The Middle East
Bellringer
 What is a developed country?
 What factors are taken into consideration when
determining the status of a country?
 How do you think Middle Eastern countries rank?
Developed Country
 A country with a highly developed economy and
technological and infrastructural advancement is
considered as a developed country.
 domestic product (GDP), per capita income, level of
industrialization, life expectancy, standard of living
and literacy level, technological advancement,
military strength, education
The Middle East: 6 major themes
 Proof of a European centered division of the East
We will further discuss all themes as we move
throughout this unit.
Theme 1: Oil
 About 60% of the world’s oil
 Has helped develop countries like the UAE and Oman
 Upsets many traditionalists who want things to stay
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the same
Some with fundamentalist views will turn to
terrorism as a means of fighting change ex. Al Qaeda
Gives dictators money for weapons and funds war
(ex. ISIS)
Allows small countries to have oversized roles
Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest oil producer in the
Middle East and a key member of OPEC (influences
oil prices and controlling supply.)
Theme 2: Arid
 Most of the Middle East is arid
 Rub-Al-Khali in Saudi Arabia is the world’s
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largest continuous sand desert
Many countries trade oil profits for increased
water supply
The Middle East has 10 of the 15 most water
poor countries
Cause for conflict
1% of ME water is fit for human consumption
Theme 3: Arab World
 Most of the Middle East
is Arab
 Others are Persians,
Turks, and Hebrews
 Architecture—Arabic
style
 Conflict between ethnic
groups (ex. Iran-Iraq
War between the
Persians and Arabs)
Theme 4: World Religions
 Birthplace of the 3 major monotheistic religions
 Christianity
 Judaism
 Islam
Theme 5: Islam
 Most people in the
Middle East are Muslim
 Many countries live by
Sharia Law—law based
on the Islamic religion
and the teachings of the
Koran (Qua’ran)
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Saudi Arabia
Iran
People of other religions
have few rights in Muslim
countries.
Theme 5: Rise of Islam
 Around the years 570 to
632 A.D., the prophet
Muhammad established
Islam
 Muhammad was born in
Mecca, on the western edge
of the Arabian Peninsula
 There he received a
message from Gabriel, an
angel that told him to
preach the message of
Allah
Theme 5: Rise of Islam
 Muhammad established a
Muslim community in
Medina
 After his death, Islam
spread to the rest of the
Arabian Peninsula
 Armies then spread Islam
as far west as Spain in less
than a century
 Over time, Islam spread to
Central Asia, India, and
Southeast Asia
Theme 5: Key Terms
 Allah: the Arabic word for God
 Muslims: people who practice Islam
 Koran: Islam’s holy book (Quran)
 Mecca: direction in which all Muslims must pray
 Jihad: Islamic holy war
 Pillars: practices of Islam
 Sharia Law: extreme religious practice noted to
include cruel mistreatment of women and lack of
tolerance for deviants
Theme 5: Pillar 1
 Faith: Declaration that there is no God but Allah,
and Muhammad is His prophet
Pillar 2
 Prayer: Five times a day, facing Mecca
Pillar 3
 Alms: Muslims have a social responsibility to give
money to the poor
Pillar 4
 Fasting: Muslims fast during the month of Ramadan
from dawn to dusk. The idea is to show that spiritual
needs are greater than physical needs
Pillar 5
 Pilgrimage: Travel to Mecca at least once in a
lifetime if physically and financially able.
The Kaaba in the Great Mosque (Mecca, Saudi Arabia)
Theme 5: Sunni vs Shiite
 Both are branches of the
Islamic religion
 Divisions were created
after the death of the
Prophet Mohammad
 Sunni Muslims believed the
position should be taken by
one of the Prophets
companions and it was!
(majority)
 Shiite Muslims believed
that only a direct
descendent of Mohammad
should take the position of
Prophet. They refuse to
acknowledge elected
Muslim leaders. (minority)
Theme 6: Conflict
 History of conflict
 Israel/Palestine
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Religion
 Resources
 Undeveloped countries
are vulnerable to militias
and dictators
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Ex. Saddam Hussein,
Taliban, ISIS
Why is this possible?
Does the religion add to
this vulnerability?
Arab-Israeli Wars
 1948—The country of
Israeli was created after the
UN decided that Jews
needed a place of their own
as a result of the Holocaust.
 The Jewish homeland was
already occupied by many
Arabs (Palestine)
 Palestine was divided: Arab
portion and Jewish portion
 This caused tension
between Israel and many
Arab countries fighting still
continues today
Instability allows ISIS to flourish
 As many as 10 million people are
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now under the control of ISIS
Heavily funded by selling oil on
the black market
In August of 2014, the United
States-led coalition launched
air strikes in Iraq and later in Syria
The coalition includes many
European and Arab countries
ISIS has lost a substantial amount
of territory and has lost about
25,000 fighters
The US finally declared that ISIS is
committing genocide against
Christians and other minorities in
Iraq and Syria
Goal: Iraq and Syria to be an
Islamic Caliphate
Syrian Civil War
 2011—Protests led to an
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armed rebellion against
President al Assad’s
government (Shia minority
controls the country)
Has become a proxy war
Syria backed by Iran and
Russia
United States and Saudi
Arabia along with other
countries are fighting to rid
the country of President al
Assad
As a result of the civil war,
terrorists groups like ISIS
have been able to flourish and
take over large pieces of
territory