Middle East: descriptions for travelers and reviews from tourists. Resorts and hotels, maps and attractions of the Middle East. Tours and trips to the Middle East.
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Moderately exotic, but still the closest to Europe, the East occupies the “felt boots” of the Arabian Peninsula plus the adjacent territories: a little in Africa, a little in Asia and a little in Europe itself. Deserts and great civilizations, the birthplace of the world's largest religions, wisdom and discord - everything mixed in its mercilessly scorched expanses.
Oil, the main wealth of the Middle East, provides a constant (and considerable) influx of funds, thanks to which a high standard of living and accompanying pleasures are not uncommon here: first-class hotels and restaurants, entertainment centers, magnificent museums and galleries, quality shopping - in a word, everything for pleasure body and soul.
The Middle East has a lot to offer as a tourist destination. Let's start with the states closest to Russia: Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan are not only “our beloved exes” (and therefore very close, with common language and a host of similar cultural features), but also the most interesting sights, ample opportunities for treatment, a lot of active activities in fresh air, finally - delicious cuisine (oh, these pilaf, satsivi and wine!) and, to boot, without a sharp change in climate and time zone.
We move further east. Before us is Turkey - the heir of the great Ottoman Empire, an Asian beauty in European attire, whose tourist “tricks” are unknown only to a convinced hermit. “The City of Memories” Istanbul, which, it seems, a lifetime would not be enough to see the sights of, the coastline, natural beauty and magnificent architectural monuments, long ago and carefully developed by domestic “sun worshipers”.
The countries of the Levant - Israel and Jordan, Syria and Lebanon - are the soul and heart of the Middle East. People come here to touch the origins - for human civilization there is no land older than this. The roots of Judaism and Christianity are located here, so a considerable percentage of “Levantine” tourists are pilgrims and those who want to temporarily escape the daily whirlwind and think about the eternal. Let’s not forget to mention the resort attractions of the region - with such a variety of seas and beaches, no one will be left out of work: connoisseurs of underwater beauty dive into the Red Sea, sun and sand lovers cover the beaches of the Mediterranean Sea with an even carpet, and those who want to heal and shake themselves up recline on the surface of the sea Dead.
Jordan
The African piece of the Middle East - Egypt - has prepared for tourists both recreational and cultural leisure: the Mediterranean and Red Sea coasts, plus the impressive heritage of ancient Egyptian civilization in the form of a mass of archaeological monuments and rich museums. Needless to say, both coasts are among the big two most popular beaches in the world.
The Arabian Peninsula is, first of all, Saudi Arabia, a center of attraction for Muslims all over the world, and several tourist pearls - such as the original and majestic Oman, the richest Bahrain and the Emirates (the latter is a real mecca for demanding “beach-goers” and a global shopping paradise). Here you can try your hand at falconry and pearl fishing, cross the desert in a caravan and get behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car.
Well, those who plan to reach the westernmost edge of the Middle East are guaranteed to enjoy colorful Iran, where the azure domes are reflected in the reservoirs of the sheikhs' palaces, and precious carpets color the narrow shopping streets of ancient cities.
As my preface. The review is, of course, quite superficial and controversial in places. For example, the division into Sunnis and Shiites occurs not so much for historical reasons, but rather according to the main principle of the structure of society. Some believe that the people and the world should be ruled by a caliph, combining in his person the supreme secular (state) and at the same time the supreme religious power, while others separate the state from religion. In their opinion, the head of state is of course in charge and all that, but the last word should still remain with the imam. However, as a general idea - what the Middle East is, how complex it is and to what extent what is happening there is ambiguous and cannot be directly measured only by the usual European standards, the article is quite good. I recommend.
10 maps that explain the Middle East
The Middle East is known for its ancient history and as the region where Judaism, Christianity, Islam and Zoroastrianism emerged. Now the region is attracting attention as the most turbulent. It is with him that most of the news is connected at the moment.
The most ancient states on the planet existed in the Middle East, but the current state of the region is of particular interest.
What is happening in Yemen, the agreement on Iran's nuclear program, Saudi Arabia's actions in the oil market - all this forms the news flow and greatly influences the global economy.
MIDDLE EAST COUNTRIES
The Middle East now includes Azerbaijan, Armenia, Bahrain, Georgia, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Cyprus, Lebanon, Palestinian National Authority, Syria, Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Qatar, Kuwait, UAE, Oman and Saudi Arabia.
Politically, the Middle East has rarely been stable, but instability is now extremely high.
ARABIC DIALECTS IN THE MIDDLE EAST
This map shows the enormous extent of the different dialects of Arabic and the great linguistic diversity.
This situation takes us back to the caliphates of the 6th and 7th centuries, which spread the Arabic language from the Arabian Peninsula to Africa and the Middle East. But over the past 1,300 years, individual dialects have become very distant from each other.
And where the distribution of the dialect does not coincide with state borders, that is, with the boundaries of communities, various problems may arise.
SHIITES AND SUNNIS
The history of Islam's division between Sunnis and Shiites began with the death of the Prophet Muhammad in 632. Some Muslims argued that power should pass to Ali, who was Muhammad's son-in-law. As a result, the struggle for power was lost by Ali's supporters in the civil war, who were precisely called Shiites.
Nevertheless, a separate branch of Islam has emerged, which now includes about 10-15% of Muslims around the world. However, only in Iran and Iraq do they constitute a majority.
Today the religious confrontation has turned into a political one. Shiite political forces led by Iran and Sunni political forces led by Saudi Arabia are fighting for influence in the region.
This is a campaign against the Cold War within the region, but often it develops into real military clashes.
ETHNIC GROUPS OF THE MIDDLE EAST
The most important color on the map of Middle Eastern ethnic groups is yellow: Arabs, who form the majority in almost all Middle Eastern countries, including North African countries.
The exception is Israel, where Jews predominate ( pink color), Iran, where the population is Persian (orange), Turkey (green) and Afghanistan, where ethnic diversity is generally high.
Another important color on this card is red. Ethnic Kurds do not have their own country, but are strongly represented in Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey.
OIL AND GAS IN THE MIDDLE EAST
The Middle East produces about a third of the planet's oil and about 10% of its gas. The region accounts for about a third of all natural gas reserves, but it is more difficult to transport.
Most of the extracted energy resources are exported.
The region's economies are heavily dependent on oil supplies, and this wealth has also led to many conflicts in the past few decades.
The map shows the main hydrocarbon reserves and transportation routes. Energy resources are largely concentrated in three countries that have historically competed with each other: Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.
The most interesting thing is that the confrontation has been actively supported by the United States since the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s.
IMPORTANCE OF THE SUEZ CANAL FOR WORLD TRADE
The facility that forever changed world trade is located in the Middle East.
After Egypt opened the canal in 1868 after 10 years of work, the 100-mile man-made route firmly connected Europe and Asia. The importance of the canal to the world was so obvious and great that after the British conquered Egypt in 1880, the world's leading powers signed a treaty that remains in effect to this day, declaring that the canal would forever be open to trade and warships of any country.
Today, about 8% of all global trade flows occur through the Suez Canal.
OIL, TRADE AND MILITARY IN THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ
The world economy also depends heavily on the narrow strait between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula. In 1980, US President Jimmy Carter issued the “Carter Doctrine,” which required the US to use military force to protect its access to Persian Gulf oil.
After this, the Strait of Hormuz became the most militarized stretch of water on the entire planet.
The US deployed large naval forces to protect exports during the Iran-Iraq War and later during the Gulf War. Now forces remain there to prevent Iran from blocking the canal.
Apparently, as long as the world remains dependent on oil and the Middle East remains unsettled, the armed forces will remain in the Strait of Hormuz.
IRAN'S NUCLEAR PROGRAM AND POSSIBLE ISRAELIAN ATTACK PLAN
Iran's nuclear program has raised many questions from other states, but Israel's reaction was one of the strongest, since these countries have far from friendly relations.
The Iranian authorities are trying to convince the whole world that the program is exclusively peaceful. However, UN sanctions led to the fact that Iran's economy faced great difficulties, since it was impossible to export oil.
At the same time, Israel fears that Iran could develop nuclear weapons and use them against it, and Iran may be concerned that it will always be under the threat of an Israeli strike if it does not possess weapons.
THE THREAT OF THE "ISLAMIC STATE"
The Islamic State threat still remains strong. The situation in Libya is rapidly deteriorating, despite Egypt's bombing of positions of militants of the Islamic State terrorist organization. Every day they manage to expand their spheres of influence in the country.
Libya may soon be completely under the control of IS militants. There is a threat to Saudi Arabia, since the leaders of the Islamic State have already stated that it is part of the “holy caliphate” that needs to be liberated from the “wicked.”
There is a serious possibility of a cessation of supplies from Libya altogether, as well as problems with transportation. In early February, US President Barack Obama sent an appeal to the US Congress asking for permission to use military force against IS for a period of three years.
YEMEN – A NEW RISK POINT
The Shia Zaidi rebels, whose paramilitary wing the Houthis captured Sanaa, the Yemeni capital, in February 2015, forcing Yemen's Saudi-loyal President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi to flee, are beginning to expand their spheres of influence.
Their success may push the Shiites from Saudi Arabia to start an armed struggle with the country's authorities.
The civil war Yemen is slipping into could become a new episode of confrontation between Shiite Iran and Sunni Saudi Arabia, which is the richest country in the region and also has the largest oil reserves in the world, with most of the kingdom's proven reserves located in the southern regions of the country , populated predominantly by Shiites and located in close proximity to the border with Yemen, the total length of which is about 1.8 thousand km.
Every day in the news on TV and on the Internet we come across the concept of “East”: Near, Middle, Far... But what states are we talking about in this case? Which countries belong to the above regions? Despite the fact that this concept is partly subjective, there is still a list of states that are located on the territory of the mentioned lands. You will learn about this and much more from our article.
What is the East?
If everything is clear with this concept in determining the cardinal directions, then in the case of geography a variety of questions may arise. The East is a region that includes the territories of some areas of Asia and Africa. This concept is contrasted with the West, which means Europe and the USA.
The East is divided into the following regions:
- The Middle East, which includes western Asia and northern Africa.
- Middle East - some
- Far East - territories of southern and south-eastern Asia.
Let's look at each of them in more detail.
Middle Eastern countries
This region is named for its geographical location relative to Europe. The countries located on its territory play an important role in the economies of states around the world, since they are the most important place for oil production.
Middle Eastern countries:
- Azerbaijan (located in the Transcaucasus, capital - Baku);
- Armenia (territory of Transcaucasia, capital - Yerevan);
- Bahrain (Asian island state, capital - Manama);
- Egypt (located in Africa, capital - Cairo);
- Georgia (located in the Transcaucasus, capital - Tbilisi);
- Israel (located in South-West Asia, capital - Jerusalem);
- Jordan (located in Asia, bordering Israel, capital - Amman);
- Iraq (located in the Tigris and Euphrates Valley, capital - Baghdad);
- Iran (borders Iraq, capital - Tehran);
- Yemen (located on the Arabian Peninsula, capital - Sana'a);
- Qatar (located in South-West Asia, capital - Doha);
- Cyprus (an island in the Mediterranean Sea, the capital is Nicosia);
- Kuwait (located in South-West Asia, capital - Kuwait);
- Lebanon (located on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, the capital is Beirut);
- UAE (Asian capital - Abu Dhabi);
- Oman (located on the Arabian Peninsula, capital - Muscat);
- Palestine (partially recognized country, capital - Rammala);
- Saudi Arabia (located on the Arabian Peninsula, capital - Riyadh);
- Syria (located on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, the capital is Damascus);
- Türkiye (located in South-West Asia, capital - Ankara).
Features of the region
The countries of the Near and Middle East are different. Since ancient times, these lands have been considered important transport arteries connecting Asia, Europe and Africa. The main population of these territories has always been nomadic peoples, who eventually settled and founded cities.
It was here that at one time such ancient states as Babylon, Persia, Caliphate, Assyria and so on were located. A lot of research was carried out on the territory of these regions, which resulted in the discovery of ancient cultures. The Middle East is inhabited mainly by Arabs, Turks, Persians and Jews. Islam is recognized as the dominant religion here.
East is a delicate matter
For Europeans Eastern culture full of charm and mystery. This is a world of fairy tales, architectural landmarks and secrets hidden deep in history. Let's get to know some of them:
Bottom line
The list of Eastern countries includes many states with a rich history and cultural heritage. According to historians, not only was civilization born here, these states still have significant influence to the whole world. The countries of the Middle East, as well as the Middle and Far East, differ significantly from European ones in their cultural and religious characteristics, but they all continue to successfully interact and actively cooperate in the political and economic arenas.
Near East- a region that unites different countries located on the territory of the former Ottoman Empire. The name appeared at the suggestion of Europeans, for whom the countries of the region are their closest eastern neighbors. The region's territory is approximately 5 million km2.
The modern map of the Middle East includes the countries of Asia Minor, North Africa, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Jordan, Iraq and the states of the Arabian Peninsula. The region's population is approximately 175 million people. The main nationalities of the Middle East are Arabs, Turks, Jews and Persians. The vast majority of them are Muslims.
The economies of Middle Eastern countries rely mainly on oil, since huge deposits of this fossil are located in the region. Tourism and hotel business are also developed. At the same time, in many countries of the Middle East, the majority of the population continues to live below the poverty line. The exception to this is the UAE, whose economy is constantly growing and the level of “oil dollars” is constantly decreasing, while GDP per capita remains at a high level.
Many states in the Middle East have an unstable political situation. Arab-Israeli conflicts and coups occur constantly, such as in Libya and Egypt, and it is not uncommon for the population of countries to rebel and demand a change in government. In addition, the region is the epicenter of confrontation between a number of world states trying to establish control over the Middle Eastern oil fields.
The culture of the Middle East is the architectural monuments of ancient civilizations of the world, which are protected by UNESCO and attract tourists from all over the planet. People from all over the world go on holiday to Turkey, the UAE, Egypt, Israel and Jordan to see with their own eyes the sights and monuments that take them back millions of years into the past.
