Middle East

1. Outcome: Understanding the
Conflict
The Middle East

4. Jerusalem

5. Understanding the Conflict
1. Setting the Stage
a. Fact: History has shown that humans will fight and die for what they
believe in
b. Crossroads for three major religions
i. Judaism:
1. Israel/Palestine lie in the heart of the promised land of the
Hebrews
2. Jewish temple in Jerusalem destroyed by the
Romans
3. Jesus was Jewish

6. Western Wailing Wall

7. Understanding the Conflict
ii. Christianity
1. Jesus was born in Bethlehem
2. Jesus lived in Nazareth
3. Jerusalem is site of Jesus’
crucifixion

8. Understanding the Conflict
i. Islam
1. Mecca and Medina are in modern day Saudi Arabia
2. Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem site where Muhammad
arose into heaven

9. Israel and Palestine

10. Understanding the Conflict
2. Israel & Palestine: Conflict over land and religion
a. Palestine:
i. An area that today includes Israel and the Israeli-occupied
Palestinian territories, as well as part of Jordan, and some of
both Lebanon and Syria.
ii. Other names include Canaan, Zion, The Holy Lands
b. Palestinians:
i. Arabic-speaking people with family origins in Palestine
ii. Mostly Muslim
iii. Upset about Israeli control in Israel, West Bank, & Gaza
Strip

11. Understanding the Conflict
c. Israel:
i. The worlds only predominantly Jewish state, roughly 5.7
million Jews
ii. Following the Holocaust, Jewish survivors sought refuge
from Germany & Britain

12. Understanding the Conflict
d. Conflict over land and religion
i. UN approved a partition of Palestine creating a Jewish and
Arab state
ii. Instead, the pre-Israel government, The Jewish Agency,
declared independence on May 14, 1948 and named their
country Israel
iii. The following day, the armies of five Arab countries—Egypt,
Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq—attacked Israel, launching
the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
iv. Jews and Arab Muslims in the region have disliked each
other since

13. West Bank & Gaza Strip

14. Understanding the Conflict
v. The West Bank and the Gaza Strip:
i. West Bank was originally called Judea and
Samaria
ii. Under Israeli occupation since 1967: major
cause of conflict
iii. Islamic group Hamas now rules Gaza Strip. Israel
left in 2005
Hamas
Flag

16. Understanding the Conflict
1. US Involvement
a. Afghanistan Then and Now
i. Then: The Cold War
ii. Soviets invaded Afghanistan in 1979; US protest by
boycotting Moscow Olympics in 1980
iii. US secretly supplies Afghanistan freedom fighters with
weapons (Film: Charlie Wilson’s War)
iv. Afghanis were first country to beat the mighty Soviet
Army
v. Last Soviet troops left in 1989

17. Understanding the Conflict
ii. Now: The Taliban & Terrorism
1. The Taliban: Islamic Political Group that governed
Afghanistan from 1996-2001 when overthrown by US; Has
revived since 2004
2. Very oppressive, especially to women
3. Fighting against the US and others with US
supplied weapons
4. Supported by Pakistan and Iran but both countries deny
involvement
5. Terrorism: Osama bin Laden was head of Islamic
terrorist group al-Qaeda; primarily trained in Afghanistan
6. Al-Qaeda attacked US on 9-11-01
7. Osama bin Laden was shot and killed in Pakistan in

21. George Bush Sr.

22. Understanding the Conflict
b. Two Iraq conflicts
i. The Persian Gulf War (Desert Storm) Aug 2, 1990 – Feb
28, 1991
1. Iraq invaded Kuwait
2. UN initiated a coalition force from 34 nations with
purpose of expelling Iraqi forces from Kuwait
3. Kuwait was liberated in Feb 1991, however Saddam
Hussein still ruled Iraq

23. Understanding the Conflict
ii. Iraq War March 2003-Present
1. Sent in to find Saddam Hussein’s WMD; did not find
any
2. Changed goal to “Liberate Iraq”
3. Found Hussein in a bunker; Iraqi’s put him on trial and
executed him
4. Still fighting insurgents: soldiers loyal to Saddam’s
army
5. Trying to install a democracy; takes time

24. Saddam’s Hiding Spot

26. Saddam Hussein after…
 He put up no
resistance although
armed with a pistol.
 "My name is
Saddam Hussein. I
am the president of
Iraq and I want to
negotiate," he told
the US troops in
English, according
to Major Bryan
Reed, operations
officer for the 1st
Brigade, 4th
Infantry Division.

27. Understanding the Conflict
c. Iran: future enemy?
i. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has not shown he is an
ally of America
ii. Ahmadinejad dislikes Israel and is a denier of the Holocaust
(anti-semitic)
iii. May be building nuclear weapons?

28. Understanding the Conflict
 Result: Peace in the Middle East will not be easy to achieve. When
cultures and religions clash, it becomes difficult to negotiate a
compromise that satisfies all sides. With dictatorships and violent histories
already in place, it may be a long time before the Middle East achieves
peace.