Unit 3: Historical Developments in SW Asia

After the breakup of the Ottoman Empire, why did European partitioning lead to regional conflict in Southwest Asia (Middle East)?

• There were few jobs available in the newly created countries.

• There were few natural resources available in the newly created countries.

• New political boundaries prevented people from immigrating to different areas.

• New political boundaries were formed without considering the cultural differences of the people.

Use the headline to answer the question:

“Tribal Revolts in Iraq: Kurds Targeted in North, Shia in the South.”

Which would be discussed under this headline?

• the U.S. military operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm

• the property rights of indigenous peoples in Southwest Asia

• the heightened tensions caused by the creation of the state of Israel

• the conflicts caused by French and British imperialism/partitioning in Southwest Asia

Why did the change in boundaries/borders in the Middle East between 1914 and 1923 lead to conflict?

• They destroyed local natural, mineral, and environmental resources.

• They ignored traditional religious and ethnic groups and regions.

• They created an unequal distribution of resources.

• They used natural features to distinguish regions.

Which of the following statements explains why so many countries in the United Nations feel it was right to create the State of Israel in 1948?

• There was no one else living on the land at the time.

• Many felt the Jews deserved help due to their suffering in the Holocaust.

• Arab countries in the area supported the creation of a homeland for the Jews in Palestine.

• All national groups in the former Ottoman Empire were being given homelands at the same time.

Which of the following BEST explains the concept of Zionism?

• The idea that all religious groups should have their own states.

• The plan to let Arabs and Jews share the land in Palestine equally.

• The hope that all governments will be based on religious principles.

• The belief that Jews deserved to return to a homeland where they have lived in Biblical times.

Use the excerpt to answer the question:

“The question of Palestine as a Jewish homeland goes back to the solemn promise that had been made to [the Jewish people] by the British in the Balfour Declaration of 1917 - a promise which had stirred the hopes and dreams of these oppressed people. This promise, I felt, should be kept, just as all promises made by responsible, civilized governments should be kept.”

Which of the following is reflected in this excerpt?

• reasons behind the U.S. invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan

• reasons behind the establishment of the State of Israel

• reasons behind the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire

• reasons behind the outbreak of the First World War

Which of the following statements BEST describe the CAUSE of Kurdish nationalism?

• The Kurds want to rejoin the British imperialists.

• After WWI, the Kurds became the largest ethnic group in Southwest Asia.

• The Kurds are separated into separate countries by artificial political borders.

• After the break-up of the Ottoman Empire, the Kurds established their own country.

How might the split and conflict between Sunni and Shia Muslims have been avoided?
(HINT: Why was there a split between them?)

• if Muhammad’s daughter Fatima had not married Ali

• if Muhammad had not married Abu Bakr’s daughter Aisha

• if any of Muhammad’s sons had survived to adulthood to succeed him

Which statement BEST describes how the Middle East’s large supply of oil has affected the history of the region since the 1950s?

(HINT: Do other countries want oil?)

• It has lowered the standard of living in the region.

• It has encouraged the growth of democracy in the region.

• It has slowed down the process of industrialization in the region.

• It has encouraged foreigners to compete for influence in the region.

The newspaper headlines describe which event in Southwest Asia (Middle East)?

(HINT: Look at the names of BOTH countries involved)

• War on Terror

• Persian Gulf War

• Operation Iraqi Freedom

• U.S. Invasion of Afghanistan