Maps of Middle East
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The Middle East has a territorial extension of 6.8
million square kilometers, is located in West Asia and
is formed by the following countries: Saudi Arabia,
Bahrain, Qatar, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Yemen,
Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan , Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman,
Syria, Turkey.
Its population is approximately 260 million
residents. The ethnic and cultural diversity among the
residents of the Middle East is enormous, a factor
responsible for the conflicts in that region. One of the
diverse elements is religion, with different beliefs and
disputes over territories considered sacred.
The three main monotheistic religions, that is, belief
in the existence of a single God, emerged in the Middle
East: Islam, Christianity and Judaism.
The religion with the largest number of followers is
Islam (90% of the population). It is a monotheistic
religion, based on the teachings of Mohammed, or
Muhammad, called by Westerners Muhammad. After
Muhammad's death, the Islamic religion suffered
ramifications, dividing into several strands with
different characteristics. The segments of Islam that
have the greatest number of adherents are that of the
Sunnis (majority) and that of the Shiites. Contrary to
what many people think, Islam is not only divided into
Sunnis and Shiites, there are several other smaller
groups, among them are Druze and Alawites.
The second largest religion in numbers of followers in
the Middle East is Christianity. The region is home to
around 12 million Christians, many from Arab churches,
such as Coptic or Maronite, which are among the oldest
in Christianity. The countries with the largest number
of Christians are Syria and Lebanon.
In addition, more than 6.5 million Jews live in the
Middle East, almost all of them in Israel. The territory
that currently corresponds to Palestine was already
inhabited by Jews about four thousand years ago,
however, they were expelled during the Roman
Empire. Jews returned to the Middle East through
migratory flows, which were strengthened by the
construction of the State of Israel in 1948. This fact
is one of the main factors responsible for the constant
conflicts between Jews and Palestinians, as Israel is
annexing territories inhabited by Palestinians.
The city of Jerusalem is disputed by the three major
religions. It is a sacred place for Islam, Christianity
and Judaism. Check out the symbolic importance of
Jerusalem for these religions:
- Islam: Domo da Rocha, in Jerusalem, is the third most
important place in Islam, from where Muhammad ascended
to heaven.
- Christianity: Church of the Holy Sepulcher, located in
Jerusalem, marks the traditional site of the
crucifixion, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
- Judaism: For Jews, the Wailing Wall, part of the
Second Temple, located in the city of Jerusalem, is the
most sacred place of all.
- The
ABBREVIATIONFINDER provides most commonly used
abbreviations and initials containing the continent
name of Middle East.
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Syria's foreign policy
Syrian politics has been dominated by foreign policy
issues to a greater extent than for most countries. Two
main lines - partly coincident and partly contradictory
- have formed the basis of foreign policy:
pan-Arabism and nationalism. At the same
time, relations with two neighboring countries have
dominated foreign policy:
Relations with Israel were linked to
pan-Arabism and opposition to state formation, and
support for the Palestinians' struggle against Israel
and for their own state. Then to the demand that Israel
have to give up the Syrian Golan Heights occupied during
the Six Day War in 1967, and then annexed.
The relationship with Lebanon is linked to
Syrian nationalism, which at the same time has a
pan-Arab overtone: Lebanon is, in Syrian eyes, a
historical part of Syria, and should be part of one
nation and one state. Lebanon has been an important part
of Syria's modern sphere of interest. At the same time,
control of Lebanon has been a way of gaining strategic
depth in relations with Israel.
The war in Syria from 2011 has then been a dimension
for foreign relations. The war has strengthened
relations with Iran and Russia, and worsened relations
with Turkey and the United States.
Political overview
Until the uprising in 2011 and the subsequent
international war, foreign policy was conducted on three
levels:
Bilateral in relation to individual
countries, and regionally in the Middle East,
especially related to the Middle East conflict and the
Palestine issue; county international. As a
result of pan-Arab ideology, regional ambition and
international orientation, Syria was instrumental in
founding the Arab League and the UN in 1945.
Foreign affairs gained a prominent place in Syrian
politics especially from the early 1970s, after Hafez
al-Assad came to power. For him, foreign policy became a
key instrument, and he established Syria as a
significant regional player. Assad took advantage of the
superpower rivalry during the Cold War, playing on
Syria's strategic location in the Middle East. He
offered a foothold to the Soviet Union and was helped to
realize his strategic ambition: to develop Syrian
military equality with Israel.
The most important axis in the fight against Israel
was for a long time Syria's alliance with Egypt. It was
broken when Egypt signed a separate peace treaty with
Israel in 1979. It broke with a basis for Syrian foreign
policy, referred to as the Assad doctrine: the Arab
states - and the Palestinian liberation movement -
should find a comprehensive solution to the Middle East
conflict; and in political practice, a Syrian solution.
Assad therefore pursued a policy towards the
Palestinians based on divide and rule, to gain the most
control, and to avoid two-sided agreements that did not
serve Syria's interests.
Assad assumed the role of the foremost Pan-Arab
leader, but chose to support Persian Iran against Arab
Iraq when the two countries went to war in 1980, during
the first Gulf War.
Syrian foreign policy was largely fixed from Hafez
al-Assad came to power in 1971 and to the uprising in
2011. After his death in 2000, his son Bashar al-Assad
continued the policy.