Currently, Islam has a great influence on the culture of the Middle East, which dictates the lifestyle of the population, customs, traditions, family relationships, as well as punishments and retribution for mortal sins. In Muslim countries, according to the Koran, the day off is Friday, and there are several holidays during which no one from the population works. The laws of Muslim countries, subject to the Koran, are therefore very different from the general European ones, which leads to some misunderstandings.
1. History of the Middle East
Period Prehistoric
Period Ancient History
Medieval period
Crusades
Period of New History, from the 15th to the 18th centuries
The period of New History from the XVIII to the XX centuries.
The Case of the Holy Places
Germany gets involved in Middle Eastern affairs
France in the Middle East to the 1st World War
The Middle East from 1914 to the end of World War 2
Allied plans for Greater East during the 1st World War
2. Conflicts in the Middle East
3. Economy of the Middle East
4. Religion of the Middle East
5. Geography of the Middle East
6. Interior of the Middle East countries
7. Culture in the Middle East
Near East(Arabic: شرق أدنى, Persian: خاور نزدیک, Hebrew: המזרח הקרוב, Turkish: Yakın Doğu) - This name of a region located in Western Asia and North Africa. The name was given by Europeans as the closest eastern region to them. Main population: Arabs, Persians, Turks, Kurds, Jews, Azerbaijanis, Armenians, Assyrians. The majority of the population is Muslim, but the Middle East is the cradle of Christianity. The Middle East is one of the routes from Europe and Africa to Asia.
Historically, this region is the cradle of ancient civilizations on the planet (Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamian civilizations)..
HistoryIMiddle East
Like nowhere else, in the territories of the Middle East since ancient times, there have been clashes between two completely different worlds: West and East, Europe and Asia.
For 500 l. before birth Christ. The West or Europe was represented by the Hellenes.
In the 11th century BC. Christ. The Hellenes and their culture were replaced by Rome, which in turn, in the 4th century after the birth. Christ. was replaced by Byzantium.
With the Crusades, the Middle East is invaded by the powers of Western Europe: France, England, the Papal See and the Holy Roman Empire (i.e. Germany, Austria and Italy). The invasion of these powers took place at the call, with the blessing and under the flag of the Roman Patriarchal Throne, which at that time was moving towards Papo-Caesarism. The influence of the Roman See was characterized by the Latinization of the occupied areas and the implantation of a form of confession that would become Roman Catholicism.
In the 15th century, the areas of interest to us will enter the sphere of Turkish Muslim rule, which will last until the 1st World War.
As a consequence of the Lausanne Conference (1922), the countries of the Middle East fell under the guardianship of France and England and began to fight for their independence. The borders of “trustee” states are often drawn artificially by Western “trustee” states, to which the United States joins. Spheres of influence and borders of states are distributed and determined on the basis of mutual agreements of the Western Powers that emerged victorious from the World War. The agreements were concluded after behind-the-scenes mutual struggle.
When determining the borders of the countries of the Middle East and deciding the fate of the population, they took into account exclusively the desire to maintain a balance of power between the countries of the Middle East. The primary role in the distribution of spheres of influence of the Western Powers was played by the question of the convenience of oil exports. (The role of oil in the modern world is known and clear to everyone.)
The end of the Second World War brought independence to the countries of the Middle East, but within artificial borders and the creation of a new state of Israel, against which the entire Arab world took up arms.
The Soviet Union, attracted by the Western powers to the world concert, is manifesting its pernicious influence, which the Western Powers are unable to neutralize.
Period Prehistoricth
Palestine is the oldest inhabited country in the world. It is not for nothing that Holy Scripture and Tradition determine the origin of human life in this part of the world.
In fact, in the Paleolithic era, in the Chelles period (500,000-200,000 BC) people in Bl. The East is represented by human skulls, which are seen as a pre-Neanderthal type.
All subsequent periods left traces of human life. In the era of Levallois-Muster (l00,000-50,000 BC) the first traces of the burial of the dead are found. The Mesolithic period (10,000 - 7,000 BC) includes traces of the domestication of dogs and the beginning of agriculture.
The Neolithic era (7,000-4,000) dates back to the first settlements, the domestication of livestock, sacred places marked by fences, and the making of pots.
In the middle of the Bronze Age (2,000-1,550 BC), when writing was already known, Abraham, professing monotheism, moved from Ur to Palestine. The further period is known from the Old Testament. (Thanks to numerous and big jobs According to excavations, even a non-believer today cannot deny the historical significance of the Old Testament.
Ancient History Period
The period of the Medical Wars (490-469 BC) marks the first clash between the West and the East. - The Hellenes repulse the offensive of the East at Marathon and Salamis.
In the next century, Alexander the Great (336-323) conquered the entire Middle East, Persia and reached India. The Empire created by Alexander did not last long, but in the middle of the 11th century Rome took over the representation of the West and led a series of systematic campaigns to the East. According to Divine plan, pagan Rome has the mission to unite all the populated countries of the ancient world and include them in a single Empire before the coming of Christ the Savior. This unification erased interstate borders and established a single imperial citizenship. Thus, restrictions on the freedom of movement of individuals from place to place were abolished, and in the middle of the 1st century AD, preachers of the Gospel were free to spread the good news throughout the world.
In 129, Rome founded the “Asian province.” In the 30th year (BC) the legions of Rome conquer Egypt. In 27, Syria was declared an imperial province. King Herod retained his royal title with the addition of “allied.” This title will not pass to Herod’s son, Archelaus, under whom Judea was declared a “procurator’s province.”
Medieval period
The Roman primacy would last until the 4th century, when its inheritance would pass to Byzantium. The Byzantine Empire is imbued with the consciousness that it is a Christian Empire. In this regard, the “Eastern Question”, which arose as a result of the clash of two cultures or on ethnic grounds, is transferred to the religious area. The Christian West begins to collide with Persia, which since the year 224 (the restoration of the Sassanid dynasty) has professed Mozdeism (the teachings of Zoroaster).
In 614, the Persians occupied the Holy City of Jerusalem and carried away the Life-Giving Cross of the Lord. Emperor Heraclius, after a long struggle, achieves the return of the Cross and solemnly brings It into the Church of Hagia Sophia.
The 7th century is characterized by the attack of Islam on the Christian world. The struggle between the Muslim world and the Christian world will determine the course historical events until the end of the 19th century inclusive. Therefore, we consider it necessary to determine the provisions that gave rise to this struggle.
Byzantine consciousness is expressed in the Christmas hymn “... under one worldly kingdom, all cities are united and believe in one dominion.” (I cried to the Lord - stichera for Glory even now.)
According to the teachings of Islam, all Muslims must form one people under the leadership of a spiritual and temporal leader - the sovereign and high priest - the caliph. “But at the same time, Islam entered the world with the idea of having an alliance with Christianity. The statements of the Mohammedans in the Koran regarding Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, the apostles, saints, Satan and his works, the 2nd coming, are extremely positive... and many modern religious branches, called Christian, relate to Christ in approximately the same way, and to the Mother of God and saints are much less reverent.
Thus, one can quite reasonably assume that if Mohammed had known Christianity more closely, the entire gigantic power of the Arab world would have gone in a different direction. Byzantine Emperors of the late 6th and early 7th centuries. did not care about converting Arab tribes to Christianity and... both religions clashed with each other in an irreconcilable struggle.”
At the end of the 6th century, Mohammed (570-632) unites the Arabs, gives them the Koran and inspires them to embark on a campaign of conquest to create an Arab-Muslim empire.
Syria and Palestine are given to them by victories at Ajenadein (634) and Yarmouk (636). Jerusalem is occupied in 638. Alexandria in 643 and soon after Egypt all of North Africa is conquered. Cyprus is occupied in 680.
Only in the 10th century did Byzantium recapture some of the lost territories. The islands of Crete and Cyprus were recaptured by Nikephoros Phocas in 961 and 965. He also makes a cavalry raid into Syria (968) and occupies Kholm, Tripoli and the Lattakie region. His associate Michael Burtzes recaptures Alep (969). John Timishaeus takes Damascus and Antioch, but Jerusalem remains in the power of the Fatimid emir. Securing northern Syria for himself, Emperor Basil II does not feel strong enough to stand up for Christians, against whom Caliph Al-Hakim begins persecution (1009-1010). The Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem was almost completely destroyed. In 1030-31, Ephesus was recaptured from the Arabs.
In the second half of the 11th century. (between 1078 and 1081) the Turks appeared in Asia Minor, creating a number of small kingdoms of the Seljuk Turks. (Damascus, Aleppo, etc.)
The Arab conquests in the Western - Latin world (Spain in the 3rd century, Southern Italy in the 9th century, piracy of the Arab countries of North Africa) raise the idea of a joint international, pan-European counter-invasion. The reconquest of Spain (the capture of Toledo in 1085) showed that such cooperation could produce real results. Hence the idea of the Crusade.
Crusades
The Crusades imposed on the countries of the Middle East. The East has a strong imprint and a number of provisions of today are a consequence of them.
The initiative of the 1st Crusade belonged to Pope Urban II. His motives were purely ideological: against the triumphant Islam, the triumph of which was based on the “holy war” (jihad), a pan-Christian campaign was put forward, participation in which was a matter pleasing and pleasing to God. The crusade became a sacred campaign, as if it were a counter-jihad.
1st Campaign: On November 27, 1095, in the city of Clermont Fern (France), Pope Urban II solemnly and fervently called on Christians to defend the Holy Sepulcher.
The masses, knights, and barons widely responded to the Pope's call. None of the reigning princes responded. A campaign launched for purely religious reasons will soon lose its ideological character. Barons and knights acted to atone for their sins (especially robbery), but after the first victories they returned to robbery. Possessions of Near. East will be purchased. through violence, murder and treachery. On the first trip it varies
a) the march of the masses - the disorderly crowd will be cut off by the Turks in October 1096;
b) the campaign of the barons. 4 groups performed (From Flanders, Normans of Southern Italy, French of the North and French of the South). During 1097-98. The barons recapture part of Syria, and on July 15, 1099 they take Jerusalem by storm. The capture of the Holy City is accompanied by a massacre of Muslims. This massacre will further discourage Muslims from surrendering to the crusaders. The crusaders divide the occupied lands among themselves, found a number of principalities and begin civil strife for the possession of these principalities. The Byzantine emperors, for their part, claim their rights, pointing out that the declared purpose of the campaign was to liberate, and not to conquer.
The Turks, for their part, gathered their strength and in 1146 launched a counteroffensive.
2nd Campaign: Saint Bernard calls on Vezley (France) to rush to the rescue and support of the French knights. Royal persons in the person of Conrad III of Germany and Louis VII of France set out on the campaign (26). Both kings were defeated by the Turks (October 1147 and early 1148). The Turks gradually developed their successes and in 1187 Saladin took Jerusalem, and Saladin knightly and generously released the Christians and refused to destroy the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
3rd Campaign: The fall of the Holy City causes the Western powers to go to the rescue of the French princes. Frederick Barbarossa of Germany, Philip Augustus of France and Richard the Lionheart of England appear on the Near. East in 1190. The death of Friedrich, who drowned while swimming in the river, incapacitates the German militia. Richard captures the island of Cyprus, to the shores of which he is carried by a storm. After the capture of the city of Acre by the French-English militia, Philip, having quarreled with Richard, leaves for France, but leaves his troops. Although Richard wins a number of victories over Saladin, he does not dare to attack Jerusalem. An agreement is concluded with Saladin, according to which Saladin retains possession of the Holy City, but Christian pilgrims are given free access to the Holy Places.
The title of the Christian “Jerusalem” king is the subject of rivalry between the proteges of the British and the proteges of the French (for example, Guy of Luzinsky, supported by Richard and Conrad of Motheran, supported by Philip.) To acquire or maintain the title, depending on the situation, they resort to murders or... marriages. The fight with the Turks fades into the background and peace treaties are concluded with them.
4th Campaign: The Papal throne continues to live with the dream of the liberation of Jerusalem. Innocent III calls and raises the 4th campaign. Following to the Holy Places, the crusaders in 1204 took Constantinople (Constantinople) by storm and founded the Latin Kingdom. The consequences of this campaign are extremely great and affect the entire history of the world, up to and including our days.
a) In the History of Syria: - the Frankish principalities, having received no support, were doomed to a quick end and fall under the rule of Muslims.
b) The assault on Constantinople, preceded for the first time in History by a gas attack, was accompanied by massacres, plunder and violence, unsurpassed even by the Turks in 1453. The massacre, robbery and violence committed by Christians who came under the flag of the Roman Patriarchal Throne to liberate the Holy City of Jerusalem, the forced imposition of Latinism (the establishment of the Latin church hierarchy and the introduction of the Latin rite in Divine Services), led the Orthodox Byzantine Greeks to a final break with Rome - with the Latins. Despite the fact that Rome, in the person of Innocent III, repeatedly protested against the crusaders’ evasion of their mission. The East became firmly convinced that the Pope was its enemy.
It is not without reason that modern historians are beginning to put forward the opinion that the “division of the Churches” should be considered accomplished in 1204, and not in 1054.
The East was saved from complete Latinization in the 13th century by the consciousness and steadfastness of the mass of believers (as in Southwestern Rus' in the 17th century). Constantinople will be recaptured by the Greeks. in 1261. But the fall of Constantinople from the attacks of the Turks in the 15th century was prepared by the 4th campaign.
5th Campaign: (1261) Convened by Pope Honorius III. Headed by King Andrew II of Hungary. Duke of Austria Leopold VI. After an attempt to land in Syria, the expedition is transferred to Egypt (strategically very correct, because “the key to Jerusalem is in Cairo”). Sultan Malik al Kamil proposes an exchange of mountains. Damiet to Jerusalem, but Cardinal Pelagius, who before participating in the campaign showed narrow views and horizons in Constantinople, strongly insists on rejecting thoughts about treaties. The Crusaders advance on Cairo, but the Nile flood, unexpected by them, surrounds them. The Sultan allows the expedition to return to him at the cost of returning all his conquests.
