Peoples of the Middle East and North Africa

What is an ethnic group?

• People with a shared or common:• history • cultural traditions• geographical origin • descent from common

ancestors • language • religion

Ethnic Group Examples

• White• British • White American

• Mixed• White and Black Caribbean • White and Black African • White and Asian

• Asian • Indian • Pakistani • Bangladeshi • Chinese• Korean

• Black • Caribbean • African American

What is a religious group?

• A group with the same religious beliefs and practices • Examples:

• Christian• Buddhist • Hindu • Jewish • Muslim • Shinto

Religious Groups

The Oil Curse

• The “Resource Curse”• Prone to authoritarian rule, slow growth, corruption and conflict.• Resources used to finance armies, corruption and patronage.• Oil is a good example.

• Modernization• High incomes.• Industrialization.• Regional and national disparities (oil wealth distribution).

• Migration• Brought populations from

outside the realm.• Foreign incursions

IranIraq

Saudi ArabiaEgypt

Turkey

Indian Ocean

Hormuz

Bosporus

Bab el-Mandab

Suez

OmanYemen

Red Sea

PG

PG: Persian Gulf

15.5

3.3

3.8

3.01.0 Oil transited (millions of

barrels per day)Black Sea 2002-2003 figures

Mediterranean

Sudan

Shipping Lanes and Strategic Passages in the Middle East

Sunni and Shi’ites

• Two major sects of Islam• Sunnis and Shi’ites

• Most Muslims in the region are Sunni. • In Iran most people are Shi’a• Accept religious leaders as political leaders. • This difference has contributed to conflict

between neighboring Iran and Iraq

Reason for Division

Based on the issue of:• the issue of women’s rights

within the religion • who should control the

natural resources of the region

• who should succeed Muhammad as leader or caliph after his death

• where the geographic center of the Islamic world should be located

Kurds• Most Kurds are found in the

mountainous areas between Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Iraq

• Have own language • separate history, literature,

music, and traditions.• Want a nation of their own

• caused conflict with the countries in which Kurdish people live.

• Most Kurds are Sunni Muslim

Persians• Live in Iran, most populous

ethnic group.• Persian, people originally from

Central Asia who have lived on the Iranian plateau for 3,000 years

• The country of Persia became known as Iran after WWI.

• Most Persians are Shia Muslims even though Shia Muslims only make up about 15% of the world’s Muslim population.

• Zoroastrianism is one of the minor religions of the Persian people, but it was the religion of the ancient Persian Empire.

Persian family from northern Iran

Arabs • Arabs are the most populous ethnic group in the Middle East.

• Arabs believe themselves to be descendants of Abraham through his son Ishmael and originally from the Arabian Peninsula.

• They speak Arabic.• Most Arabs are Muslims, with

the majority being Sunni Muslim.

• Many Christian Arabs as well, especially in the countries of Lebanon and Egypt (mostly Coptic Christians).

NORTH AFRICA

Regions of the Realm

• African Transition Zone • Sahel - Arabic word for border or margin, border of the Sahara desert.• A zone where people are ethnically African but culturally Arab.• Desertification - principal environmental problem.• Cultural and political instability.• North versus south - Muslim versus non-Muslim patterns.• Cultural Conflict; Muslim – Christian.• Nomadism - Berbers.

• Nomadic peoples of North Africa, mostly in Libya and Morocco

• The Berbers of Libya participated massively in the protests and fighting in the uprisings and revolutions erupted first in North Africa

• Berbers in Libya often see the revolutions of North Africa as a reincarnated Berber Spring.

• In Morocco, July 2011,a standardized version of the three Berber languages of Morocco was made official alongside Arabic.

• During the civil war in Libya, one major theater of combat was the western Mountains, where the indigenous Berbers took up arms against the regime Berbers

Contemporary Issues

• Arab-Israeli Conflict• Arab Spring• Civil War in Syria• Nuclear Weapons in Iran

ARAB-ISRAELI CONFLICT

WWII• 1897, a movement known as Zionism

began, for Jewish homeland in Palestine because:• Jews lived in Palestine in ancient times• Have attributes of nationality that require

own state• Needed refuge from anti-Semitism

• 1922, League of Nations gave Britain control over Palestine

• By 1938, 500,000 Jews had migrated to Palestine

• Many survivors of Holocaust sought refuge in Palestine,

• 1947, GB turned Palestine over to UN• Put Jerusalem under international control• Partitioned Palestine into separate Jewish

(Israel) and Arab (Palestine) states• 1948, Israel declared its independence

Wars over Israel

• Within 24 hours, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Egypt, and Jordan attacked Israel; in 9 months (with foreign aid) Israelis won war• Israel held more territory• Jerusalem divided; Jordan annexed

W. Jerusalem and West Bank• Egypt held Gaza Strip• 700,000 Palestinians homeless

Arab-Israeli War 1967• 1964 PLO (Palestinian Liberation

Organization) formed; • goal to eliminate Israel and create

Palestinian state• Led by Yasir Arafat

• Egypt, Syria and Jordan and moved armies toward border of Israel

• Six-Day War• Israel won:

