The Complete Idiot's Guide to Middle East Conflict Read online

  Crusaders defend the faith

  Muslims meet their match

  After the suppression of the last Jewish revolt, Palestine declined in significance and became subject to the fortunes of the ruler of the time. Then, when Constantine accepted Christianity, Palestine attained a new importance as the holiest place in the Christian world.

  The Islamic conquest of Palestine, which began in 633 C.E., was the beginning of a 1,300-year span during which more than 10 different empires, governments, and dynasties were to rule in the Holy Land, prior to the British occupation after World War I.

  The Other Semites

  Like the Jews, the Arabs are considered a Semitic people. They lived throughout the Middle East and North Africa, but are called Arabs because of their long-standing presence in Arabia—what is now Saudi Arabia.

  Some texts refer to Arabs as nomads and camel herders as early as the ninth century B.C.E. Small Arab kingdoms subsequently emerged on the periphery of the great ancient empires, but the Arabs did not become a political and military force until the Muslim conquests of the seventh century C.E.

  Although not all Arabs are Muslims (and the majority of Muslims are not Arabs), their history is usually charted from the days of the prophet Muhammad. That is where we shall start, too.

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  Hieroglyphics

  The term Semite was first used in the late eighteenth century to describe those who descended from Noah’s son Shem. Today it commonly identifies people who speak a Semitic language.

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  The “Last” Prophet

  Muhammad was born in Mecca approximately 570 C.E. and was a member of the Quraysh tribe. As with Moses and Jesus, we know little about his childhood. His parents died when he was young, and he never learned to read or write. When he was 12, he visited Syria, where he had his first exposure to Jews and Christians and apparently developed a respect for these People of the Book. At 25, Muhammad married a widow named Khadija who was involved in trade and got him involved in it as well.

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  Ask the Sphinx

  Muslims believe that God revealed himself to the prophets of the Jews and Christians—in particular, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus—and though both groups are believed to have strayed from the true faith that is Islam, they are still held in higher esteem than pagans and unbelievers and distinguished as People of the Book (Ahl al Kitab in Arabic).

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  During one trading journey when he was about 40, Muhammad had a miraculous encounter with the angel Gabriel, who revealed to him a message in Arabic from Allah, or God.

  Afterward, Muhammad began to develop a code of behavior that he said had come from Allah. Some of the revelations included that the world would end, that God would judge humans mercifully if they submitted to His will, and that people should pray to show their gratitude to God. Gabriel continued to reveal the word of God to Muhammad over a period of several years.

  The people who accepted Muhammad’s teachings came to be known as Muslims and their religion Islam, Arabic for “surrender (to the will of Allah).” Muhammad is regarded by Muslims as the last and most perfect prophet.

  Upon Muhammad’s death, his followers recorded the prophet’s divine revelations, and the written record became known as the Koran (also spelled Qu’ran, from the Arabic qaraa, “to read”). Because God is believed to be the author, the Koran is considered infallible.

  The sacred text of the Koran is considered authoritative and beyond question. By contrast, the fundamental texts, teachings, and origins of the holy writings of Jews, Christians, and Buddhists are disputed within each faith. Islam is also rooted in Arab culture, and nearly every Muslim can read the Koran in its original Arabic as it was revealed by Muhammad. Some Jews can read and understand the Hebrew and Aramaic of their ancient texts, but there is no record of the words of Jesus in the language he spoke.

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  Hieroglyphics

  Allah is the Arabic term for “God.” The word was used for local gods in Arabia before Muhammad began to use it for the one God who revealed his messages to him. Arabs frequently use the word inshallah, meaning “if God wills,” which suggests that whatever happens in life will be a result of God’s will.

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  Also during the centuries after Muhammad’s death, the laws of Islam were codified in the Shariah (Arabic for “the way”), which is the body of laws that regulate Muslim life, some of which appear explicitly in the Koran. These rules are believed to be an expression of God’s will, but they are also subject to the interpretation of Islamic scholars.

  The Five Pillars of Islam

  Like Jews and Christians, Muslims believe there is only one God, but unlike Christians, they believe this God is single and unified. Also, unlike Christians, Muslims do not view priests or clergy as intermediaries to worship god. Muslims also believe humans can aspire to emulate Muhammad in living a perfect life in relationship to God.

  Muslims do not believe in original sin, but see the world as a good place that was created for human enjoyment. Like Judaism and Christianity, Islam views all individuals as equal in the eyes of God.

  Besides a belief in God, the other fundamental elements of the faith are a belief in angels, a belief in the revealed Books of God, a belief in God’s prophets, acceptance of a Last Day, a belief that people will be held accountable for their actions on the Day of Judgment, and a belief in life after death.

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  Hieroglyphics

  Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic year, is the month in which the Koran was revealed to Muhammad. According to Muslim tradition, the actual revelation occurred on the night between the twenty-sixth and twenty-seventh days of the month. On this “Night of Determination,” God determines the fate of the world for the coming year.