6th Campaign (1229) Pope Gregory IX insists that Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Sicily, march. Frederick II counts a large number of Muslims in his Sicilian kingdom. He has established good relations with his subjects and with Islam in general and does not want to break them, which is why he delays the campaign by negotiating with the Egyptian Sultan Malik al Kamil...
Pope Gregory IX anathematizes Frederick, after which the latter sets out on a campaign (1229). Thanks to his friendly relations with Sultan Malik, Frederick sought to conclude a treaty, Jaffa 11-2-1299, on the basis of which Christians received Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nazareth and a number of other areas without fighting. Jerusalem was given a special status: a “holy city” governed by a council of Christians and Muslims. Christians received the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, and Muslims received the Mosque of Omar and Al Aqsa. On March 17, 1229, Frederick solemnly entered Jerusalem. Soon he had to leave the East, as the barons of the Holy Land and the military monastic orders took up arms against the “excommunicated man.”
7th Campaign In support of the Frankish barons, Pope Gregory IX again inspires his believers to campaign. A number of French counts and dukes travel to the East. The appearance of fresh armed forces delayed the collapse of the Frankish principalities of the East, but was unable to prevent the Turks from occupying Jerusalem in 1244.
8th Campaign: The loss of Jerusalem by Christians prompts the French King Louis IX (the Saint) to set out on a campaign. The expedition sails to Egypt and takes Damiet. The Sultan offers to exchange Damiet for Jerusalem, but just as a similar proposal was rejected in 1216, it was rejected by Louis IX. The political mistake was followed by a series of strategic and tactical errors that forced the French army to surrender (6.4.1250). Saint Louis pays off with a huge sum and moves to Syria, where he spends 4 years (from 1250 to 1254). Thanks to his authority, he puts an end to civil strife among the Frankish princes and concludes a number of treaties with non-Christians (note the treaty with the Mongols who appeared in the Middle East) and strengthens the cities of Acre, Caesarea, Jaffa and Sidon.
After his departure to France, civil strife resumes at the instigation of the rival republics of Venice and Genoa. Rivalry causes real internecine wars. The Franks, carried away by their infighting, are losing their political foresight. They do not take into account the possibility of playing on the rivalry between the Egyptian Mamelukes and the Mongols, who penetrated into Syria in 1260 under the leadership of the grandson of Genghis Khan. The final result was that the Franks were expelled from their last possessions in 1291. The two-hundred-year possession of Syria greatly influenced the economic life of Europe: through Syria it was accustomed to receiving oriental products: sugar cane, silk, brocade, cotton fabrics, carpets. Interest in the East, aroused by religious motives, will be supported by the desire to obtain the above-mentioned local products. Nowadays, silks and carpets will be replaced by oil.
The presence of the Franks in Syria also greatly influenced Syria itself. Traces of Latin civilization are visible to this day. Until now, the French language is known to all cultural residents of the Middle East. East.
Having lost their possessions on the mainland, the Franks retained the island of Cyprus, where they would remain until 1571. The local residents, the overwhelming majority of Orthodox Greeks, suffered greatly from the oppression of the papal legates and archbishops, who insisted and sought from the kings (Lusignan dynasty) restrictive measures and the removal of the Orthodox episcopate from the city.
Period of New History, from the 15th to the 18th centuries
The capture of Constantinople by the Turks in 1453 meant their final entry into the possession of the territorial inheritance of the Byzantine Empire. We have seen that the Turkish Muslim world shared the Byzantine idea “all cities lived under one worldly kingdom and believed in one dominion.” The Turkish Sultan became the Caliph, that is, the high priest of Islam. But in contrast to the imperial understanding of the Byzantine idea, the Caliph considered only Muslims as his subjects. The rest were the population “subdued by force.” Among the Orthodox part of this population (and the non-Muslims were mostly Orthodox), a desire began to develop to be, if not on the territory of the Orthodox Tsar, then at least under his protection. Only Russia was an Orthodox kingdom.
In the West at this time, a period of moral decline began in connection with the “Renaissance”: that is, a departure from Christianity, a refusal to recognize Christian principles of morality as guiding principles not only in personal life, but especially in political life. The liberation of the Holy Places from dominion and the faithful no longer worries anyone. They enter into agreements with non-believers in order to make allies out of them. So in 1535, the King of France, Francis I, negotiated with Soliman against King Charles V of Spain.
This agreement, known as the “capitulation,” gave France a number of advantages in the economic, political and religious fields. Religious advantages allowed the subjects of the French kingdom to observe all the precepts of their faith and, as a consequence, allowed them free access to Holy Places. Other foreigners were allowed into the Holy Places insofar as they were “friends” of the French king. In 1740 new agreement confirms surrender. Thus, the few Catholics of the Middle East had a patron in France, and the Orthodox population for 250 years in the Christian world did not have their Orthodox patron and (33) protector. Russia, to which they turned their gaze, first experienced the breakdown of adolescence (the second half of the 16th century - the beginning of the 17th century), then asserted itself (17th century) and only in the 18th century entered the world stage. In search of ways to the “world stage”, in search of a window to Europe, Russia immediately collided with Turkey.
The period of New History from the XVIII to the XX centuries.
The emergence of Russia and England in the Middle East. With the capture of Azov by Peter the Great in 1696, Russia opened a window into Europe. The window will be broken in the North. But concerns about gaining access to the sea (that is, concerns of an economic and political nature) did not obscure in the minds of the Russian people their moral obligation to help fellow Christians in the Middle East. Until the 18th century, Russian tsars, nobles and ordinary people supplied the Holy Eastern Patriarchs with money, for which they came to Rus'. They were always greeted with great honor and invited to participate in local Russian councils.
Having finally established itself as a great power under Catherine the Great, Russia achieved Kuychuk with the Treaty of Kanarzhi (1774) protection over all Orthodox Christians under Turkish yoke. The complete liberation of Christians (not only the Middle East, but also Romania, Bulgaria, Greece and Serbia) required the preliminary collapse and dismemberment of the Turkish Empire. Therefore, Russian politics at the end of the 18th century. and the entire XIX century will strive for this. But Türkiye will unexpectedly find a Christian ardent defender in England.
In 1763, England received Canada and India from France in a peace treaty. Fearing for a free path to the Indian Empire, England will in every possible way advocate for the indivisibility of the Ottoman Empire and strive to eliminate the influence of Russia and France from the East.
French influence would initially be eliminated by defeating Napoleon. France would regain its position in 1856 and particularly in Syria in 1860. But her defeat in 1870 would again relegate her to the background for some time. England will win the final victory over France in the Middle East in 1941 (see below).
Russia triumphs in the first half of the 19th century. Greece liberated 1821-30; In 1831-33 and 1839-41, Russia helps the rebel Mohammed Ali in Egypt, as a result of which Egypt separates from Turkey. WITH mid-19th century, it will begin to feel the reaction of the Western Powers.
The Case of the Holy Places
On May 28, 1850, the French Ambassador in Constantinople demanded from the Sultan the right of exclusive possession of the Holy Places for Catholic monks. The basis for the demand was the interpretation of the capitulations of 1740 (confirming the capitulations of 1535), according to which “subjects of enemy states” were free to move, trade and visit the Holy Places, provided that they covered themselves with the flag of the “Emperor of France”. In addition, § 33 gave the Latin monks possession of the Holy Places, but did not specify which ones.
Some places revered by Christians have been occupied by Greeks since 1757. In 1808, they were given the right to begin repairing the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The note of May 28, citing the fact that the places that were in the power of the Latins could not be taken away from them by a unilateral decision, demanded the transfer to the power of the Latin monks of 12 places: the Holy Sepulcher, the tomb of the Mother of God in Jerusalem, the Temple of Gethsemane, the Church of the Nativity of Christ in Bethlehem, the tomb of the Frankish kings at Golgotha, etc. The Sultan delays in answering and in May 1851 the French ambassador repeats the request. A commission is appointed, tasked with judging Orthodox and Catholic monks. As a result, in February 1852, Catholics were given 3 keys to the Bethlehem Temple and the right to serve at the tomb of the Virgin Mary.
Napoleon III was satisfied with the partial success, but Emperor Nicholas I resolutely rebelled against the decision of the Turkish commission. “The key of the Temple of Bethlehem, given to the Catholics, proves their predominant importance in the East.” The Russian ambassador in Constantinople is instructed to express surprise at the Porte's recognition of new rights for France and demand the restoration of the status quo. The Turks, playing a double game, signed a secret firman (decree) in March 1852, canceling the rights given to France.
In Jerusalem, Catholics and Orthodox Christians, each for their part, sincerely believe in their rights. Catholics are established in Holy Places. Orthodox Christians demand fulfillment of the March firman and protest against the robbery of Orthodox Christians “in favor of a few Roman Catholic tourists.”
French public opinion is not interested in the affairs of the Middle East and the Holy Places (“the noise raised by our Catholic newspapers is very ridiculous,” says the Director of the Political Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.) Emperor Nicholas I demands recognition of his right of patronage over 12-15 million Orthodox Christians living within the borders of the Turkish Empire. The requirement is based on the Kuychuk Kanarji Treaty.
In February 1853, Admiral Prince Menshikov, appointed ambassador to Constantinople, was enthusiastically greeted by the Greeks upon his landing in Turkey. Mentikov demands that the issue of Holy Places be resolved and that Russia recognize the right of guardianship of the Orthodox. The Sultan, supported by France (which agreed to recognize the equality of Catholics and Orthodox Christians) and especially England, responds that he undertakes to patronize the Orthodox and preserve their rights. Russia presents an ultimatum and, since Turkey does not accept it, Russian troops trade into the Romanian principalities.
The summer and autumn of 1853 are spent in negotiations and Turkey's secret preparations for war, to which England is especially pushing it. The British ambassador, through underground actions, arranges for the removal of the Grand Vizier Mohamed Ali from power, since he was a supporter of collusion and concessions. In place of Mohamed Ali, Rashid Ali is appointed, who on June 6 proclaims freedom of religion in Turkey.
In Russia, public opinion is extremely agitated: religious processions and prayers for oppressed Christian brothers are observed everywhere.
In Rome, the Vatican is leaning on the side of Muslims against the “schismatics.”
In Turkey, the mullahs proclaim a holy war.
Taking into account all these sentiments, the Sultan demands from Russia the evacuation of the Romanian principalities and on October 23rd he declares war on Russia. A month later (November 30th) the Turkish Fleet was destroyed from Sinope.
It seemed that the end of the “sick man” was approaching. But the Western powers, seeing this end approaching, are united by three treaties (Constantinople, London and Vienna), which affirmed the principle of the indivisibility of the Turkish Empire and determined that peace could be concluded subject to the recognition of the Sultan’s complete independence in his policy towards Christians and in the matter of granting them freedom of religion.
A war began, the main actions of which took place in Sevastopol.
The Treaty of Paris (1856), which ended this war, established the principle that the indivisibility of the Turkish Empire was a pan-European matter. Paragraph 9 of the treaty recognized the Sultan’s right to independently decide the degree of freedom of conscience that he grants to his subjects, Orthodox Christians. This treaty will not prevent the Western European powers from insisting to the Sultan on the character that the firman on religious freedom should have.
The Union Treaties of 1854 and the Peace Treaty of 1856 actually provided the Orthodox Christians of the Middle East to the Sultan and are reminiscent of the Yalta Treaty of the last world war.
The Treaty of Paris was a victory for England. The “duel of the whale and the elephant” (according to Bismarck’s definition) would play out again in 1875, when Bosnia, Herzegovina, Serbia and Montenegro rebelled against Turkish rule. Russian empire immediately proposes for discussion by the European powers a draft memorandum (Berlin Memorandum dated 5/13/76) to be presented to Turkey. The memorandum demanded reforms towards Christians. Germany, Austria, France and Italy joined the Russian project. But England resolutely refused to participate in efforts to defend the oppressed Christians.
At this time, in Turkey, Abdul Hamid ascended to the throne with an explosion of popular Muslim fanaticism, and the whole world resounded with a cry for help from the Bulgarians: within a few days, 15,000 Christian Bulgarians were slaughtered, 79 villages were burned and 80,000 people were left homeless. The Russian Empire mobilized and in January 1878 crossed the Balkans. In March, Türkiye signs the peace of San Stefano (3-3-78), on the basis of which one of the Orthodox European countries- Bulgaria - gains independence within its ethnic borders. It seemed that the collapse of the Muslim empire was near and, with the end in sight, Christians in the Middle East could expect freedom in the not too distant future. The collapse of the Empire that oppressed them in their eyes came from the blows of Orthodox Rus'.
Although Russian soldiers in this era sang:
“Oh, you rotten Turks, Where should you fight with us? Your English nanny didn’t have time to give help,” the “nanny” who didn’t have time to give help on the battlefield (the English Chamber voted for credits for mobilization upon the news of the Peace of San Stefano) will provide very significant assistance at pan-European conferences. The Berlin Congress of 1878 would almost nullify Russia's victory. And England, in recompense for the services rendered, received the island of Cyprus from Turkey. In addition, England signed a defensive treaty with the Sultan, according to which it pledged to “defend the territory of His Imperial Majesty the Sultan.”
Ownership of Cyprus, an island that actually belongs to the Middle East, gave England reason to consider itself one of the Middle Eastern Powers and thereby participate in solving issues arising in this part of the world. Just as the plaintiff must choose his domicile within the limits of the jurisdiction of the court in which the claim is brought, so the UK has found a domicile in Cyprus for bringing claims and suits in the countries of the Middle East.
