemical weapons supplied by us on the
Kurds of Iraq, as well as the Iranian army.
Iraq was broke.
1989
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After the U.S. implies that they won’t intervene,
Saddam invades Kuwait, oil rich Princedom
on its southern border, next to Saudi Arabia.
George H.W. Bush sends in the troops in Desert
Storm and kicks the Iraqi’s out.
A little known “holy warrior,” just back form
Jihad against the Soviets in Afghanistan, Osama
Bin Laden had gone to the Saudi Kings and
offers to put the Iraqi’s out, but they opt to
bring in the U.S. instead.
He’s really mad that the infidels are in the
holy land.
Early 90s
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Osama moves to Sudan, and establishes the Al
Qaeda network throughout the world in more
radical mosques, to foment global jihad.
The U.S., under H.W. Bush, not wishing to
create a vacuum between Iran and Saudi Arabia
that Iran could exploit, leaves Saddam in
power.
Saddam continues assaults against Shiites and
Kurds, who he sees as allies of Iran and the U.S.
1991
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After the fall of Soviet backed Yugoslavia,
Serbian Christians attempt the genocidal
extermination of Bosnian Muslims in the
Balkans.
Clinton provides bombing raids (later
rather than sooner) that ends the
genocide.
Clinton did not end the Rwandan genocide
however.
In the 90s
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The Russians also fought a brutal war the
Chechnyan Muslim separatists.
The combination of the Serbian attacks on
Bosnia, Israel-Palestinian disputes, Soviet
invasion of Afghanistan, the Iraqi invasion
of Kuwait and subsequent U.S. invasion,
made it seem to many Muslims that the
imperialists were at it again.
1993
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Now President Clinton puts pressure on
Saudis to expel Bin Laden (King is afraid
of them too), Jihad is declared against
U.S. Bin Laden becomes a money man, a
clearinghouse for Jihadists worldwide.
1st World Trade Center bombing
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Bin Laden is forced out of Sudan after pressure
is put on Sudanese leader.
Bin Laden moves to Afghanistan.
In retaliation, Bin Laden and his lieutenants
hatch a plot presented by Ramsey Yousef to
blow up the World Trade Center.
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Use operatives from one of their networks Mosques in
Brooklyn, headed by the blind mullah.
The attempt fails, although six are killed and
1000 injured..
Rahman: the Blind Cleric
1998
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After the Soviet defeat, a group of
Pashtun fighters from the mountains
between Afghanistan and Pakistan called
the Taliban had taken power in
Afghanistan in the early 90s late 80s..
The Taliban are very conservative Muslims
and their version of Islam blends well with
the Wahabbism of Bin Laden. Made Sharia
the law of the land, with amputations and
beheadings.
Ethnic map Afhanistan
Swat ski resort
Ethnic Map Pakistan
1998
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Bin Laden orders the Kenyan and Tanzania
embassies bombed in retaliation.
Clinton orders cruise missiles to hit Al
Qaeda sites in Afghanistan and Sudan,
misses Bin Laden. Seems to always get
away.
2000
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Bin Laden orders the U.S.S. Cole blown up
in Aden, Yemen, killed 17 sailors and
almost sank it.
Repeated threats are made to blow up the
World Trade Center and other U.S. sites.
George W. Bush team ignores them as idol
threats and intelligence community drops
the ball, not talking with each other.
2001
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Bin Laden succeeds in taking out the
World Trade Center.
The U.S. invades Afghanistan, deposing
Taliban, Bin Laden gets away, AGAIN.
2003
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Even without evidence, Bush and his team
invade Iraq looking for WMD.
The major theory behind the invasion was that if
they established a working democratic
government in Iraq, then we’d have a
beachhead in the Middle East and that
democracy would spread from there.
Saddam probably wanted the world to believe
that he did have WMD to deter Iran from
attacking.
2003
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Sunni’s and Shiite both rose up separately in
opposition to U.S. occupation.
Sunnis were afraid that if a democracy was
established then the Shiites would take over and
there would be retribution.
Shiite militias were controlled by Iran and
probably wanted to hurt the U.S. It seems the
Shiites backed off, waiting to take over if U.S.
imposes a democracy: watch for Iran to pull the
strings.
2003-10
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The Kurds were just glad to be rid of Saddam.
