Chapter One
The Middle East's Relevance
in the 21st CenturyIn This Chapter
* Grasping the Middle East's relevant issues
* Tracing contemporary violence in the Middle East to two major political
events:
* World War II and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan
* Destroying stereotypes and breaking monoliths
* Understanding varying perspectives on terrorism (militancy)
Like it or not, you live in a global society where nearly everything you do
affects others, and other people's actions also affect you. Every time you
purchase a product made abroad (which is more often than you may imagine),
you're contributing to a global network of mechanisms that influence
the lives of millions of people you'll never meet. Every time OPEC
(Organization) of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) raises the price of oil,
higher prices make their way to the gas pump, impinging on your budget and
reducing your ability to buy items for your family and yourself.
While you were going about your business on September 11, 2001, 19 Arabs
hijacked four civilian airliners and flew three of them into the World Trade
Center and Pentagon, killing more than 3,000 innocent people. This single
event has likely changed your life, your worldview, and your opinions on
the Middle East. First, you may have been among the throngs of people
who began a concerted effort to educate themselves on the Middle East.
Bookstores rushed to keep the shelves stocked with books on the Near East,
Islam, and terrorism, while regional experts tirelessly attempted to keep up
with requests to speak on TV and radio, give lectures, and participate in
panel discussions on Middle Eastern issues. Religious studies and Near East
studies departments struggled to answer phones and meet the growing
demand of students who suddenly wanted crash courses in Islam and the
Near East. Suddenly, the Middle East was relevant.
This chapter discusses the importance of the Middle East to our 21st-century
world by highlighting issues relevant to you: oil, economy, terrorism,
environment, art, literature, and human rights among them.
Making Sense of It All
With the recent turmoil in the Middle East, many people in the West have
tried to find out more about the underlying issues, but this task can be a
confusing one. The information they gleaned from the TV, radio, newspapers,
magazines, books, and the Internet, at times seemed contradictory or filled
with obscure terminology, complex concepts, and scores of foreign names of
people and places.
Because I've lived, studied, and traveled in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kashmir,
Palestine, Israel, Jordan, and Egypt, my friends, family, and colleagues often
ask me questions about the Taliban, madrasas (theological schools),
Pashtuns, Hamas, General Pervez Musharraf, martyrdom, sharia (Islamic
law), and the Quran, along with a whole host of other topics. The Middle
East For Dummies provides the essentials on religion, politics, society, and
history of the Middle East so that you can process all the data that you're
downloading from the Internet, TV, newspapers, and other sources.
Following the headlines
The events taking place in the far-off Middle East have a lot to do with you.
In fact, the Middle East is so relevant to Westerners that they can no longer
afford to ignore it. You read about the region in the headlines everyday, and
the most visible reason that the Middle East's events, trends, and politics
affect you is the impact that terrorism has had on the West. If you traveled
abroad in the past, you probably think twice about flying overseas now,
don't you? In fact, you may think twice about flying at all. The tighter
restrictions, longer lines, and baggage screening at airports are a direct
result of September 11. After the July 2002 murder of three people standing at
the El Al airline ticket counter at the Los Angeles International Airport, many
people feel even less comfortable just waiting in lines.
Understanding global Islamic militancy
A wave of anti-Western feelings is currently washing over the Muslim World.
All too often this anti-Western sentiment has taken the form of deadly violence
against innocent civilians. Islamic militancy has struck in many parts of
the world. Consider the following in the month of October 2002.
Bali: Militants bomb two Bali nightclubs, killing 183 people.
Most of the victims are Australian, British, and Indonesian. French Oil Tanker Limberg: Suicide bombers attack a French oil
tanker, killing a Bulgarian crewmember in Yemen. Moscow: Approximately 50 Chechen separatists storm the Moscow
Palace of Cultural Theater, taking approximately 750 hostages, only
three of whom are Americans. More than 100 die when Russian security
forces pump an airborne chemical agent into the theater in order to disable
the militants.
Unfortunately, Islamic militancy has impacted the West and has dominated
the media, much in the same way that violence and conflict fills history
books. Other issues, often filled with controversy, also fill the headlines.
