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Geopolitical kurdistan
Geopolitical kurdistan
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The Kurds and the Palestinians are two nations that are knowingly similar in their struggle for independence, yet every one of them has a unique, different history toward this struggle. These two cases initially began in the earls of the 20th century, after WWI, with the history of these nations dating way further than that. Britain was indirectly responsible, with France, for starting these dilemmas in the Middle Eastern region which remain unsolved until our days.
In 1916, The Sykes-Picot Agreement was signed between Britain and France aiming to control and influence the Middle East after the fall of the Ottoman Empire, who was the sole controller of the region. Followed by The Treaty of Sevres in 1920, new borders were drawn by the 2 European countries for Iraq, Jordan, Turkey and Syria among other Levantine countries. However, the Kurdish population who resided among these geographical borders were not given any land for them, but divided within the new borders giving them harder time than before. As for the Palestinian case, both Zionist and Palestinian nationalism movements arose during the late 19th – early 20th century. What raised the Zionist nationalism movements further was the Balfour Declaration in 1917 which supported the establishment of a Jewish state in Palestine while protecting the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities. Ever since then the two populations are, with unfortunate luck, trying to be independent nation states.
The Kurdish Case:
According to the Washington Post, the Kurds are a largely Sunni Muslim people who have their own language and culture. They inhabit large parts of Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Syria and a small part of Armenia. The Kurdish lifestyle was nomadic, revolving aro...
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...8). Israel/Palestine. London, UK: Polity. p. 221.
G. Chaliand, A.R. Ghassemlou, M. Pallis, A People Without A Country, 256 pp., Zed Books, 1992, p.58.
G.S. Harris, Ethnic Conflict and the Kurds, Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, pp.118–120, 1977.
Helena Cobban, The Palestinian Liberation Organization (Cambridge University Press, 1984) p.30.
Khanam, R. (2005). Encyclopaedic Ethnography of Middle-East and Central Asia. A-I, V. 1. Global Vision Publishing House. p. 470.
Moshe Gil, A History of Palestine,634-1099 Cambridge University Press, (1983) 1997 pp.222-300
NEZAN, K. Who Are The Kurds? Kurdish Institute of Paris. Retrieved from: http://www.institutkurde.org/en/institute/who_are_the_kurds.php van Bruinessen, Martin. "Kurdistan." Oxford Companion to the Politics of the World, 2nd edition. Joel Krieger, ed. Oxford University Press, 2001.
Imperialism, Colonialism, and war had a huge impact on the Middle East, and it can also be thought of as the source of conflict. According to the map in Document A, it shows that the size of the Ottoman Empire grew smaller after the first world war, along with this change came new boundaries. These borders were created by the victorious European countries that won World War I, and made different ethnic and religious groups separated and grouped together with others. Great Britain's took over Palestine mandate and developed the Balfour Declaration that promised Jews support in making a home in Palestine. Most of the Palestine land was populated with Arabs. As soon as Jewish immigration increased, so did the tension between the two groups because each felt like they deserved the Palestine land. Zionism began early in the history of Judiasm and it was the movement for the Jews to establish a home in Palestine, and return to their holy land. During the Holocaust, six million Jews were killed and the deep-seeded hatre against them increased
Lewis, Bernard. The Middle East: A Brief History of the Last 2,000 Years. New York: Scribner,
Conflicts between people often have multiple causes and effects. A majority of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is an argument that dates back to Biblical times. The Jewish argue Palestine was the historical site of all Jewish kingdoms, which was promised to Abraham and his descendants. The Arabs argue that Ishmael, forefather of Arabs, is the son of Abraham so God’s promise that the land should go to Abraham’s descendents includes Arabs as well . Some of the main causes which worsen the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are the disparity between Sykes-Picot agreement and Balfour Declaration, The United Nation Partition plan of 1947, which was the separation of the boundaries, and Hitler’s Final Solution. While these causes affected both sides
According to Shlaim, the conflict begins during World War 1 when the British made various promises to both Jews and Arabs while simultaneously plotting with the French to divide all the territory into spheres of influence . The British assumed that Palestinians and Jews could leave peaceably in a single state, but Britain's obligation to the Jews could only be met at the expense of the Arab majority. The British carved up the territories under their mandate without regard for religious, ethnic, or linguistic composition of their inhabitants.
This marked the beginning of the Palestine armed conflict, one of its kinds to be witnessed in centuries since the fall of the Ottoman Empire and World War 1. Characterized by a chronology of endless confrontations, this conflict has since affected not only the Middle East relations, but also the gl...
(Davidson, James-West . Nation of Nations, 6th Edition, Volume II: Since 1865, 6th Edition. McGraw-Hill Primis Custom Publishing
Bourke, Dale Hanson. The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: Tough Questions, Direct Answers. Downers Grove, IL: Inter Varsity, 2013. N. pag. Print.