Germany gets involved in Middle Eastern affairs
At the end of the 19th century, the newly formed German Empire began to become involved in Middle Eastern affairs. Military missions and instructor officers appear in Turkey, the Turkish army receives German-made weapons, and industrial firms receive concessions to build railways. Wilhelm II made a trip to Constantinople in 1898. In November, he solemnly rides on horseback, surrounded by a brilliant and numerous retinue, into Jerusalem, where he lays the first stone of a new temple. As a result, already in 1907, German colonies flourished in Syria and Palestine, having their own hospitals, orphanages and schools (Catholic and Protestant).
France in the Middle East to the 1st World War
France's military defeat in 1870 greatly affected its position in the Middle East. But still, its influence remained significant, thanks to “Catholicism, which is a traditional and strong means of influence” (the speech of the French minister Delcasse in the Chamber of Deputies in 1902.) In the Middle East there were 5 French secular schools with 500 students and 300 Catholic with 90,000 students. In Syria there were 500 schools with 52,000 students and in Beirut the Jesuit University, where more than l0,000 students studied.
The Middle East from 1914 to the end of World War 2
Having conquered Byzantium (Constantinople was taken by the Turks in 1453), the Turks at the beginning of the 16th century. occupy the entire Middle East. Millions of Orthodox Christians fall under the rule of the caliph. The Middle East question for the leaders of the foreign policy of the great powers of Europe comes down to providing assistance and patronage to Christians or, in other words, to solving the problem: to preserve or dismember the Turkish Empire.
In the 19th century, the Turkish Empire was known as the "sick man," and the great powers disagreed on whether to keep the sick man alive or end him.
The 1st World War, in which Turkey participated as an enemy of the Entente, decides its fate: it will be dismembered. The Treaty of Sèvres in 1920 formalized this dismemberment. Lebanon and Syria fall under French control. Palestine, Transjordan and Egypt are transferred to the administration of England. In 1948, these countries will become independent and a new state of Israel will emerge, against which the Arab world will rebel.
Allied plans for Greater East during the 1st World War:
In 1915, the British High Commissioner in Egypt, MacMahon, developing Lord Kitchener's plan, established a connection with the Sheriff of Mecca, Hussein. As a result of the exchange of 10 letters (from July 1915 to January 1916), an action plan was developed, according to which: Hussein raises an uprising against the Turks, and England, at the end of the war, crowns him king of the “great Arab kingdom” .
The borders of this “big” kingdom were indicated in very general terms, but Huseyn, who had no practice of working with the Western Powers of Europe, trusted general and vague promises.
The French government, having learned about the agreement reached, makes its demands, considering itself interested in the Middle East. East and has the right to participate in decisions related to the Near. East Without delving into History, France recalls that thanks to the intervention of the French expeditionary force, which landed in Lebanon in 1860 to protect Christians massacred by the Druze, Lebanon received autonomy under the control of a Christian governor.
In February 1916, a French-English commission of experts (Commission: Soques - English and Pico - French) developed a draft section of the Middle. East into 2 spheres of influence.
Given Russia's role in the Entente, the commission considered it necessary to present its plan to the Russian government. For this purpose, the commission arrives in Moscow in May to finalize the project with the Russian Imperial Minister Sazonov.
The Moscow Protocol foresaw the division of the Middle East. East into 4 zones (according to colors painted in pencil on the commission map).
1. Blue zone under French administration: Lebanon, Syria and the province of Silicia.
2. Red Zone under British administration: Palestine and Transjordan.
3. The area outlined in blue is under French. influence.
4. The area outlined in red is under English influence.
Both “outlined” zones should form either a single Arab state or a federation of Arab states.
On November 2, 1917, Lord Balfour, responding to Lord Rothschild, who presented to the British government the plan of the Zionist Executive Bureau for the creation of an Israeli state (In 1897, at the next Zionist congress, the idea of creating their own independent Jewish state was born.), said: “His Majesty's Government views favorably the creation of a Jewish national home in Palestine in order to achieve this. so that, of course, there would be no harm to the civil and religious rights of non-Jewish local communities.”
This statement created the 3rd division plan of the Near. East, the 3rd direction of English policy, and all 3 plans contradict one another. Indeed: the first promise spoke of a large Arab state; the second - gives large parts of the Arab states to France and the third - envisages the withdrawal of territory from the Arab state in favor of the Jewish homeland. It should be noted here that France considers itself bound only by the 2nd plan (Soques-Picot).
At the end of 1916, Huseyn and Ali's sons, Faisal and Abdullah, rebelled against the Turks. The Arab armed forces, supported by the English army of Allenby and a small French expeditionary corps (1 regiment) (The insignificance of the French armed forces will give England a reason to deny France the right to participate in the division of the Near Eastern lands according to the Soques-Picot plan.), expel the Turks from the Near East. East, after which France and England begin to divide.
In October 1918, the French, having conquered the Alaouite tribe, occupied the “blue zone”. The area “outlined in blue” turned out to be occupied by Emir Faisal and his friend Colonel Lawrence. In view of French claims, both arrived in Paris in January 1919 at the Peace Conference demanding Arab independence, citing English promises.
Relations between France and England are strained and a special secret commission of the 4 great powers in March 1919 discusses how to understand and apply the Soques-Picot plan.
To clarify the situation in the Middle East. A commission of two Americans is sent to the East: King and Kren. But upon arrival at the site, the commission finds itself faced with a fait accompli:
A congress of prominent Arab leaders in Damascus proclaimed the complete independence of Syria with King Faisal at its head and the complete independence of Iraq with King Abdullah. France and England do not recognize the decision of the congress in Damascus. A conference is convened in San Pemo (April 1920), at which it is decided that: Syria and Lebanon are transferred to the control of France, and Palestine, Transjordan and Iraq are transferred to British control.
Emir Faisal does not obey the decision of the San Rem Conference. France presents him with an ultimatum and, since Faisal did not accept it on time, General Gouraud proceeds to military action. Damascus gives him the battle on July 20th. Faisal flees to Baghdad, where on 8/21/21 he was proclaimed King of Iraq.
Despite the defeat suffered by the Arabs, Hussein's position seemed strong. Huseyn himself was the king of Hejas under the heir to the throne - his son Ali; The 2nd son Abdullah occupied the throne of Northern Transjordan with his capital at Amman and the 3rd son, as we have seen, took the throne of Baghdad. In addition, in addition to secular power, Hussein received spiritual power in 1924, proclaiming himself the Caliph of Islam.
The creation of a “great Arab kingdom” is planned. But the policies of the European powers and internecine wars will prevent its implementation.
A certain Ab del Azis ibn Seud, from the Bedouin Arabian desert, attacks the Caliph, who is supported only by his son Ali. At the same time, the British, seduced by the dynamism of the Bedouin emir Ibn Seud, take his side and stop helping Ali, who is forced to capitulate. (In the Second World War, the Serbian General Mihailovic will be left to his fate in the same way, to whom the British will prefer Tito). The conquered Gejas would later become the richest state in Saudi Arabia, thanks to the discovery of oil in Dammam in 1936 and a year later in Abqaiq.
At the end of 1921, after France occupied and strengthened itself in Syria and Lebanon, it had to conduct a series of military operations (which in their scope deserved the name of war) against the Druze tribes. The hostilities lasted until the summer of 1926, mainly because the Druze constantly received gold, weapons and ammunition from Transjordan (remember, under British control). Peace and tranquility reigned completely in 1926.
In 1936, the French government proposed granting full independence to Syria and Lebanon, but parliament rejected the government's project. Events of 1940-41 will lead to the expulsion of France by force.
On May 2, 1941, an uprising broke out in Iraq against the British. French government of Marshal Pétain; under German pressure, orders his representative to the Near. East to General Denz, to provide the Aleppo airfield for German aircraft flying to the aid of Iraqi troops.
In fact, Germany sent a small number of old vehicles that did not take part in the battles between Iraq and the British. The Iraqi uprising was suppressed within a month. Gene. Denz demanded the immediate departure of the German pilots, which they did. On June 6, only 4 German soldiers remained in Aleppo, but on the same day the Jerusalem radio (in the hands of the British) reported the landing of German forces in one of the Syrian ports and that 12 transports were sailing from Romania to Syria. Based on this message, Gen. De Gaulle agrees to intervention “for the liberation of the Near. East from the German occupation.”. On June 8, the English (Australian) units of Gen. Wilson and the Free French invaded Syria. French troops loyal to the Vichy government resisted for a week, suffering heavy losses (100 officers and 1,100 privates). The truce of July 14th gave Beirut and Damascus to the British.
In London, General de Gaulle felt the danger of the current situation for French influence in the Middle East. On August 7, 1941, he concluded an agreement with Littleton, according to which the British government stated: “... the British have no plans for Syria and Lebanon. Naturally, France must maintain a privileged position in these two countries.” In response to this treaty, General De Gaulle confirmed in a letter the principle of granting independence to Syria and Lebanon. But at the same time, Churchill declared in the House: “... there is nothing to say about France maintaining in Syria the position that it had before the war... An independent Syria is a point of paramount importance to our policy...”
General De Gaulle's representative in the Middle East, General Catroux proclaims the independence of Syria and Lebanon, but implementation of independence is delayed until after the war.
The defeat of France in 1940, the civil strife between the French (supporters of Marshal Pétain and officials of the English corps), which took place before the eyes of the Syrians and Lebanese, the presence of British occupation units, all these phenomena greatly undermined the prestige of France.
The population wants independence immediately, now. The elections to the Chambers of 1943 brought extreme nationalist deputies to the forefront of political activity. Conflicts arise with the French. In Lebanon, the French representative imprisons the elected president of the Lebanese Republic in a fortress and suspends the constitution. In the end, during 1945-46. The French administration and troops gradually evacuated Lebanon, giving it complete independence. Lebanon refused to conclude an agreement with France until the complete evacuation. Approximately the same course of events developed in Syria, but with the difference that the Syrians, armed by the British, rebelled. Many French were slaughtered and robbed, and the British occupation troops in every possible way hindered the actions of the French troops.
England's withdrawal from the Middle East will begin 5 years after France's withdrawal. In 1951, England evacuated Abadal and Cyprus, in 1956 Amman and in 1958 Baghdad.
Conflicts in the Middle East
The Middle East has been considered one of the most “neuralgic” regions of our planet for a very long time. The tension of the situation, the extremely aggravated relations between the Arab countries located here and Israel, combined with the difficult internal political situation in individual countries of the region, the continuous acts of interference by the imperialist powers in the internal affairs of the Arab states, the uncontrollable growth of the national liberation movement of the Arab peoples - all this creates an exclusively motley and ever-changing political mosaic that attracts the most to the Middle East region close attention.
The strategic and political significance of the “Middle Eastern theater” is determined by a number of political, military-strategic and economic reasons.
The Middle East is an arena of open conflict between the forces of the national liberation movement and imperialism and colonialism, the forces of progress and the forces of reaction, the new and the old. This struggle is complicated by many external and internal factors.
Being the legal successor of the Soviet Union, Russia, when developing its foreign policy strategy in the Near and Middle East region, was faced with the problem of maintaining continuity. The complexity of its solution was largely due to the specific role played by the region in modern international relations and the significance it has for Russia. The Near and Middle East represents the most conflict-prone region in the world. Throughout the entire half of the 20th century, short-term and long-term wars periodically broke out there, into which the great powers, especially the USSR and the USA, were drawn in one form or another. The Arab-Israeli war of 1973 generally had a pronounced trend for international peace and security located near the borders of Russia.
The region's permanent potential for conflict has turned it into the most capacious arms market. For the military-industrial complex of the USSR, and then Russia, it is the most promising one, absorbing a significant part of Russian arms exports. The Russian military-industrial complex is vitally interested in its preservation and expansion, which requires active political support.
The protracted economic crisis experienced by Russia poses the urgent task of increasing foreign exchange earnings from exports. In this regard, arms exports are of considerable importance, but Russia receives the lion's share of export earnings from energy resources. Since the countries of this region play a dominant role in the global energy market (primarily oil), coordination of export policy with them is of considerable importance for Russia.
In the last quarter of the 20th century. Due to the sharp intensification of the political role of Islam, the region has turned into a powerful ideological center of global significance. His ideological influence is increasingly felt not only in Asia and Africa, but even in Europe and the USA.
The formation of Russia's new foreign policy course in the region took place in the context of a fierce internal political struggle and a constant socio-economic crisis. A serious discussion arose over relations with the USSR's two main strategic allies in the region: Iraq and Syria. It was these two countries that were the largest buyers of Soviet weapons, and since a significant part of them was supplied on credit, by the time the collapse of the USSR their debts amounted to almost 20 billion dollars. Experiencing a constant shortage of financial resources, the ruling circles of Russia considered it most expedient to establish relations with these two countries, despite the fact that they were in an extremely difficult international situation. Undoubtedly, this was a victory for the supporters of continuity.
Of the two former strategic allies, Iraq is in the worst position. The aggressive, adventurous foreign policy pursued by Saddam Hussein, who first started a war with Iran and then occupied Kuwait, caused a sharply negative reaction from the world community.
Since the second half of 1989, the Iraqi press has begun a large-scale propaganda campaign against the policies of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries in OPEC, accusing them of being to blame for the fact that OPEC did not increase Iraq’s quota and thereby blocked the recovery of the Iraqi economy. Gradually, this policy begins to qualify as “economic war.” May 30, 1990 At a meeting of the Council of the League of Arab States (LAS), Saddam Hussein declares that “the economic war has become unbearable.” On June 17, he directly accused Kuwait of being one of the initiators of the “economic war” and, in addition, illegally using the Rumaila oil fields located on the Iraqi-Kuwaiti border. As compensation for the “theft of Iraqi oil,” Saddam Hussein demands that Kuwait pay $2.4 billion, and then increases this amount to $10 billion.
Trying in every possible way to avoid the escalation of the conflict, the Kuwaiti government declares its readiness to discuss all controversial issues and allocate a loan to Iraq in the amount of $9 billion. However, the decision has already been made, and on the night of August 1-2, 1990, the 150,000-strong Iraqi army invades Kuwait.