Art, architecture, and history
Five millennia of art and architecture telling the region's history saturate the
Middle East. Egypt's pyramids, royal tombs, and ancient relics, like mummies,
sarcophagi, and statues, and the Holy Land's countless sites held sacred by
Jews, Christians, and Muslims, like the Wailing Wall, Church of the Holy
Sepulcher, and Dome of the Rock are just glimpses into the Middle East's treasure
chest of art, architecture, and history (for more, see Chapter 23). You're
probably also aware the region's art has suffered setbacks recently. In
2001, the Taliban destroyed the 50-meter tall Buddhist statues that had
endured two millennia in Bamiyan, Afghanistan. During the wars in Iraq in
1991 and 2003, looters decimated holdings, most notably in Iraq's National
Museum of Antiquities.
Gender and human rights
Gender in the Middle East is a complex topic. Turkey, Israel, and Pakistan can
boast having elected female prime ministers. The highly publicized activities
of educated, visible Jordanian queens Nur and Rania represent the more
progressive elements in Middle Eastern society. An increase in women-run
businesses and improved education for girls in several countries signals a shift
in traditional attitudes. Yet women continue to suffer in the region.
The Taliban became the most recent regime in the Middle East to emerge as
poster boys for human rights abuses. The most commonly cited infraction
was their treatment of women. In many parts of Afghanistan, women were forbidden
to work in most jobs and travel outside the home alone or without chador
(type of veil). Furthermore, in many areas, girls and women were
denied access to education. Women also weren't allowed to drive cars. When
found in violation of these Islamic regulations, a special religious police
under the Ministry for the Prevention of Vice and the Promotion of Virtue
would beat or arrest the perpetrators.
The Taliban didn't create all these practices; many they borrowed from Saudi
Arabia. The issue of forbidding women to drive, for instance, came to a head
in Saudi Arabia in November 1990 with the arrival of 500,000 Americans to
the country for the Gulf War. Hoping to draw international sympathy for their
cause (women's rights), 45 Saudi women drove automobiles to downtown
Riyadh defying the ban. The Saudi Commission for the Prevention of Vice and
Promotion of Virtue arrested the women. The most vociferous of the religious
police labeled the women "communist whores." Some of the women lost their
jobs. More controversial yet was the incident in March 2002, when religious
police blocked an exit of a burning school, preventing the girls from fleeing
the fire because the girls weren't wearing the appropriate Islamic attire
presentable for the public. Even though 15 girls lie inside dying in the fire,
out-side the religious police dutifully busied themselves with beating young
girls for not wearing the abaya (black robe and headdress).
Oil and economy
Because most of the world's oil reserves lie in the Middle East, the global
economy hinges on the unimpeded production and flow of that oil. Disturbances of
any type-war, rumors of war, or militancy-upset the delicate balance of
he global economy and can affect countries for a variety of reasons. For
example, since the USS Cole bombing in 2000, Yemen's already ailing economy
has been reeling. After a wave of tribal kidnappings, bombings, and other
violence, estimates indicate a loss of $7.6 million a month, which is
substantial for a small developing nation of 18 million people. The bombing of
two Bali nightclubs in October 2002 has had a devastating impact on Indonesia's
economy, which relies heavily on tourism. The Jakarta Stock Exchange plunged 10
percent immediately after the bombings because investors worried that the
violence may convince foreign firms to pull out.
Ecology and environment
On October 6, 2002, a suicide bomber attacked the French oil tanker Limburg
off the coast of Yemen, killing one Bulgarian crewmember and spilling 90 million
barrels of oil. The oil spill has caused serious ecological damage to coral
reefs, fish, birds, and other marine life. This spill is dwarfed by the
destruction wreaked in the eight-year Iran-Iraq War when offshore oil platforms
and oil tankers served as military targets. A recent U.N. report found that 25
years of war, drought, and famine have devastated Afghanistan's environment.
Deforestation, desertification, water contamination, oil dumps, and soil erosion
are among the country's most prominent environmental problems. And
you probably remember that Saddam Hussein's soldiers set 1,164 Kuwaiti oil
wells ablaze as they were withdrawing in 1991.