• Took from Egypt• Gaza Strip & Sinai Peninsula

• From Jordan• West Bank & Jerusalem

• From Syria• Golan Heights

• Tripled size of Israel• UN helped resolve, Israel wanted

peace, Egypt and Syria wanted more fighting

More Conflict• PLO used terrorist attacks against Israel

• bombings at airports, village raids, used extremist Japanese to massacre innocents at Tel Aviv airport, 11 Israeli Olympians murdered at Munich games

• 1973 Syrians and Egyptians attacked Israel on Yom Kippur

• day of atonement, Holiest and most solemn day of year; fasting and prayer

• Israel fought back, three countries agreed to UN cease-fire

• US supported Israel, angered many Arab nations

• OPEC (Org. of Petroleum Exporting Countries) cartel of Arab and non-Arab oil producers, quadrupled price of oil

Palestinians Rise Up

• 1987, Palestinians carried out Intifada (uprising) against the Israelis; strikes and protests in W. Bank and Gaza Strip

• 1988 Arafat announced that he would renounce terrorism and accept Israel's right to exist

Peace Process• 1993 Camp David Accords:

• Israeli withdrawal from W. Bank & Gaza Strip• Palestinian temporary government (until permanent one

established)• 1995 Rabin assassinated by militant Israeli nationalist;

Benjamin Netanyahu replaced Rabin as PM of Israel• Critic of Arafat• Same time, militant Palestinian group Hamas begin

series of suicide bombings in Israel• Closed off Palestinian areas from Israel• Peace process at standstill

• 2000-2005 Second Intifada• More violent uprisings• Suicide bombings by Palestinians in Israel and

crackdown on West Bank and Gaza Strip by Israelis• Over 4000 Palestinians and 1000 Israelis killed

War in Gaza• 2000-Present

• “Security barrier” erected to keep Palestinian terrorists from entering Israel from West Bank

• Suicide bombings drop by 90%, but a daily hassle for Palestinians

• 2005-2006 Gaza Strip• Israel pulls out• Hamas (who US considers a terrorist

group) gains control• 2007-Present War in Gaza

• Followers of Abbas-leader of Palestinians in West Bank-revolt against Hamas in Gaza Strip; they are defeated

• 2008 Hamas launches air strikes on Israel

• Israel strikes back

ARAB SPRING

What is the Arab Spring??

• Arab Spring refers to a series of uprisings by people in many Arab countries from 2010-2011

• The protests have shared techniques: • Mainly civil resistance

• strikes, demonstrations, marches, and rallies• effective use of social media[ to organize, communicate, and raise awareness

• Protests caused by:• concentration of wealth in the hands of autocrats in power for decades, • Government corruption• The refusal of the youth to accept the status quo

• Rising living standards, literacy rates, increased higher education, resulted in tension between rising aspirations and a lack of government

• youth of these countries have been viewing autocrats and absolute monarchies as anachronisms.

• Economic decline, extreme poverty,

What has the Arab Spring Done?

To date, rulers have been forced from power in:• Tunisia• Egypt• Libya• Yemen

civil uprisings in:• Bahrain• Syria

major protests in:• Algeria• Iraq• Jordan• Kuwait• Morocco• Sudan

minor protests in:• Lebanon• Mauritania• Oman• Saudi Arabia• Djibouti• Western Sahara

Protests by the Kurds in Iran erupted in 2011 as well.Libyan weapons and Berber fighters returning from the Libyan civil war stoked a simmering rebellion in Mali, and the consequent Malian coup d'état has been described as "fallout" from the Arab Spring in North Africa

Beginning

• December 2010• Began when a vegetable seller in Tunisia set himself on fire

to protest unfair treatment by the government• President of Tunisia forced to flee (to Saudi Arabia)

Who was overthrown?

• Egypt• Hosni Mubarak of Egypt forced to step down, 11 Feb. 2011

• Currently imprisoned for life• Sudan

• President Omar al-Bashir Says he won’t run again, 30 Jan. 2011• Claims it has nothing to do with Arab Spring

• Jordan• King Abdullah has dismissed two governments, third PM resigned• protests ongoing

• Yemen• Pres. Ali Abdullah Saleh Promised to step down if not accused of crimes but stayed in power anyway• President overthrown 27 Feb. 2012• New president elected and inaugurated

• Libya• Overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi, 23 Aug. 2011; Gaddafi killed by rebel forces• UN-mandated military intervention• Opposition forces take control of all major Libyan cities• 25,000-35,000 killed

Social Media and the Arab Spring

• The Arab Spring has changed the perception of social media; its role in the uprisings has demonstrated to the world its power.

• Such information allowed the world to stay updated with the protests and facilitated organizing protests.

• Nine out of ten Egyptians and Tunisians responded to a poll that they used Facebook to organize protests and spread awareness.