Hourani, Albert. A History of the Arab Peoples. Cambridge, MA: Belknap of Harvard UP, 1991. Print.
Prior to and after WWI the world saw a rise in nationalistic sentiments. The Middle East was not immune to this new ideology. Although Arab Nationalism had a start in the Ottoman Empire, its rise among the masses did not begin until after WWI. While a total rise in Arab Nationalism became apparent on the Arabian Peninsula, a separate nationalist movement began in Palestine as a way to combat a unique and repressive situation. In Palestine the British mandate, along with British support, and the world's support for Zionist immigration into Palestine, caused a number of European Zionists to move into the country. These factors created an agitated atmosphere among Palestinians. Although there was more than one factor in creating a Palestinian-centered Arab Nationalism, the mounting Zionist immigration was among the most prevalent of forces.
Leenders, Reinoud. "Regional Conflict Formations': Is the Middle East Next? ." Third World Quarterly 28.5 (2007): 959-982. JSTOR. Web. 5 June 2011.
Dating back to the Ottoman Empire, tensions between the Kurds and the state were apparent. As the Republic of Turkey developed, a strong sense of nationalism engulfed the country, which led to the oppression of many non-Turkish elements of society. Through this oppression we see attempts in the 1920’s and 1930’s at Kurdish autonomy with the eventual development of the PKK in 1978. With the first armed attack against Turkish soldiers in 1984 we see the issue gaining pace and becoming more severe. The Kurdish problem has claimed the lives of around 35,000 people, displaced even more, and has created economic and political problems not only domestically, but also internationally. Becoming one of Turkeys most important security issues, there have been attempts at peace on multiple occasions, but until now they were to no avail. This essay attempts to address various aspects of the Kurdish Problem; the domestic implications the Kurdish problem has created, such as the political disarray that develops when discussing the creation of pro-Kurdish parties, their opposition, and their inability to have any form of success within the government. The “terror problem.” The economic impact associated with regions most closely related to the Kurdish people. International implications dealing with Turkey, it’s neighbors, and the United States. Syria and Iraq are essential to discuss when dealing with the Kurdish problem because they add greater context to an issue that spans along the borders of multiple states. Furthermore, this essay will conclude with a discussion of the resolution attempts to the decades long dilemma such as recent developments, expectations by both sides, and prospects for the future.
Bob Hawke once said; “Unless and until something concrete is done about addressing the Israeli-Palestinian issue you won't get a real start on the war against terrorism.” Perhaps Hawke put into a few simple words one of the most complicated issues within our world today, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As Israel continues to strip the Palestinians of their land and fears it’s very existence because of the Palestinians terrorist acts, there seems to be no solution in sight. The world appears to be split and all over the place when it comes to this matter. According to The Middle East Institute for Understanding approximately 129 countries recognize Palestine as a state while many others do not. Over all the political matters within this issue not only affect Palestine and Israel but the world as a whole, as the Middle East and the West seem to disagree. This has had and will continue to have an enormous impact on many political affairs all over the world particularly in the current fight against terrorism. Personally I feel that the Israeli Palestinian conflict while being a very complicated matter has a simple solution. Within this issue I am a firm believer that the occupation of the West Bank by Israeli forces is extremely unjust and must come to an end. Once this is achieved a two state solution will be the most effective way to bring peace to the area. The occupation of the West Bank violates political and legal rights, human rights, and illegally forces Palestinians who have lived in the area for hundreds of years from their land. This conflict is at the height of its importance and a solution is of dire need as nuclear issues arise in the Middle East due to the tension between Israel and it’s surrounding neighbors, and the...
Lawson, Fred H. "Syria." Politics & society in the contemporary Middle East. Boulder, Colo.: Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2010. 411 - 434. Print.
“There is no such thing as a Palestinian.” Stated former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir after three fourths of one million Palestinians had been made refugees, over five hundred towns and cities had been obliterated, and a new regional map was drawn. Every vestige of the Palestinian culture was to be erased. Resolution 181, adopted in 1947 by the United Nations declared the end of British rule over Palestine (the region between the eastern edge of the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River) and it divided the area into two parts; a state for the Jewish and one for the Arab people, Palestine. While Israel was given statehood, Palestine was not. Since 1947, one of the most controversial issues in the Middle East, and of course the world, is the question of a Palestinian state. Because of what seems a simple question, there have been regional wars among Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq, terrorist attacks that happen, sometimes daily, displacement of families from their homes, and growing numbers of people living in poverty. Granting Palestinian statehood would significantly reduce, or alleviate, tensions in the Middle East by defining, once and for all, the area that should be Palestine and eliminating the bloodshed and battles that has been going on for many years over this land.
Kenneth Jost. 2005. “Understanding Islam.” Annual Editions: Anthropology 11/12, 34th Edition. Elvio Angeloni. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.