The small, twenty thousand Kuwaiti army could not resist the invasion. Her resistance lasted several hours, but during this time the Kuwaiti government and members of the ruling dynasty were able to leave the country. Having captured Kuwait, Iraqi troops subjected it to complete plunder. Subsequently, the amount of claims of Kuwaiti citizens against the Iraqi government alone amounted to $162 billion, and Kuwait’s total losses from the invasion amounted to $240 billion.
Already on August 2, the UN Security Council adopted resolution 660, which condemned Iraq's aggressive actions and contained demands for the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of Iraqi troops from Kuwait. Since Iraq refused to comply with this resolution, on August 6, resolution 661 was adopted, which provided for the introduction of a system of sanctions against Iraq, to ensure compliance with which a special commission (UNSCOM) was created.
The initiator of the adoption of these resolutions was the United States, which from the very beginning took an extremely tough position towards Iraq. It was decided to give an immediate military response to the aggression in order to prevent Iraqi troops from invading Saudi Arabia. The Saudi ruling circles also realized the very real danger of such an invasion. Having received the consent of King Fahd, President George W. Bush gave the order on August 7 to transfer a large contingent of American troops to the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, which was supported in the Gulf region by a powerful squadron numbering 80 warships. Then the American troops were joined by military units from France, Great Britain, Egypt, Syria and a number of other countries. They formed an interethnic force, the number of which by January 1991 reached 780 thousand people.
On November 29, the Security Council passes resolution 678, authorizing the use of military force to liberate Kuwait. Iraq was given an ultimatum that all Iraqi troops must withdraw from Kuwait by January 15, 1991. Saddam Hussein rejected it.
On January 17, multinational forces begin Operation Desert Storm to liberate Kuwait. It lasted 42 days and ended with the complete defeat of the 547,000-strong group of Iraqi troops opposing the multinational forces.
On February 26, Saddam Hussein announced the recognition of all Security Council resolutions. On February 28, hostilities ceased. Kuwait was liberated, but Saddam Hussein's regime survived. He was placed under strict control. The sanctions system was maintained, and, in addition, Iraq was prohibited from possessing weapons of mass destruction.
In November 1994, the Iraqi government reaffirmed its recognition of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Kuwait, and in December it agreed to the demarcation of the Iraq-Kuwait border.
Unlike Iraq, another strategic ally of the USSR in the Middle East, Syria, was able to emerge from the Cold War era with minimal losses, although by the end of the 80s. The international situation was also very unfavorable for her. Based on the military-political alliance with the USSR, Syrian President Hamid Assad, as part of his traditional course of confrontation with Israel, moved towards rapprochement with Iraq, which was considered in the West as one of the main centers of “international terrorism”. Since even before this, H. Assad constantly identified himself with the extremist wing of the PYD (Palestinian Resistance Movement), which in turn maintained the closest contacts with various kinds of radical terrorist organizations, Syria was ranked among the states “supporting international terrorism” and there were attacks against it. Economic sanctions were introduced by Western European countries and the United States. This could not help but have negative influence on the country's economy, which is largely connected with Western European countries.
In addition, the GCC countries, in response to Syria’s rapprochement with Iraq, stopped providing financial assistance to it since 1985. This assistance covered the bulk of Syrian military expenses, which the country’s economy was not able to provide at the required level. To some extent, the severity of the problem was alleviated thanks to the supply of Soviet weapons on credit.
The situation for H. Assad was complicated by conflicts with neighbors: Turkey, Jordan and Iraq. The conflict with Turkey arose in connection with Syria's unofficial support for the actions of PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) militants. And although the Syrian-Turkish protocol on mutual security was signed in 1987, indirect support for the PKK continued through the extremist wing of the PYD.
The most acute conflict was with Jordan. It arose as a result of the actions of the Syrian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood (being originally a purely Egyptian organization, they were able to spread their political doctrine to other Muslim countries). In the late 70s - early 80s. this organization unleashed civil war in the country, organizing a series of mass armed protests against the Assad regime. Only using tanks and aircraft was the Syrian army able to suppress these protests. Then the Muslim Brotherhood moved on to widespread sabotage and terrorist actions. Militant bases and camps were located on Jordanian territory, which led to a sharp deterioration in relations between the two countries. Although Hamas Assad ultimately managed to suppress the armed resistance of the Muslim Brotherhood, they retained their strongholds in Jordan and their infrastructure in the country.
As for the conflict with Iraq, it did not take armed forms. Both sides, as a rule, limited themselves to conducting propaganda campaigns and mutually accusing each other of “betraying the interests of the Arab nation.”
By the beginning of the 90s. Syria essentially found itself in a completely hostile immediate environment and a very difficult international situation. Its position was virtually the same as it was exactly twenty years ago, when H. Assad came to power and for the sake of correcting which he carried out a military coup, called the “corrective movement.”
EconomicsNearthEastA
An even more complex combination of features of the past and present is characteristic of the economy and politics of the countries of the Middle East.
Like NIS, oil-exporting countries show accelerated dynamics of economic development. The source of sensational growth in this case is unique oil resources and huge financial resources associated with rising world oil prices.
This group of Middle Eastern countries is also similar to the newly industrialized countries by the presence of a traditional layer of economics and politics in their system. But this feature is more typical for Arab states. Some researchers note this feature as an “archaic social structure.” The changes taking place in their economy are evidenced by the following facts. Until the 50s. these were backward countries. Their mineral resources were exploited by Western, primarily American and British, oil monopolies. These states were able to take advantage of their wealth only in the 70s, having carried out a series of nationalizations in the oil and gas sector and united theirs in the world oil market within the framework of the oil cartel of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Unity of action allowed the OPEC countries to increase oil prices by about 20 times and make fabulous profits.
From that moment on, a phenomenal rise in their economic development began. For the period 1970 – 2000. the value of GDP increased in Saudi Arabia from 5.1 to 210.6 billion dollars (PPP), in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) - from 0.7 to 53.0 billion dollars, in Kuwait - from 2, 9 to 29 billion dollars. The level of per capita GDP increased in Saudi Arabia to 11.1 thousand dollars (PPP), in the UAE - to 19.4 thousand.
The creation of a system of modern production forces began. A new production structure of the economy emerged. So, in 2000 in Saudi Arabia it had the following form: in the value of GDP, agriculture accounted for 7% of industry - 48%, services - 45%.
Unfavorable climatic conditions for agriculture led to the dependence of the countries of this region on food imports. At the end of the 70s. a food self-sufficiency program was developed and implemented there. The main role was given to Saudi Arabia, where the growth rate of agricultural production in the 80s - 90s. stood at 12%. As a result, Saudi Arabia has become the largest exporter of wheat and a number of other agricultural products.
Particularly big changes are taking place in industry. The basis of the entire economy of these states is the oil industry. She is a source of huge income. But oil reserves are limited. Therefore, oil monoculture is dangerous for oil-exporting countries, and they are taking various measures to diversify their industrial structure.
In the economies of these countries, which in the past played the role of a “trade crossroads”, an important role now belongs to the service sector, especially trade. In recent years, the tourism business has been developing widely.
The radical changes taking place in the development of the productive forces are not accompanied by equally rapid shifts in the social structure. In the 50s in this structure main role played by sheikhs, feudal leaders of local tribes, seids, the highest layers of the Muslim aristocracy and a large number of nomads and semi-nomads. Currently, the number of the latter has sharply decreased due to the massive outflow of the rural population to the cities.
A kind of “revolution from above” is being carried out in relation to the local population. Its income is growing, modern education systems are being formed (in particular, the university in the capital of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh, the university in Kuwait, etc. have become very famous) and health care, the situation of women is improving, housing construction is underway, cities are being improved, etc.
However, in the public life of oil-exporting countries, the dominant position of sheikhs and seyids remains largely the same. An example is the Saudi clan, which dominates Saudi Arabia. They control gigantic oil revenues. The armed forces are practically subordinate to them. They are the owners of many industrial and other enterprises. According to experts, the Saudi clan (including about 30 sheikhs) is the richest “family” in the modern world. And the rulers of the richest emirates in the UAE are compared in terms of the amount of wealth they control with such oligarchic groups in the United States as the Morgans and Du Ponts.
Changes in the socio-economic structure occur slowly. One of the reasons is the great influence on the economy and politics of these countries of the Muslim religion and the Muslim elite, which often coincides with the feudal nobility. A certain difficulty lies in the fact that the Koran prohibits selling profits and taking interest. Various formulas for financial activities have been invented to bypass religious dogmas. Sometimes the issue of interest in legislation is simply ignored. Various types of financial institutions are being formed that resort to the use of interest, citing their special status. Thus, there are mixed institutions with the participation of European and other foreign banks. Another form is international, i.e. inter-Arab, banks. The uniform of specialized institutions is also used. Lack of full commercial law complicates the development of capitalist relations, and its creation encounters a certain resistance from the clergy, who see this as an attempt to undermine the foundation of the Koran.
In the system of external economic relations of oil-exporting countries of the Arab East, foreign trade and capital export are of decisive importance.
In Saudi Arabia's merchandise exports, for example (in 2000, its value was $84.1 billion), the overwhelming majority were crude oil and petroleum products, 55.3% went to Asian countries (the main role was played by supplies to Japan), 19.6% - to EU countries, 15.7% - to the USA. The commodity composition of imports (its volume in 2000 was $32.8 billion) was very diverse (machinery and equipment, certain types of raw materials, food, etc.). Saudi Arabia's main suppliers were EU countries (34.1%), USA (27.3) and Asian countries (28.8).
The income of oil exporting countries after the price increase was so great that the national economy could not use it. A significant part of the funds received, the so-called petrodollars, was invested in the economies of the USA, Western Europe and other countries. Their amount exceeded hundreds of billions of dollars. Saudi Arabia allocated $100-120 billion to Western enterprises through state funding alone, Kuwait - 70-80 billion, UAE - $45-55 billion.
The achievements would have been more significant if these countries had not spent part of their money on militarizing the economy. The high share of military expenditures in GDP is indicative. The leader is Saudi Arabia, where 13-14% of the value of GDP is spent on military needs. Saudi Arabia and Kuwait rank first in the UN rankings in terms of military spending per capita. The share of military personnel in the UAE population is 2.96%, while on average for developing countries this figure ranges from 0.4-0.5%. Saudi Arabia also has the largest armed forces. At the end of 1999, there were 70 thousand people in the kingdom’s ground forces, 13.5 thousand in the navy, and 18 thousand people in the air force.
The changes that have been taking place in the economies of the countries of the Russian Middle East in recent years are expanding the possibilities for their cooperation. Policy coordination between Russia and OPEC members is expanding. Representatives of Russian industrial firms emphasize that Russia has common interests with these states in the construction of nuclear power plants, as well as large thermal power plants.
General prospects largely depend on the transition from the simplest forms of foreign trade to more complex ones: technical assistance, joint implementation of projects on new technologies, cooperation, etc. Promising forms of cooperation may be the introduction latest technologies on desalination of sea water, which the Arab countries of the Persian Gulf so desperately need.
There are good opportunities in supplying the latest military equipment and training military specialists. The turnover of the arms market in the Middle East is approaching 60-80 billion dollars. According to Russian experts, if our country manages to restore its once strong position in the region, the Russian defense complex will play an important role in economic ties with these countries.
The Middle East and Central Asia (MCA) region maintained strong economic growth in 2008, outpacing global economic growth for the ninth year in a row. The expected 6 percent real GDP growth is underpinned by high commodity prices, strong domestic demand and robust macroeconomic policies. And even though growth rates in MCD countries have lagged behind those in developing and emerging Asia, the MENA region as a whole has thus far been able to withstand the ongoing international credit crisis and the transition of the US and others developed countries in the decline phase.
The tightening of global credit conditions has so far affected regional financial markets to varying degrees. Prices in most equity markets have fallen from the heights reached in late 2007 and early 2008.
Despite some emerging liquidity pressures in a few countries, banking sectors in the region remain generally sound, thanks to continued improvements in prudential metrics and strengthened banking supervision. The main problem in the MCD countries has been inflation, the rate of which is significantly higher than the average inflation rate of all developing and emerging market countries. The main causes of inflationary pressure include:
soaring food and fuel prices, particularly affecting low-income and emerging market countries, pressure from robust domestic demand and limited ability to secure supplies of goods and services in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries , depreciation of the US dollar (until July 2008), to which the currencies of many MCD countries are pegged. In order to alleviate social tensions caused by a decrease in purchasing power, a number of countries have increased the minimum wage and the salaries of civil servants, which, in turn, creates the risk of a further increase in inflation.
Earnings from oil exporters continued to strengthen external positions in 2008, despite the negative impact of rising food prices on imports, and emerging markets saw a sharp rise in foreign direct investment. In this environment, the region's gross official reserves have increased significantly. Government savings are expected to rise significantly in 2008, with the aggregate fiscal surplus rising to 8 percent of GDP in 2008. Monetary aggregates are expected to rise significantly in 2008, partly reflecting the difficulties in tightening monetary policy, limited by the relative rigidity of many MCD countries' currencies against the US dollar, but also further development financial sector in some countries.
The short-term development prospects for the MCD region are generally favorable. While economic growth in low-income countries should pick up as commodity prices fall, growth will slow in emerging markets due to the global slowdown in economic activity. Inflation growth should gradually slow as a result of tighter macroeconomic policies and as commodity prices fall.
External and fiscal positions should remain strong, mainly as a result of continued large surpluses in oil-exporting countries. Development prospects in the MCD region are subject to moderate risks. Growth could be lower than expected if growth slows sharper and longer in advanced economies. Inflation could be higher if international food and fuel prices rise again sharply or if macroeconomic policies are not tight enough. In particular, second-order effects may arise due to an increase in wages in a number of countries, leading to a certain consolidation of wage and price expectations without proper adjustment of economic policy.