• Further evidence that suggests an important role of social media on the uprisings is that social media use more than doubled in Arab countries during the protests.

• Young people fueled the revolts of the various Arab countries by using the new generation’s abilities of social networking to release the word of uprising to not only other Arab nations, but nations all over the world.

• Through social media, the ideals of rebel groups, as well as the current situations in each country received international attention.

SYRIA

Syria

• 2011 March - Protests in Damascus demand the release of political prisoners. Security forces shoot a number of people dead triggering days of violent unrest that steadily spread nationwide over the following months.

• 2011 May - Army tanks enter suburbs of Damascus in an effort to crush anti-regime protests. • 2011 June - The government says that 120 members of the security forces have been killed by "armed gangs"

in the town of Jisr al-Shughour. Troops besiege the town and more than 10,000 people flee to Turkey. • 2011 July - President Assad sacks the governor of the northern province of Hama after mass demonstration

there, eventually sending in troops to restore order at the cost of scores of lives. Opposition activists meet in Istanbul to form a unified opposition.

• 2011 November - Arab League votes to suspend Syria, accusing it of failing to implement an Arab peace plan, and imposes sanctions. Army defectors target a military base near Damascus in the Free Syrian Army's most high-profile attack since protests began. Government supporters attack foreign embassies.

• 2012 February - the government steps up the bombardment of Homs and other cities, The UN says that more than 7,500 people have died since the security crackdown began.

• 2012 May - UN Security Council strongly condemns the government's use of heavy weaponry and the militia killing of more than a hundred civilians

• Turkey changes rules of engagement after Syria shoots down a Turkish plane that strayed into its territory, declaring that if Syrian troops approach Turkey's borders they will be seen as a military threat.

• 2012 August - UN General Assembly resolution demands that President Assad resign and US President Obama warns that use of chemical weapons would tilt the US towards intervention.

• 2012 October - Syrian mortar fire on a Turkish border town kills five civilians and apparently stray mortars continue to fall inside Turkey. The Turkish parliament authorizes military action inside Syria. and the armed forces respond with artillery fire into Syria for a week.

IRAN

• Under Ayatollah Khomeini's guidance, Iran declares itself a theocratic republic guided by Islamic principles, and a referendum is held to name it the Islamic Republic of Iran.

• Islamic students storm the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, taking hostage 52 American employees and demand that the shah return from receiving medical treatment in the United States to face trial in Iran.

• 1980 Iran and the United States sever diplomatic ties over the hostage crisis• 1980 Iraq invades Iran after years of disagreements over territory, most notably the Shatt al Arab

waterway• 1981 Iran releases hostages after 444 days• 1988 UN ceasefire in Iran-Iraq war• 1995 The United States places oil and trade sanctions on Iran, accusing the country of sponsoring

terrorism, committing human rights abuses and seeking to sabotage the Arab-Israeli peace process• 2002 President George W. Bush refers to Iran as part of an "axis of evil," saying the country is actively

pursuing weapons of mass destruction. The speech is met with anger in Iran• 2005 Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the hardline Islamic mayor of Tehran, who campaigned as a champion of

the poor and pledged to return to the values of the revolution of 1979 and becomes president• 2006 Ahmadinejad continues to defy U.N. deadlines to halt uranium enrichment activities.• 2007 Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad visits the United States, and accuses Israel of occupation

and racism during a speech to the U.N. General Assembly.The United States announces new economic sanctions against Iran targeted to impact the country's military and halt Tehran's disputed nuclear program.

• 2009 Following presidential elections in June, in which Ahmadinejad claims a strong victory, waves of protesters flow into the streets and are suppressed by the government

• Nov. 2011 with new findings by international inspectors, tougher sanctions by the United States and Europe against Iran’s oil exports, threats by Iran to shut the Strait of Hormuz and threats from Israel signaling increasing readiness to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities.

• Oct. 2012 While American and European officials believe Tehran is planning to build nuclear weapons, Iran’s leadership says that its goal in developing a nuclear program is to generate electricity without dipping into the oil supply it prefers to sell abroad

• Israel has been pushing the United States to take military action to damage Iran’s program before it reaches the point at which it has the capability to make an atomic bomb, or to give Israel a green light to launch its own airstrike

• President Obama has rejected the Israeli call for a red line at that point. But in a speech to the United Nations on Sept. 25, he repeated his position that the United States would work to prevent Iran from gaining nuclear weapons. “Make no mistake: a nuclear-armed Iran is not a challenge that can be contained,” Mr. Obama said.

• Mr. Obama’s Republican challenger, Mitt Romney, has been sharply critical of the president for not taking a tough enough line on Iran, and for not supporting Israel strongly enough

• Mr. Netanyahu spoke at the U.N. after Mr. Obama, and warned that Iran’s ability to make an atomic weapon will be irreversible by spring or summer 2013. The speech suggested that Israel would not take military action on its own before then, and the next week Israeli officials said they were preparing a diplomatic push to convince European leaders to support a new round of sanctions in the meantime