middle east AGAIN!

[comloulou]

I cant believe that the collective wisdom of this site cant help me get a handle on the situation. Is it a boring question, does no-one feel its a worthwhile point to discuss even though there appear to be atrocities out there on a scale equal to Iraq or does no-one else understand the situation either?

[5029]

Whats your question??????

[comloulou]

its in the unanswered questions. I would like to know about the crisis inm the middle east as I have very little idea who is doing what to who and why.

[geofbob]

Yours is a massive, rather than a boring, question, and volumes could be written in reply; but let me take a stab and limit myself to a few paras and miscellaneous points.

First, in the very recent past, the US & UK (& a few others) have invaded Iraq and ridded it of is long-time dictator, Saddam Hussein. The reason for the invasion, depending on who you believe was either (a) that Saddam possessed weapons of mass destruction and was a tyrant who the world is better without; or (b) that the US wants Iraq's oil and wants to get rid of an enemy of Israel.

Which brings us to Israel, a country founded in 1948 as a homeland for Jewish refugees from Europe, driven out by Hitler (I'm simplifying here). But neighbouring Arab countries, and especially the Palestinians who lived in the land now called Israel, see it, to varying degrees, as an intrusion on their territory. There have been many attempts to negotiate peace between Israel and the displaced Palestinians, which would include the foundation of a Palestinian State side by side with Israel - but so far they have failed.

Other issues affecting the Middle East are:

- the long standing lack of mutual understanding between Christians and Muslims, going back to the Crusades of the Middle Ages;

- the rise over the last 20 years of extremist Islamic movements, some of which use terrorism, against Israel and and its Western supporters, especially the USA;

- the possession by the Middle East of vast oil resources, of great interest to the developed Western World;

- the poverty and lack of basic democracy and human rights in most Middle Eastern countries.

That's probably more than enough for the present.
-

[gazzawazza]

Geofbob, to make a paragraph break type "

" (only the bold text) at the end of the previous paragraph ie just after the fullstop. (Thanks to Quizmonster).

I too am in the dark about the arab-israeli conflict but your answer has made it a little clearer. Thanks.

[Worker]

These must be the most informative, interesting and handy answers I've ever read on this site. Thanks to all concerned.

[Cetti]

gazza - This is the site that Quizmonster gave me - but I am at the very beginning.
http://www.htmlgoodies.com/primers/basics.html

[comloulou]

Thankyou, that makes it a little easier to understand!