In contrast, a continuation of the recent adjustment in commodity prices, as well as further strengthening of the US dollar in the case of countries whose currencies are pegged to the US dollar, will weaken inflationary pressures in the region. In terms of risks to the financial sector, the MCD region's direct exposure to distressed financial institutions and developed country credit markets is relatively limited.
For this reason, financial institutions in MCD countries are unlikely to suffer greatly if financial conditions in developed markets continue to deteriorate. At the same time, real estate prices in the region have grown rapidly in recent years and may undergo adjustments, affecting bank portfolios and overall GDP growth. The immediate macroeconomic policy challenges facing countries in the MCD region center on managing persistent inflationary pressures and addressing the growing risks associated with the global credit crisis. On inflation, many central banks have already raised their policy rates, but to date the policy response has been subdued and interest rates generally remain negative in real terms, especially in countries where the exchange rate is tightly managed against the US dollar. Correct set Policy measures will depend on the specific circumstances of each country, but usually involve tightening macroeconomic policies and increasing the degree of exchange rate flexibility. All countries should be particularly alert to the potential effects of second-order inflation and, for this reason, avoid further general wage increases.
To limit the effects of the global credit crisis, it is necessary to continue working to strengthen the resilience and flexibility of the region's financial sector. In particular, policymakers should seek to further strengthen the banking system and remain vigilant for any signs of the impact of the global credit crisis. They should also closely monitor the evolution of property prices and assess the vulnerability financial system in the event of a correction in property prices and pressure on liquidity.
Countries should continue to work on fiscal consolidation by phasing out oil and food subsidies. Despite the recent decline in commodity prices, oil prices are likely to remain relatively high, and MCD countries should gradually move toward market-based oil and food pricing combined with targeted measures to help the poor. In oil exporting countries, continued investment in oil production is needed. In parallel, these countries should undertake structural reforms that contribute to the creation of competitive non-oil sectors.
The depreciation of the dollar exchange rate and the acceleration of commodity price increases in the first half of 2008 have called into question the appropriateness of pegging exchange rates, in particular of commodity exporting countries, to the US dollar. While exchange rate revaluation might help these countries manage inflation by reducing imported inflation, such a move would entail a number of inconveniences. In addition, the recent correction in commodity prices and the strengthening of the US dollar may have weakened the case for revaluation. At the same time, if the trends in currencies and commodity prices observed in the summer of 2008 resume, or if inflation rates increase, it will be necessary to return to consideration of the issue of maintaining the peg of their exchange rates. Countries with flexible exchange rate regimes should allow their currencies to respond more fully to market conditions by limiting central bank interventions.
Finally, the latest macroeconomic indicators provide an opportunity to address the region's long-standing problems of unemployment and poverty. To this end, governments must take action to improve the investment climate and reduce the cost of doing business, reduce the size of the public sector in the economy, increase labor market flexibility and reform the education system to reduce the skills gap evident in many , if not most, MCD countries.
ReligionMiddlethEastA
In the modern world, the East plays an increasingly prominent role. Although this role is felt primarily in the sphere of economics and politics, modern research pays a lot of attention to the study of the internal structure of the countries of the East, their national and cultural tradition, and the specifics of their social development. This attention is all the more natural since almost all countries of the traditional East today are experiencing a painful process of internal transformation associated with the inevitable breakdown or serious modification of customary norms and standards. During this process, the national cultural tradition, whose protective and protective functions are based on religion as a symbol of national resistance, is vigorously brought to the fore. All this ties together society and religion, the socio-economic content of serious processes of internal transformation of the countries of the traditional East and their national-religious form.
It is not difficult to imagine what a large role religion played in such societies. First of all, it sanctioned and sanctified political power, contributed to the deification of the ruler, turning him into a divine symbol, the connecting unity of a given community. In addition, closely connected with the conservative tradition and closing its mechanism, sanctifying its norms, religion has always stood guard over the unshakable national structure. In other words, in relation to the state and society, religion was a cementing basis, but the effectiveness of this basis, the strength of its protective power largely depended on itself. It is known that different religious systems did not strengthen the traditional social structure or the existing political power to the same extent.
Thus, religion in the East has always relied on stability, conservation of the existing norm, and preservation of the socio-political status quo. In many respects, the internal stability caused precisely by religion, which prevented structural renewal and the activation of private ownership, hindered the development of the East, forcing it to mark time for centuries. The invasion of European capital and colonial conquests gave impetus to the disintegration of the old metastructure and the slow, extremely painful creation of a new one. Painful because internally Eastern societies turned out to be insufficiently prepared for a radical transformation of this kind.
In those countries and regions of the world, among those peoples who, in their progressive development, crossed the line of the primitive community, the ideas, rituals and cults characteristic of the early religious complex of beliefs have noticeably faded into the background over time. Religious systems came to the forefront in these societies, the center of which was the cult of powerful gods. However, even within these systems, many features and characteristics of early religious ideas and beliefs continued to be preserved either in a transformed form or in the form of remnants.
The religious system, which did not arise out of nowhere, but was based on the foundation of early forms of religious ideas and beliefs, was forced to reckon with reality. The result of this was the appearance in the new system of several levels or layers, which were located within its hierarchical structure in accordance with the degree of their antiquity, complexity, and prevalence. Under these conditions, as a rule, remnants of early religious forms were preserved in the form of superstitions, which were consolidated at the level of the lowest, most primitive class.
Acquaintance with the earliest Mesopotamian and Egyptian and somewhat later and mature Iraqi religious systems of the ancient Near East shows that these systems not only bore a noticeable influence of the past, but also had certain common features and characteristics, in particular, they were all polytheistic. In the form of polytheism, these systems spread throughout the Middle East region. Over time, however, within these systems there was a tendency towards monotheism, most clearly manifested where the degree of centralization of political power was more noticeable and where centralized empires arose from earlier political entities. Along with tendencies towards monotheism, quite complex and carefully developed philosophical concepts of being and the universe began to be created in some later systems.
Monotheism is a new stage in the development of the religious system as such. It should not be considered that it is in all respects “more progressive” than polytheism. Early polytheistic religious systems eventually gave way to more developed monotheistic ones, at least in that sphere of anciently established spiritual values of the Middle Eastern-Mediterranean centers of world civilization, which, despite all the specific differences between its individual constituent parts, was something single, whole and common to all them. On this common basis, all three developed monotheistic religions arose and developed, which had a huge impact on the formation of the culture of the European-Middle Eastern world - Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
All three monotheistic religious systems, known to the history of world culture, are closely related to each other, flow from one another and genetically go back to the same Middle Eastern zone.
Thus, the example of the advanced Arab countries of the Middle East shows how, in the fight against socio-economic and political difficulties of an objective and subjective nature, the leaders of these countries are faced with the need to rebuild the economy and eliminate centuries-old backwardness, radically improve the living conditions of the people, and are convinced of the advantages of non-capitalist paths of development, since “only on this path can peoples get rid of exploitation, poverty and hunger.”
If in the vision from overseas the Middle East changes only in the coordinates of strategic geography, then for Russia it now seems especially close both in geopolitical and geo-civilizational dimensions.
The end of the global confrontation between two world systems, one of the arenas of which was the Middle East in the second half of the 20th century, shook the previous system of political and military balance. But this does not at all mean assigning monopoly responsibility to the United States alone for resolving any regional conflicts, especially intercivilizational ones. Here, said the participants of the annual conference of Russian Arabists and Orientalists on the problems of the Middle East, a search for a “golden mean” is required. Obviously, it can be found along the path of connecting all the “residual elements of unsettlement,” be it in the post-colonial New Middle East or in the post-Soviet space of New Russia with its “near” and neighboring countries.
GeographyNearthEastA
The climate is mostly arid and there are several large rivers that are used for irrigation. The main oil-producing region.
The Middle East includes Egypt, Sudan, Bahrain, Israel, Jordan, Iraq, Yemen, Cyprus, Qatar, Kuwait, Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Syria, the Palestinian Territories, and Turkey, one part of whose territory lies in Europe, and the other in Asia. The bulk of Egypt's territory is located in Africa, but the Sinai Peninsula, which belongs to Egypt, is already Asia. Asia is separated from Africa by the Suez Canal. This is the largest shipping canal in the world. The countries of the Middle East, together with Iran and Afghanistan, are called the Middle East.
Endless deserts - sometimes rocky, sometimes sandy - occupy most of the Near and Middle East. The sun burns mercilessly, rain is rare and only occurs in winter. There is not enough water. People settle on the banks of rivers: the Nile in Egypt, the Tigris and Euphrates in Iraq. In deserts, where there are wells with fresh water, green islands appear, which are called oases. There, under the date palms, there are small villages. Bedouins, nomadic herders, roam the vast expanses of deserts with their camels. They often visit oases, where they exchange camel hair and meat with local peasants for dates, corn, beans and other products.
In recent years, nomadic pastoralists have increasingly switched to a sedentary lifestyle. Some settlements are located on mountain slopes and in intermountain basins. More rain falls on mountain slopes. In winter they form turbulent mountain rivers. Such rivers are called wadis. In summer the wadis dry out. By watering the land abundantly, farmers in the Near and Middle East grow corn, wheat, barley, sorghum, cotton, dates, lemons and oranges, as well as many other agricultural products. The long-staple cotton harvested in Egypt is considered the finest in the world. The finest and most beautiful cotton fabrics are made from it. Mocha coffee, which is grown in the Yemen Arab Republic, is highly prized. The best varieties of oranges and lemons are cultivated in oases. Roses are also grown in oases, from whose petals oil for perfumery is made. The Taif oasis in Saudi Arabia is famous for the best varieties of roses.
The greatest wealth of the Near and Middle East is oil and gas. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iran, and Iraq are especially rich in them. The production and sale of oil enriched these countries and gave them the opportunity to build new cities, seaports, modern factories and factories.
In the Near and Middle East there are many large and very major cities. In the capital of Egypt, Cairo, the population is almost the same as in Moscow. Millions of people live in the Iranian capital Tehran, the Iraqi capital Baghdad and Turkey's largest port city Istanbul. In Egypt and Turkey, almost half the population lives in cities. There are many citizens in other countries of the Near and Middle East. But most of their inhabitants are peasants. As a rule, they live poorly.
The main food is various porridges made from corn, millet, beans, oat and wheat cakes, dates, and sour milk. In most villages, people are forced to drink untreated water. Poor nutrition, poor-quality water, and expensive medical care lead to the widespread spread of various diseases and reduce life expectancy. Usually people live there for an average of about fifty years. Many children cannot attend school. In the village, from the age of six or seven, they work together with their parents in the fields. In cities, child labor is used in weaving factories and carpet workshops. Children are hired as servants by wealthy families. Often, children of poor people are forced to work to pay off their parents' debts. Only in those countries in the Near and Middle East that have become rich through the sale of oil and gas, the majority of children attend free schools and can even receive free higher education. In these countries, the population receives and free treatment.
Our country provided great assistance to the countries of the Near and Middle East. Plants and factories were built there for the production of various machines, cars, automobiles, and sea vessels. We helped Egypt build a high dam on the Nile and the largest hydroelectric power station in Africa. For Afghanistan, Egypt, Iraq, Syria and other countries, our country has trained many qualified workers, engineers, teachers and doctors. Cooperation between the countries of the Near and Middle East and with other countries of the world is developing. Oil and gas from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iran, and Iraq are bought by Japan, Italy, France, the Federal Republic of Germany, Great Britain, and the USA. Many countries around the world buy Egyptian cotton, Turkish tobacco, Yemeni coffee, cotton fabrics, linen and clothing, washing powder and other goods from the Near and Middle East. In turn, they sell cars and food products that they lack to these countries.
Lebanon (Arabic Lubnan), officially the Lebanese Republic (al-Jumhuriya al-Lubnaniya) is a small mountainous state in the Middle East, located on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It borders on Syria in the east and north, and Israel in the south.
Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a state in southwest Asia, off the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. It borders on Lebanon in the north, Syria in the northeast, Jordan in the east, and Egypt in the southwest.
Jordan (Arabic: Al-Urdun), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan (Arabic: المملكة الأردنية الهاشمية), is an Arab country in the Middle East. It borders Syria to the north, Iraq to the northeast, Saudi Arabia to the east and south, and Israel and the Palestinian Authority to the west. Jordan shares the coastlines of the Dead Sea with Israel and the Palestinian Authority, and the Gulf of Aqaba with Israel, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (Arabic: al-Mamlaka al-Arabiya al-Saudiyya) is the largest state on the Arabian Peninsula. It borders Jordan to the north, Iraq, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates to the east, and Oman and Yemen to the south. It is washed by the Persian Gulf in the northeast and the Red Sea in the west.
Yemen is a country located in the south of the Arabian Peninsula in South-West Asia. It is part of the Middle East, bordering Oman and Saudi Arabia. It is washed by the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea.
Oman is a state in Southwest Asia, in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula. It borders Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Yemen. It is washed by the waters of the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman. There is a small exclave separated from the main territory of Oman by the territory of the UAE.
The United Arab Emirates (Arabic: al-Imarat al-Arabiya al-Muttahida), UAE, is a state in southwest Asia in the eastern part of the Arabian Peninsula. It borders with Saudi Arabia in the west and south, with Oman in the southeast and northeast (Omani enclave of Madha). It is washed by the waters of the Persian and Oman Gulfs. Qatar (Arabic: Katar), officially the State of Qatar (Arabic: Davlat Katar) is a state (emirate) in southwest Asia, located on the Qatar Peninsula in the northeastern part of the Arabian Peninsula. It borders on Saudi Arabia south, on all other sides it is washed by the Persian Gulf. The capital is the city of Doha.
Middle Eastern interior
Europe has long discovered the amazing culture of the Middle East. The first to involuntarily join it were those who existed for several centuries under the rule of the Moors - the inhabitants of the Iberian Peninsula. During this time, local architecture and decorative arts absorbed many elements of the Muslim world. With the growing influence of Spain and the simultaneous establishment of diplomatic ties between Europe and Turkey, the culture of the mysterious countries became increasingly attractive to the West. Rooms decorated in Syrian, Persian or Moroccan style existed even in Russian estates of the 19th century.