Political relations
With the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of
the Cold War, Syria developed relations with the West. A
simultaneous change occurred during the Second Gulf War,
1990-1991, when Syria contributed military forces to
Operation Desert Storm. Participation in the US-led
coalition brought an approach to the West in general and
the United States in particular, as well as improved
relations with the Gulf states, including financial
support.
The Gulf War laid the foundations for the Middle East
peace talks that began in Madrid in 1991, and which
Syria expressed its willingness to participate in. One
condition was that the Golan Heights were included.
Thus, Syria could break out of attempts to isolate the
country.
The region
Syria has long had regional superpower aspirations,
arguing with Egypt and Iraq about a leadership role in
the Arab world, and especially in the Middle East. This
was one of the reasons why during the first Gulf War
(1980–1988) Syria, as the only Arab state, took part for
Persian Iran against Arab Iraq.
With a changed regional geopolitical picture after
the Second Gulf War (1900-1991), the US-initiated peace
process opened for the Middle East in Madrid in the fall
of 1991. Syria and other Arab states thus entered into
peace talks with Israel. |
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Countryaah.com |
| View a collection of maps including Aleppo, Damascus,
Hebron, Jerusalem, Mt. Carmel and Sinai, [Palestine]
Palaestina, Persian Empire, Red Sea, Petra and Suez Bay. |
| https://www.countryaah.com/middle-east-countries/ |
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| 1UpTravel.com - Maps of Middle East |
| Browse a collection of political, reference and shaded
relief maps of the Middle East region. Check out the
maps of Palestinian refugee camps, Strait of Hormuz and
Tiran. |
| http://www.1uptravel.com/worldmaps/middle-east-con.html |
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| Expedia.com Maps - Middle East |
| Offers a listing of the countries of the Middle East.
Click through for a detailed map with zoom, print and
email features. |
| http://www.expedia.com/wg/P36919.asp?quer=middle+east |
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| Map of the Middle East - World Sites Atlas |
| Four-toned, color interactivel map of the Middle East
highlights countries and major cities, like Abu Dhabi
and Kuwait City. |
| http://www.sitesatlas.com/Maps/Maps/MEast.htm |
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| Middle East - ABC Maps |
| Features a collection of four color-coded maps of the
Middle East, highlighting countries and cities. |
| http://www.theodora.com/maps/new/middle_east.html |
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| Middle East - BBC News |
| Broadcasting network offers an interactive map. Includes
details about Israel's peace process and the stances of
neighboring countries. |
| http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/middleeast/f_map.htm |
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| Middle East - CIA Atlas of the Middle East |
| University of Texas' Perry Castaneda Library presents a
collection of maps from the Central Intelligence Agency
categorized by country. |
| http://www.lib.utexas.edu/Libs/PCL/Map_collection/Atlas_midd |
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| Middle East - International E-mail Accessibility |
| Map includes email suffixes and resources for the Arab
Middle East, Turkey, Iran and parts of Central Asia. |
| http://nsrc.org/codes/bymap/mideast.html |
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| Middle East - MapQuest.com |
| Look at this larger-view map of the Middle East
countries in comparison to the rest of Asia. |
| http://www.mapquest.com/cgi-bin/ia_find?link=btwn/twn-map_at |
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| Middle East - Maps.com |
| View and purchase maps of the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea
or the Strait of Hormuz. Also find maps of the countries
and cities of the area. |
| http://www.maps.com/cgi-bin/magellan/Maps___Middle_East?Sess |
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| Middle East - National Geographic Map Machine |
| Access a topographical map of the entire Middle East
region and peruse zooming and printing features. |
| http://plasma.nationalgeographic.com/mapmachine/index.html?i |
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| Middle East - Perry-Casta eda Library Map Collection |
| Browse historical maps from the University of Texas. See
Mt. Carmel, circa 1912, and the Red Sea and its environs
in 1860. |
| http://www.lib.utexas.edu/Libs/PCL/Map_collection/historical |
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| Middle East - Robert Putman Antiquarian Books and Maps |
| Buys maps of the Middle East and of individual countries
such as Turkey, Israel, Saudi Arabia and Iran. |
| http://www.nvva.nl/putman/meast.htm |
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| Middle East - Travel.com Map |
| Provides a color-shaded outline map of the Middle East.
Locate countries and click through to find a brief
almanac. |
| http://www.travel.com.hk/region/meastmap.htm |
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| Middle East - University of Chicago Oriental Institute |
| Interactive map leads viewers to archived photographs of
the area. Copies of the Egypt and Sudan photos are
available for purchase. |
| http://www-oi.uchicago.edu/OI/MUS/PA/PA_Map.html |
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| Middle East - University of Texas Library |
| Sift through these maps of the Middle East. Includes
political and historical documents from the Central
Intelligence Agency. |
| http://www.lib.utexas.edu/Libs/PCL/Map_collection/middle_eas |
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| Middle East - VirtualTourist |
| User-friendly, high-end graphic map of the Middle East
clearly shows the borders of each country. Also, travel
and entertainment details. |
| http://www.virtualtourist.com/Middle_East/[email protected] |
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| Middle East Map - EDI-TIE |
| Contains a clear, medium-sized color map of the Middle
with country borders and names. Useful for printing out
and school projects. |
| http://www.editie.nl/wj95/factsh/me.gif |
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| MSN Encarta Maps - Middle East |
| Check out this large, solid color map of the Middle East
and click on any country to obtain more information and
a detailed map. |
| http://encarta.msn.com/maps/mapview.asp?mi=T630637A&submit3=... |
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