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150
Mesopotamia emergence
Mesopotamia emerged in 5300 BC. It is important because it is one of the earliest civilizations in the world. It is located between the Tigris and Euphrates River in an area known as the Fertile Crescent. It is also important because it is the birthplace of the many ideas that humans know now. The first language written was called Sumerian.
Mesopotamia means the land between two rivers. -
250
The fight over Jerusalem
The fight over Jerusalem has gone on for many years because it is the city that the Christians, Muslims, and Jews all have a big connection to. It is the birthplace of Jesus. It is faught over for the control of the city. Israel has control over it right now. -
Jan 1, 1095
The Crusades
The Crusades were a Holy War against the Islam people by Christians and Catholics. It started in 1096 and ended in 1291. It is an important part of the Middle East because after the Crusades ended it had a lasting effect on the people of the Middle East. For example when President Bush said the United States were going to crusade Afghanistan it scared them to because on the last crusades thousands of people were killed. Also the Crusades also increased trade and knowledge of the other cultures. -
Dec 1, 1453
The Ottoman era
In 1453 the Ottoman emirs invaded the Middle East and took it over until 1514. It is important because it shows an important takeover of the region in that time span. It is also important because when they took over the land they did allow Muslims and Jews and Christians to practice their religion. However, if you were a non Muslim you were considered a subject to the kingdom, but were not subjected to the Muslim law or faith. They came back into power in 1914, but lost it again in 1918. -
Europe takes over
In 1918 after the fall of the Ottoman era France and British countries wrote up a secret treaty to divide up the Middle East between the two. They go and take over the Middle East and split it between the two nations. This is an important time because it shows how much the Middle East is taken over again and again. It is also important because Western culture is brought over to the Middle East and the Middle East is practically culture shocked by the way the soldiers act. -
Creation of Israel
The creation of Israel is on May 14, 1948. On the day Israel declared its independence war was declared against them. The creation of Israel is VERY important to the Middle East because with the creation of the state many Palestinians and Arabs were kicked from their homes. This caused uproar from Arab countries who believed that the Palestinians deserved a homeland as well. Also Israel has the city of Jerusalem which is an important site for Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. -
OPEC is created
Although it was written up in 1960 it was put in effect sometime in 1961. In 1973 until 1974 OPEC implemented oil embargoes and initiated the first oil crisis. It used this as an "oil war." It is an important part of the Middle East because it shows how much the Middle East has control over the United States because of all the oil that we import into the country. -
Egypt and Israel create a peace treaty
Egypt and Israel create a peace treaty in 1979 ending any thought of a united Arab military front. This is important to the Middle East because it showed that Israel can get along with an Arab state. It is also important because Egypt is now a 'friend' with Israel. -
Iran hostage crisis
On November 4th, 1979 a group of Islamist students and militants took over the American Embassy in Tehran, Iran. The 66 hostages were held for 444 days and released on January 20, 1981 after the inauguration of President Ronald Regan. This is important to the Middle East because it allowed future attacks on the U.S. to happen by countries in the Middle East. -
the formation of al-Qaeda
In 1988 a terroist group named al-Qaeda formed in the middle. It is a stateless organization located mainly in Afghanistan. It is important in the Middle East because it is the core group of terrorism in the Middle East and is the cause of most of the terrorist attacks in the Middle East. -
Fall of the Soviet Union
After the fall of the Soviet Union in the 1990s it allowed a lot of Jewish people to migrate to Israel. This allowed for the strengthening of Israel. This is important because when the Soviet Union fell Israel strengthened their power because of all the Jewish immigrants. -
The Persian Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War started on August 2nd, 1990 until February 28th, 1991. Iraq invaded Kuwait for control of Kuwait to gain access to their water ports. It was met with outrage by international forces. In the end Iraq pulled out of Kuwait less than a year later. It is an important part of Middle Eastern history because Saddam Hussein was the President of Iraq. It also brought hate from Iraq towards the United States though much too popular belief it is not the reason for 9/11. -
September 11th, 2001
September 11, 2001 the U.S was struck with its 1st major terrorist attack on the U.S. 19 hijackers ordered by al-Qaeda hijacked 4 planes. 2 of the planes crashed into the Twin Towers, another crashed into part of the Pentagon, and the last one crashed into a field in Pennsylvania. It is an important part of the Middle East because it was the 1st major attack towards the U.S by a Middle East based terrorist group and started the war the U.S and Afghanistan are in now. -
U.S. and allies invade Iraq
In 2002 the United States along with it's allies invaded Iraq in search of WOMD. They also hoped to overthrow Saddam Hussein and turn Iraq into a democratic state. It is an important part of the Middle East because the war there now is because of what we did then. It is also important because it has allowed Iraq become a democratic state. -
The July War
July 12, 2006 Hezbollah militants captured 2 Israeli soldiers and started a one month war. It lasted over a month and killed 1000 Lebanese civilians, 120 Israeli soldiers, and 44 Israeli civilians. It is an important part of the Middle East because it shows the conflict between Israel and it's neighboring Arab countries. However, that attack was from Hezbollah militants in the Gaza strip.