To be fair, it is worth noting that in those days it was not the Arabic decoration as such that was reproduced, but the Europeans’ ideas about it, which, by the way, not everyone had an academic one. And therefore, for example, Kufic motifs were often combined even with Chinese ones.
Today, like a couple of centuries ago, the culture of the Muslim world is conquering new spaces and new fans. There is even a certain trend: if you just go out into the city, you’ll come across such stylization.
But for some it is not enough to smoke a hookah at a table or practice drawing arabesques - at the same time, they want to create an impressive exotic space around themselves. In addition, it is more pleasant to practice, for example, belly dancing in an appropriate environment, when every detail of it will convey a special mood to both the “artist” and the viewer.
Middle Eastern decor is very diverse and is geographically divided into several styles, each of which has its own characteristics. For example, Turkish decoration, since the beginning of the century before last, has been distinguished by its extensive borrowing of European elements. The Moroccan direction as such is divided into two - Barbary and Spanish-Moorish. The first is distinguished by laconicism and some heaviness, the second is characterized by bright colors with sharp contrasts and general splendor, intricacy, and complexity of details.
Country house decoration
The color scheme of the interior is quite dark - the most commonly used colors are purple, blue, terracotta, burgundy, and dark purple. For this reason, you should not implement the idea of such decor in a small room without consulting a specialist. The fact is that “dark colors” visually reduce the space, and only the experience of a master will help not to cross the line beyond which the closet will no longer seem compact and cozy, but will be perceived as cramped.
Each color carries a special meaning: yellow symbolizes sand, blue - priceless water in the desert, red - the fire of a campfire, green - the life-giving shadow of an oasis. In this way, people bring their favorite notes of the surrounding landscape into their interior decoration.
It is difficult to recommend such a solution to city apartment owners. The decor of the Middle East countries includes high ceilings, arches, narrow columns, and a fountain in the courtyard. It is very difficult to realize this fantasy in the “concrete jungle” - of course, if you are not the owner of luxury apartments.
A traditional interior assumes the absence of interior openings. They are replaced with curtains made of light fabric. However, in the conditions of the Middle Zone, this option should be considered successful only if we are talking about a summer residence, where the owners live mainly in the warm season. After all, in winter, weightless organza cannot become a barrier to drafts that arise during ventilation. Wooden doors, especially those made of oak or maple, with carved decorations, will solve the problem of free winds, but will not conflict with the style. You can easily match them with antique ornate brass handles.
The walls of the rooms should not be covered with paper wallpaper and plastered for painting; it is better to cover them with upholstery fabric - velvet, brocade, silk or moire. This is not a cheap pleasure, and in extreme cases, such decoration can be replaced with traditional rolls imitating satin. It is not necessary to cover the entire wall with canvas; it is better to combine two different types, separated by a patterned border at a distance of one third from the floor.
Furniture is required exclusively from wood. Objects made of walnut, cedar or maple with the so-called Syrian mosaic - inlaid with sea and river mother-of-pearl and peach wood - will be a wonderful decoration. It should be taken into account that the component of the pattern, iridescent with all the colors of the rainbow, can be either natural or artificial, while the second option is much cheaper.
According to tradition, the ceiling is sheathed with cedar (ideally) or another species. Therefore, if you live in a log house and do not want to hide the nature of the walls and ceiling behind plasterboard coverings, do not deny yourself the pleasure of furnishing it in the Middle Eastern style.
Soft and warm decor
An important component of Arabic or Moorish decoration is the abundance of fabrics. Carpets, canopies over beds, bedspreads on benches and sofas, embroidered decorative pillows, heavy curtains... One option would be to install an organza tent in the middle of the room, which seems to take you into the world of the Arabian Nights. Unfortunately, such interior elements collect a lot of dust and create significant problems during cleaning.
There is no painting in the usual European sense in Arab art, since Islam prohibits the depiction of people and animals. For this reason, local craftsmen succeeded in making various ornaments based on fantastic plant motifs and Middle Eastern calligraphy - arabesques. Kufic writing, a special alphabet invented in the city of Al-Kufa, became a popular object of the latter. Great importance is attached to inscriptions, especially quotations from holy books: sometimes a shamail is hung on the wall - a passage from the Koran written in Arabic on a piece of paper or silk and inserted into a frame.
Living room
On the one hand, it is a priori intended for receiving guests, who are usually surprised with non-standard design solutions. On the other hand, it was created for family members to relax, relax and have fun. And what better than an unusual fairy-tale decor to set the mood?
The main piece of furniture here is the sofa. A low variety, upholstered in patterned, muted-tone material. If it is made of leather, cover it with a blanket with an ornament. Poufs or low chairs will take their places around. Also, do not refuse pillows embroidered with silk and wool with the addition of beads or sequins (small decorative “buttons” with a diameter of a couple of millimeters) - they can be laid out on the sofa or even scattered on the floor.
Carpet with a colorful ethnic pattern. It has long been believed that a model with black-red-green arabesques is preferable - according to legend, such a pattern protects the inhabitants of the house from evil spirits. Another copy would be useful, hung on the wall above the sofa, and even with a saber in a silver sheath (a Caucasian saber would also look appropriate) or a dagger. By the way, the abundance of richly decorated weapons is typical for the Syrian interior.
We must also not forget about the small table, which in Arabia is made octagonal - the number eight symbolizes happiness among Muslims. If there is no inlay on the tabletop, cover it with an embroidered colorful napkin with macrame, which are very popular in Turkey.
There is a hookah on the carved wood bedside table.
An Arabic and Moroccan house suggests a mysterious twilight. To create it, you need to choose lamps with stained glass, and a desaturated color of the lampshade is preferable. The latter can be made of camel skin stretched over a wire frame. The skin is subjected to special treatment - soaked in mimosa tincture, as a result of which it acquires a pleasant orange tint. Next, henna painting is applied. Any shape of lampshades is allowed - round, star-shaped, elongated, even complex - in the form of an animal's head.
The atmosphere of the Muslim world is unthinkable without incense, so set aside a place for an aromatic lamp and light candles in it as needed, adding a little essential oil to a special vessel with water, for example, roses, conifers (pine, cedar) or citrus fruits (lemon, sweet orange).
Materials in dark blue colors with the addition of beige or yellow tones. Warm shades should prevail, otherwise such a color will make the cook and eaters sad.
An alternative to ordinary tiles will be mosaic, characteristic of the Moroccan style. Moreover, the best option would be bright blue, green, dark red and gold smalt. By the way, some people use this option not only in the kitchen, but also in the bathroom. Try combining large squares with small ones - the effect is quite interesting. The most popular motifs for patterns are multi-pointed stars and flower heads.
You also need to be careful when choosing dishes. Of course, if you prefer to drink from porcelain cups, made in the Victorian style, you should not, as they say, step on the throat of your song in order to create space around yourself in a completely different ethnic movement. You can continue to use the tea sets from good old England, but when not needed, they will have to be hidden in the cupboard. To avoid inharmonious contrast, bowls, metal vases filled with pieces of Turkish delight or nougat, dishes with baklava, jugs for sherbet and vessels with chased patterns, and copper cezves have the right to remain visible. By the way, oriental sweets are often stored right on the table - they “live” just fine outside the refrigerator.
Coffee room
It's hard to imagine the Middle East without coffee. Its use in some countries is accompanied by special rituals similar to the Japanese tea ceremony. Therefore, in the palaces of Turkish sultans and Arab sheikhs, a special room was always allocated in which they drank the aromatic drink.
For this purpose, you should either choose a small room with good lighting, or set aside a corner in the kitchen. Place a small table in the center, next to it a sofa or leather poufs, along the walls place cabinets or shelves with special utensils - cezves and tiny cups, wooden or metal coffee grinders. Place rough canvas bags of grains on the lower shelves. Surely you and your guests will love the idea of sitting in such an unusual setting.
In the middle of the room you can’t do without a wide wooden four-poster bed. Curtains are made from airy organza, silk or tulle (velvet is impractical, it collects too much dust). Their main function is not only to hide the bed from prying eyes, but also to protect against annoying insects. We select a bedspread to match the curtains, trimmed along the edges with braid with tassels at the corners. Similar decorations would be appropriate on window curtains.
Other items needed here are a small bedside table and a couple of poufs. But if you want to maintain style, you will have to give up the desk. Do not forget also about such a necessary accessory as a mirror - not very large, in a frame made of dark carved wood, inlaid with the so-called Arabic mosaic (inserts made of pine or camel bone), or artificially aged metal.
The same small hookah or bronze box will sit comfortably on the nightstand. Not only an electric lamp, but also a ceramic lamp with candles is suitable as a light source. If you prefer a live fire in the evening, think about how to implement the idea of a campfire lit by Bedouins indoors. The method we are used to - a fireplace - is historically uncharacteristic of Arabia, Morocco, Turkey and other countries of the Middle East, so in this case it is unlikely to fit harmoniously into the corresponding interiors. A metal stove like the well-known potbelly stove will come to the rescue. Such a unit heats up and cools down quickly, so if you accidentally overdo it with heating, all you have to do is turn off the fire, and soon the temperature in the room will return to normal. From a fire safety point of view, the most reliable are the varieties with glass doors: when they are closed, fuel and sparks will not fall on the floor, and you can absolutely calmly admire the dancing of the cheerful flames. Place its source away from canopies, window curtains and other flammable items. It is advisable to keep a vessel with water nearby (if you do not want it to be visible, you can hide it under the bedside table).
A potbelly stove requires a chimney with a length of at least 4.5 m. Otherwise, there will be smoke and soot in the room, so this idea is recommended only for country houses. The installation should be carried out by a specialist who will take into account all the necessary factors to ensure that the fire in your home is tamed.
Home has always been a special place for a person, where, first of all, you get away from the bustle.
Culture in the Middle East
The Middle East is a cultural and architectural monument of the world's most ancient civilizations, countries with enormous tourism potential, but due to the unstable political situation (Arab-Israeli conflict, war in Iraq and Lebanon, Islamic fundamentalism), only a few countries are attractive for tourism here: Turkey , Egypt, UAE, Jordan and Israel.
The Middle East region is also the epicenter of the struggle of a number of world states for control over Middle Eastern oil, since the Persian Gulf region is the largest place in the world for crude oil deposits.
The twentieth century brought with it unprecedented and rapid changes. They affected all spheres of human life. The Middle East, that is, the Arab-Muslim area, experienced these changes along with the rest of the world. The question, which is still essentially unresolved, is how to integrate these changes into society, into everyone’s life. The answer to this question is ambiguous and depends on the point of view. An economist and a sociologist may answer this question very differently. The atheist offers one solution, the Islamic fundamentalist another. It is obvious that there is no longer a general line of development and change from, say, traditional to modern; there is only a sequence of breaks and transformations, sometimes leading to the emergence of new social foundations. The nineteenth-century belief that humanity was steadily moving toward its golden age and that its approach could already be sensed was hopelessly outdated. In Victorian England, adherents of this idea believed that their way of life was good and getting better; They equated the traditional with the backward and non-European, the modern with the progressive and European (Western). According to this logic, the Europeanization of backward and traditional (i.e., eastern) peoples is an undoubted benefit.
When changes are introduced into society in leaps and bounds (and this is what most often happens), they sometimes undermine social foundations and shift values. If, at the same time, old values are not replaced by other generally accepted norms, disunity arises, people begin to oppose themselves to each other and to society as a whole. Such discord gives rise to political instability, social and religious tension, psychological anxiety and economic imbalance. Usually all these problems are clearly visible in any society.
Change is caused by many factors; As for social tension, its cause in a traditional society is either a challenge from the outside world, or decisions aimed at modernizing society and made within it. Changes in the Middle East were caused mainly by European influence and European colonization (mostly in a broad sense this word). Old recognized ideas and traditional principles of life were called into question, it was necessary to somehow respond to this. The challenge was posed by the modernist outside world, so Middle Eastern intellectuals asked themselves: what is the essence of modernity? There was no general consensus, but a distinction should be made here between modernization and modernity. Modernization is the process of introducing into society the material attributes of modern life: railways, communications systems, industry (the latter is not so relevant these days), technology, household appliances. Modernity (modernism) is a general term denoting political and cultural processes that arise with the advent of new ideas, a new system of economic structure or education in society. This is a certain way of thinking, a way of existing in the modern world and an attitude towards change.
In Europe, modernization began along with industrialization and commercialization (otherwise known as the commodification of human relations), mainly economic processes that forced society to adopt new ways of producing and distributing goods and abandon traditional models of economic relations. In economics, capital accumulation has become the most important principle. People, previously tied to the land and seasonal work, now began to make their own economic decisions and act at their own discretion. Such freedom of choice takes a person away from the traditional way of life and expands the range of his expectations. In the West, the process of industrialization took place in specific conditions and was accompanied by innovations that changed both all people individually and society as a whole. People had to become more mobile and learn to feel and accept change. Modernization did not end there, and today, in the so-called era of postmodernism, industrialization has ceased to be its indispensable condition. Technology is now imported in bulk and large industries are shrinking.
Modernization is a process that, under normal conditions, creates a modern society. This happens when society becomes seriously concerned with how a person makes choices, be they moral, personal, economic or political. For modern people The main one is the problem of rational choice. Choice presupposes weighing alternatives, the right to doubt the effectiveness of solutions proposed by tradition or politicians. It is not without reason that they say that modernity has institutionalized doubt into the norm. Freedom of choice and the right to doubt are impossible without rational discussion and debate, and rational people may have different opinions about its results.
One of the main attitudes of modernity is faith in man's ability to control social and natural phenomena. In the nineteenth century, many in the West believed in the inevitability of progress and in the power of human reason. In the modern world, where the process of modernization is still ongoing, faith in comprehensive solutions has almost died out, and progress, if recognized at all, appears only partial and intermittent.