Humanitarian issues
Take Lebanon, for instance, where an estimated 100,000 Lebanese were killed,
250,000 maimed or injured, and more than 1 million forced to flee their homes
during the civil war. In the Iran-Iraq War, some 500,000 were killed. After 25
years of war, Afghanistan's soil is saturated with land mines, infesting an
estimated 344 million square meters of territory. More than 150 people a month,
frequently children, fall victim to mines. In 1992, a growing humanitarian
crisis in Somalia, brought on by the century's worst drought and exacerbated
by civil war, left 300,000 dead. Tribal warlords demanded loyalty from the
starving population in return for access to food. Rival factions used military
force to strangle U.N. supply routes, raid and hoard food supplies, and extort
money from relief agencies. U.S. and U.N. peacekeepers stepped in to lend
stability to the suffering Somalis.
Judeo-Christian tradition
If you live in the West, you're a product of Judeo-Christian tradition, which
itself was born in the ancient Middle East. The Bible's origins, for instance,
lie in Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Canaan. The notion of hell that has
played an important role in Western religion, culture, and literature, not to
mention a central theme in so many Hollywood movies, originated in the Middle
East (see Chapter 4). Ever wonder why you get Sunday off? It's a religious day
of rest. Christmas, Easter, and Hanukkah are all holidays embedded in our
society.
The Middle Eastern story of infant Moses floating down the River Nile or
concepts like sacrifice and the golden rule are so ingrained in
our culture that imagining life without them is difficult.
Apart from these few reasons why the Middle East is relevant, I could name
many more. Approximately 1.2 billion Muslims populate the globe. Islam is
America's fastest-growing religion; an estimated 5 million Muslims live in the
United States. If you pay taxes, then you support military and economic aid
to both Israel and Egypt, as well as Turkey and many other countries in the
region. You probably have friends or family members who have recently
served in the military in Afghanistan or Iraq or who have been stationed in
the Near East. Middle Eastern work, travel, trade, food, and other elements
are woven into the very fabric of our Western society. Our destiny is intertwined
with that of the Middle East. The first step in beginning to understand
the Middle East is meeting it halfway.
Meeting the Middle East halfway
The issues that I mention in previous sections dominate the headlines, and
you've probably already run across many of them. Just as history books and
headlines are generally filled with wars and invasions and other brutalities of
which humanity is capable, The Middle East For Dummies discusses the
Middle East's historical and political developments. This political history
requires an accounting of revolts, revolutions, wars, torture, invasions, and
yes, Islamic militancy. In order to understand the current "mess" that you
read about or watch on TV, you have to face some tough issues.
The Middle East 's greatest asset
The Middle East's greatest asset-its people along with their customs-is
the main reason the Middle East should interest you. Daily life for most
people in the Middle East is pretty routine. Parents raise their children, kids
go to school and do homework (yuck), and families attend functions, such as
weddings and parties. People sing, dance, write poetry, create art, joke and
laugh, cook fantastic food, work long hours, pay their bills, have kids, grow
old, and do most of the things you do. I have, therefore, reserved a
considerable portion of the book to capture various dimensions of Middle
Eastern life. The chapters on food, literature, ethnicity, customs, and art
provide a window into the Middle East's rich and diverse culture.
Although Islamic militancy and religious and ethnic violence currently snatch
the lion's share of headlines, most of the world's Middle Easterners have
never participated in any act of violence, nor have they even picked up a
firearm or even seen an explosive device in real life. Most have never conspired
against any nation, burned effigies of a U.S. president, or shouted
"Death to America." By and large, Middle Easterners are among the kindest,
most tolerant, and most hospitable people on earth. Although the vast majority
of Middle Eastern people don't actively participate in violence, they still
may harbor ill will against the West or sympathize with suicide bombers or
people the West labels as "terrorists."
If you're truly going to understand why Islamic militants hate the West and
how some Muslims (and Christians) could possibly sympathize with Islamic
militants, you need to release the old biases and stereotypes and attempt to
look at various Middle Eastern worldviews.
Continues.