They are hoping to get an independent region,
free of Arab control.
There are still skirmishes between Kurds and
Sunni Arabs over oil in the North. Look for Kurds
and Shiites to form a shaky alliance against the
Sunnis.
The Sunni insurgents and Al Qaeda Iraq
continue to blow up stuff and people hoping to
dissolve any hopes at peace.
The U.S. sends in a surge of troops and buys of
Sunni tribal leaders, and they turn on Al Qaeda,
violence decreases.
We with draw fight troops and have left 50,000
troops to protect civilians and train Iraqis.
2010
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Iran continues to expand influence
throughout the Middle East:
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They are developing Nukes.
They control Shiite militias in Iraq.
They supply missiles to, and the Hezbollah on
the Northern border with Israel in Lebanon.
They supply missiles to and money to Hamas
the controlling Palestinian faction in Gaza and
the biggest Palestinian trouble Maker to Peace
with Israel
2010
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Israel is now controlled by conservative
Zionist (Jews who believe Israel is their
God given right).
Israel has not been shown to have the
political will to end the developments or
settlements on the West Bank. If they
cannot do that, there will be no peace. If
they current government attempts to even
stop new settlements, the government will
fall.
2010: The Big Question
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Can Israel remain a Theocracy and a
Democracy with an exploding Palestinian
population, without a permanent military
occupancy of the West Bank? Answer: No
It will have to be one of the other.
2010: Big Questions
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Does the U.S. have the political will to
occupy Afghanistan forever?
If we leave, will the Taliban come back?
Can the Taliban destabilize Pakistan and
take over there?
Can the Taliban get hold of nukes and give
them to Al Qaeda?
If Pakistan becomes a theocracy will India
blow them off the map?
2010: Big Questions
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When will Iran get nukes?
Would Iran nuke Israel even if it meant
MAD?
How long will Israel wait for U.S.
diplomatic pressures to work before they
bomb Iran?
What will Iran do if bombed by Israel?
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Attack Saudi Arabia?
Attack Israel with Hezbollah and Hamas?
2010: Big Question
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Are we too poor now to use our military
against anybody else? Did we blow all our
treasure on Iraq and Afghanistan and
leave nothing for the future?
Mullah Omar:
head of Taliban
Osama Bin Laden
and al Zahawahiri:
Al Qaeda Leaders
King Abdullah of Saudi
Arabia
Famous Sunnis
Hamid Karzai Prime Minister of
Afghanistan
Mullah Omar:
head of Taliban
Osama Bin Laden
and al Zahawahiri:
Al Qaeda Leaders
King Abdullah of Saudi
Arabia
Famous Sunnis
Famous Shiites
Ayatollah Khomeini
Prime
Minister
Maliki
Ali Khamenei
Supreme leader
of Iran
Muqtada al Sadr
Leader Iraqi Shiites
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
Middle East Players
King Abdullah of Jordan, moderate,
Pro Western.
Sheikh Hassan,
Of Hezbollah,
Not moderate.
Israel/Palestinian Leaders
Mahmoud Abbas President
Palestinian Authority
Netanyahu Prime Minister of Israel
U.S Policy Leaders
Chairman Joint Chiefs, heads
Of all armed forces, wants a
bigger surge and to win the
war. Obama said .”No!”
Robert Gates Department of
Defense.
Mr. Surge, leader of
Military in Afghanistan.
Said “You’re[expletive delete]
with the wrong guy.” Hero of Iraq
Surge. (or was it the payoffs?)
V.P. Biden wants
Out.
Varying policies on how to continue
in Afghanistan
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Keep large numbers of forces to secure the country (surge), put down
insurgency,
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Secure population centers, leave the hinterlands.
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allow for democracy to develop and train Afghan military,
keep Taliban and Al Qaeda on run with excursions into Pakistan and alliance with
Pakistani military.
Supported by military leaders, Gen. Petraeus plan, little Iraq.
Build relationships with tribal elders until Afghan non Pastuns can defend the
“country”.
More cost effective, still requires large military presence.
Obama, for now.
Defend Kabul, focus on Al Qaeda, pull out most of military.
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use “Dalton Fury” types and drones to attack Al Qaeda and Taliban, if necessary.
many fewer forces and money;.
Leave Afghanistan to Afghans.
Biden advocated all along.