Opponents of modernity, defending what they perceive as traditional ways of thinking, believe that the current changes in our world are of no use. In change they see only something new and present - nothing more. Modernity in their eyes is a system of rules of behavior that, without being a step forward, simply supplanted other systems. At the same time, they do not see any need for something new for the mind and heart of a person.
In the Arab world, debate erupted over the relative value of modernity and authenticity (asala), understood as being true to oneself. Defenders of the latter consider it extremely important to preserve their originality despite rapid, fundamental changes. They argue that change is destroying the original cultural value system, although it can be reversed through a new awareness of the principles of Islam. The present for them is only the interval between the loss of their true roots and their new acquisition. These people are waging war against the modern world. Let the outer world change, but the true, original, immortal soul Arab people must be preserved - the soul that finds expression in its language, culture, history - in a word, in Islam.
A modern Muslim has to clearly define his attitude towards the Islamic past, because modernity is based on the principle of development, which rejects the past. The Muslim today lives in a painful break with his pre-modern history, and the transition to current living conditions is difficult for him by the rapidity of change, often by the feeling of complete disorientation that arose at a time when the Islamic world suffered political and spiritual defeat from the West, which seemed invincible and omnipresent. The break with the past was too unexpected and sharp. Therefore, many modern Muslims cannot help but try to reclaim this past, which contains all their beliefs and convictions, and reincorporate it into the modern world. This raises the question: is it possible to revive the past in completely new conditions and how to do this? Here is what the modern Moroccan thinker Abdou Filali-Ansari writes about this: “How to remain a Muslim today? It is not easy to answer this question. On the one hand, Islam appears as a collection of beliefs that have not changed for centuries, on the other hand, modernity offers us a system of the latest ideas that correspond to the latest scientific theories and ideas, which are intellectually superior in the eyes of modern man. These two sides often turn out to be incompatible, if Islam is understood not only as a religion, but also as the form in which it is embodied in the minds of millions. Most Muslims live a dual life: they remain loyal to the Muslim community, but do not follow all the principles that such loyalty dictates. Thus, religion and everyday life come into sharp conflict with each other.”
This briefly outlines the problem that Muslims have been trying to solve for a century and a half: how to be modern and still remain Muslim? Many exits were offered. Some, considering this problem insoluble, resigned themselves to a non-religious world or renounced their faith. Those who remained faithful to Islam proposed three different paths: revival (tajdid), reformism (salafiyya) and fundamentalism. Tajdid began to preach in Arabia in the eighteenth century by Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab and in the nineteenth century in Sudan by Muhammad bin Ahmad, who proclaimed himself Mahdi. Islam seemed to them to be a true, perfect religion, which man had distorted with innovations (bidah). Taking on the role of restorers (mujaddid), they called for the overthrow of existing regimes and the establishment of new ones in which the leading role would belong to them, for the purification of Islam and the observance of the law (Sharia), perhaps with the use of force. They cited the Koran to prove the need for renewal.
The reformist movement was primarily a reaction to the pressing questions posed to Muslims by the modern world and its system of concepts. The Middle East was opened to Europe after Napoleon's Egyptian campaign in 1798. The French occupation was short-lived, but played a decisive role, as it transferred power to Pasha Muhammad Ali and his reformist "Westernizing" dynasty. Muhammad Ali established links between the economies of Egypt and Europe. He and his successors cared not only for the immediate needs of Islam; not wanting to become in opposition to al-Azhar, they sent Egyptian students to the West to acquire modern practical knowledge. Many of these students realized that the secret of Europe's achievements lay in freeing the human mind to think critically, choose its own course of action, and turn to the achievements of modern science and technology to solve its problems. The current situation attracted the attention of Islamic thinkers and public figures.
One of the first among them was Jamal ad-din al-Afghani, who, although not an Egyptian, lived in Cairo. Believing that the main threat came from Europe, he began to think about how to deal with it. Al-Afghani did not indiscriminately reject all Western ideas and was even influenced by some of them. He believed in man's ability to change things through his actions and achieve social and individual progress. This progress, however, inevitably depends on the moral state of man. Al-Afghani also emphasized the need to act rationally and accept ideas dictated by reason. Islamic society will once again be on the path of progress if it recognizes these ideas and unites. Al-Afghani actively preached the doctrine of pan-Islamism. Society will be able to reform itself if it again turns to the truth of Islam, but at the same time it will have to face the eternal question: what is “true” Islam and who should define and reinterpret its provisions?
For al-Afghani, Islam is first and foremost a belief in a transcendent God and in human reason. Ijtihad (independent judgment, interpretation) cannot be dispensed with, and it is the duty of man to reinterpret the tenets of the Koran and apply them to solve the problems of his time. If society refuses this, it will become ossified or imitative. And imitation has a destructive effect. Here is what al-Afghani wrote: “If Muslims begin to imitate Europeans, they will not become Europeans, because the words and actions of Europeans stem from certain principles that are understood and recognized by all Western society.”
Islam must become a religion of vigorous action. To prove his point, al-Afghani quotes the Koran: “God will not change anything in the people until people change what is inside them.” Europeans have embarked on a path of change; Muslims must do this in their own way - by becoming better Muslims. According to al-Afghani, Europeans modernized because they moved away from real Christianity; Muslims, on the contrary, have degraded because they have ceased to be real Muslims.
Al-Afghani was a foreigner in Egypt and at the same time a very active person. His successor, the Egyptian Muhammad Abdo, was not distinguished by such energy and, perhaps, turned out to be more influential than his predecessor: in some areas his influence continues to this day. In general, he approved of the changes initiated by Muhammad Ali and his supporters. But at the same time, having witnessed the occupation of his country by British troops, he understood how dangerous it was for society to abandon religion, strive for earthly goods and follow the laws of human reason. He also felt how fragile European culture was becoming among those who tried to assimilate it through French manners. “No matter how the peoples of the East imitate Europe,” he said, “there will be no benefit from this until they thoroughly study its origins.”
He asked himself how to bridge the gap between Islam and modernity, and answered that Muslims needed change, but it had to be done in an Islamic way. Islam is in need of change, but only if these changes are correctly understood from the true, pure sources of faith. One of Abdo's predecessors, the philosopher Khayr al-din al-Tunisi, asked as early as 1830 whether a pious Muslim should accept the institutions and ideas of the modern world. Abdo addressed this question: can a person living in the modern world remain a pious Muslim? (Filali-Ansari is asking the same question now.) The answer was: Islam must remain the moral basis of a modern and progressive society, but this does not mean approval of everything that is done in the name of modernization. Islam must remain a restraining force, and Islamic society must build its life according to the commands of God and, guided by its own reason, accept what is modern. Muslims can borrow from Europe its ideas and scientific achievements without abandoning Islam.
And yet Abdo left many questions unanswered: what exactly are the dictates of Islam that society should live by, what specific European ideas are acceptable for Muslims? Later, some Muslim philosophers argued that Abduh had made too many concessions to modernity, which could ultimately lead to the secularization of Islamic society. Today, Abdo still has followers, but many have categorically rejected his ideas and turned to more radical, oppositional forms of fundamentalism. The organization Al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun (Muslim Brotherhood - Ed.), created by Hassan al-Banna, is an example of such a reaction. Al-Banna understood Islam as a faith and ideology that embraces and organizes all human affairs and does not shy away from solving pressing problems and carrying out necessary reforms. He had a negative attitude towards the West, seeing in it a force that threatens to invade the lives of Muslims and embodies “everything that is destructive and corrupting that is in money, wealth, fame, ostentatious splendor, material pleasures, power and means of propaganda.” The Ikhwan group was a product of the twentieth century and the situation that developed in Egypt; The problem of liberation from the British occupation concerned the members of the brotherhood more than less pressing political issues, say, how to combine modernization with the renewal of Muslim society. Members of this movement believed that modernism had gone too far and blamed the West. Thus, al-Banna criticized modern Western education systems, which sow doubt and heresy in the minds of Muslims.
Al-Banna and Ikhwan proposed solving this problem through political methods. Only an Islamic state can stop moral degradation in the country and reintroduce Sharia law. Then Muslim culture and tradition, rethought, will be able to resist the aggressive influence of the West and eradicate it.
Members of the Brotherhood showed themselves politically - they created their own party - and militarily - they fought against the Zionists in Palestine and the British in Egypt. Al-Banna himself was killed in 1949 (it is possible that this was done by government agents), but his line continued, and even today it has followers. Sayyid Qutb gave her a tougher character. He saw Western civilization in a very dark light. He believed that Islam and the West were incompatible - like two camps whose coexistence was impossible. Between believers and non-believers, between secularism (capitalism) and Islam, there can be nothing but war. Modernization meant for him the triumph of the West and the defeat of Islam. Qutb had a somewhat strange belief that the West seeks to destroy the human personality - mainly through mass ideology. Chaos reigns in the soul and mind of modern man; he cannot say for sure what the future holds for him. Qutb believed that the West, with its emphasis on science and technology, was devaluing religion. People are forced to give up the spiritual for the sake of the material. The West has failed to preserve the dignity of humanity and lead it to prosperity. He designated all this by the term jahiliyya (ignorance in the face of Islam), including in it a significant part of the formal side of Islam itself.
How did Qutb propose to solve the problems of the modern world? In Islam he saw “a complete social system that satisfies all human needs and is fundamentally different from all other systems. It is necessary to call upon the entire past of Islam to defeat the West and modernization, destroying all the ideas of jahiliyya.” He prophesied the death of capitalism and condemned attempts to reconcile Islam with modern society, demanding that modern society recognized Muslim values. He called for the abandonment of modernism, although he considered some of the achievements of science useful. The road to Muslim revival, he believed, would be opened by educating the younger generation in the spirit of Islam.
Qutb argued that Muslims would have to oppose the state in order to recreate an ideal Islamic society. He denounced democracy, political parties and an independent electoral system, seeing in all this a manifestation of shirk (polytheism). He hoped to lead the fight against the state himself so that a new generation could rediscover Islam. Victory, he said, can only be achieved by completely dissociating oneself from the state and rebelling against it. This open anti-state position of Qutb was the reason for his arrest on terrorism charges and execution in 1966.
Under Qutb's influence, a number of small groups formed in Egypt, consisting mainly of young people, who carried out his behest by organizing the assassination of President Sadat and others. The leader of one of the groups, “At-Takfir wa-l-Hijra” (“Accusation of disbelief and hijra.” – Ed.), publicly declared: “I reject the Egyptian political system and Egyptian reality in all its manifestations, because everything in it contradicts the laws of Sharia and is a heresy. We reject everything that has to do with so-called modern progress. Mechanized society has made people forget the essence of their existence, true reality and religious duty."
This radical rejection of modernism arose from the despair caused by the modern situation, the only way out of which seemed to these people to be the revival of Islam: “Islam is the only solution.” Such radicalism is not characteristic of all Muslim public figures and philosophers. Thus, Sudanese Hassan al-Turabi expresses his readiness, at least for the moment, to cooperate with the state in order to completely change society. He characterizes the movement he heads as “not only political. This is a religious movement for the education and spiritual development of the individual; in reforming society, changing people and educating them, we have achieved much more than in politics.” He constantly repeats how important it is to change people: “Changing society, that is, changing Sufis, tribal leaders, students, women and so on, is very important.” To “change” people means for al-Turabi to improve them as Muslims, to make them capable of living a full life in the modern world.
IN in a certain sense Al-Turabi prefers to Islamize modernity rather than modernize Islam. Such a program represents a “postmodern” reaction of Islam to the modernism of the developing world, (largely stimulated by the collapse of communism).
Mohammed al-Ghazali, a former Brotherhood member, says he could accept some of the elements of the modern Western world, but only selectively. “There is such an element as science. We are for scientific progress and are ready to cooperate with the West in this. But such philosophical concepts as godlessness and communism are unacceptable to us. The third element is related to the kindling of desires; we consider it socially destructive and seek to suppress it.”
Other, more moderate Muslim philosophers propose to reconsider the very approach to modernism and oppose the unification of the Muslim world. The Muslim, they believe, must learn to coexist with modernity, and now also with a set of more controversial ideas united under the guise of “postmodernism.” The problems of the modern world are the problems of every Muslim. To emphasize asala is to ignore the modern situation. Some of these thinkers argue that Arab society has been living under modernism for the last 150 years, and therefore modernism is not something that can be accepted or rejected. They want society to become more open, and even seek political opportunities that would honor democracy, human rights, the rights of women and social minorities. They believe in an education system that will no longer limit minds and encourage doubt and criticism.
But perhaps the most encouraging position is that of the Tunisian modernist Mohammed Talbi. There is no doubt for him. His faith is absolute, his commitment to consistent and meaningful modern views is also unshakable. He is one of those rare intellectuals who openly works to balance a living faith with a truly modern vision of the world. Faith for him is a free choice of the individual, made without violence against the mind. In this God gave man complete freedom. Here is what Talbi writes: “Faith is meaningless when there is no freedom of choice. The renewal of Islam is more closely connected with the problems of the socio-political structure than with the problems of theology, which always remain relevant. Muslims suffered because they used Islam for political purposes.” Talbi and other representatives of the intelligentsia are trying to harmoniously combine their faith with the world around them. They seek to update religious ideas, in which they see a solution to the problems of man in the postmodern era. Talbi paints an optimistic picture of a Muslim society in which people are endowed with freedom of choice, are able to comprehend the modern world and find their place in it.
Sources
http://ru.wikipedia.org Wikipedia - the free encyclopedia
http://www.middleeast.narod.ru/ Information center
http://www.bestreferat.ru Best abstracts
http://ethnomir.ru Ethnomir
http://www.arabinform.com ArabInform
http://www.strana-oz.ru Domestic Notes - a magazine for slow reading
http://palomnic.org Orthodox worshiper in the Holy Land