POLSC221: Introduction to Comparative Politics

7.4: The Middle East and the Islamic World

• 7.4.1: The Colonial Division of the Ottoman Empire

  • Khan Academy: "The Breakup of the Ottoman Empire" Page

    Watch these videos. World War I was important in shaping the development of the modern Middle East. Once encompassing the Ottoman Empire, the war's end precipitated a peace settlement that divided the Arab lands into European protectorates, stripping them of most of their independence. While watching the videos, consider how the current conflicts in the Middle East can be traced back to this initial event.

• 7.4.2: The Creation of Israel

  • Wikipedia: "History of Israel" URL

    Read this article. The state of Israel is central to many of the historic and contemporary upheavals in the Middle East. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is one of the world's longest standing conflicts, and many believe that resolving this conflict is the key to resolving the various conflicts throughout the region.

  • Wikipedia: "Israel" URL

    Read this article.

• 7.4.3: Political Islam

  • Asian Social Science: Etim Okon's "Jihad: Warfare and Territorial Expansion in Islam" URL

    Read this article on the role of jihad in political Islam. The term "political Islam" is often used to identify the adoption of Islam into secular politics.
    

  • The Doha Debates: "Tackling Extremism"  Page

    Watch this video, which features a panel discussion on the issue of how to combat extremism and improve relations between the West and the Muslim world. 
    

  • University of Tampa: "Realist Constructivism" URL

    Read this analysis discussing the main arguments in Samuel Huntington's 1991 Clash of Civilizations. Be sure to read and think about scholars' analyses of both the strengths and weaknesses of Huntington's propositions about contemporary international conflict.