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  In addition to these core beliefs, Muslims have certain ritual obligations known as the Five Pillars of Islam:

  Recite the profession of faith—“there is no god but God, and Muhammad is the prophet of God”—each day.

  Pray five times a day (at daybreak, noon, mid-afternoon, after sunset, and in the early evening).

  Pay a tax (zakat or “purification”) for the poor.

  If you are over the age of 10, refrain from eating, drinking, and sexual relations from daybreak to sunset during the month of Ramadan.

  At least once in a lifetime, make the pilgrimage, or hajj, to Mecca.

  From Mecca to Medina and Back

  The principles of Islam were developed over time, and—as was the case with earlier men professing to be prophets—not everyone accepted Muhammad’s claim to be God’s messenger. Muhammad and his followers suffered years of persecution for their beliefs.

  Finally, in 622 C.E., upon learning of a plot to murder him, Muhammand and his followers left Mecca for an oasis then known as Yathrib. To commemorate Muhammad’s association with the city, its name was later changed to Medina, which means “City of the Messenger of God.” This trip became known as the Hegira, the flight from persecution in Mecca. The term has also come to mean leaving a pagan community for one that adheres to the laws of Islam. In his new home, Muhammad became a mediator, arbitrating disputes between tribes.

  Interestingly, Medina also had a sizeable Jewish community, which had probably moved there after being expelled from Palestine by the Romans. Muhammad respected the Jews, and his early teachings are strikingly similar to those of the Jewish tradition. The Jews began to distance themselves from Muhammad, however, when he became critical of their not recognizing him as a prophet.

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  Mysteries of the Desert

  Muhammad’s birthplace, Mecca, is considered the most sacred of the Muslim holy cities. Muslims face Mecca during their daily prayers and are obligated to make a pilgrimage there once in their lifetime. Medina is the second most-holy place in Islam.

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  Turning On the Jews

  When it was clear that the Jews would not accept him, Muh
ammad began to minimize or eliminate the Jewish influence on his beliefs. For example, he shifted the direction of prayers from Jerusalem to Mecca, made Friday his special day of prayer, and renounced the Jewish dietary laws (except for the prohibition on eating pork). Originally, he said that the Arabs were descendants of Abraham through his son Ishmael. But in the Koran, Abraham’s connection to the Jews is denied, with Muhammad asserting that Abraham is only the patriarch of Islam, not Judaism as well because he “surrendered himself to Allah.”

  One of the immediate consequences of Muhammad’s frustration was the expulsion of two Jewish tribes from Medina and the murder of all the members of a third Jewish tribe (except for the women and children, who were sold into slavery). But even worse for the long-term treatment of the Jews were a number of inflammatory statements about Jews that appear in the Koran, which, over the years, stoked Arab/Islamic anti-Semitism. For example, Jews are described as enemies of Allah (2:97–98), always disobedient (5:78), enemies of the believers (5:85), condemned for their disobedience (2:88, 4:46, 50, 5:13, 60, 69, 78), and consigned to humiliation and wretchedness (59:3). The Koran also contains expressions promoting tolerance and specifically praises Jews and Christians who lead virtuous lives, and says they will be rewarded by their Lord (2:62).

  Muhammad slowly began to build his power base both by the persuasiveness of his faith and the old-fashioned way: by marrying women from important families to gain political advantage. He came to control the oases and markets, forcing other traders and tribesmen to negotiate with him. When he finally returned to Mecca, it was at the head of an imposing army that forced the residents to capitulate.

  Spreading the Muslim Word

  Muhammad died in 632 C.E., and his followers were left to carry on the traditions he had begun. Because Muhammad left no successor, it was up to his followers to determine who would continue his legacy. The man chosen was Abu Bakr, one of the men who had accompanied Muhammad during the Hegira. He was given the title caliph, which comes from the Arabic word for “successor,” khalifa, and refers to a vice regent of God. The early successors to Muhammad had a moral authority based on their relationship to the Prophet.

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  Sage Sayings

  Know that every Muslim is a Muslim’s brother, and that the Muslims are brethren; fighting between them should be avoided, and the blood shed in pagan times should not be avenged; Muslims should fight all men until they say, “There is no god but God.”

  —Muhammad’s last message during his final visit to Mecca

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  With Muhammad’s death, support for the Prophet’s faith weakened and tribes that had pledged their allegiance to him began to distance themselves from their agreements. Abu Bakr responded by strengthening his army and imposing his will by conquest.

  Overcoming the Mighty Byzantine Empire

  The Byzantine Empire was susceptible to uprisings and invasions because its rulers had overreached and could not maintain control over their far-flung colonies. In addition to becoming politically vulnerable, the empire’s populations also grew physically weaker because of the plague. It was during this time that Muslims, with astonishing speed, made their way from the distant deserts of Arabia toward the Fertile Crescent along the Mediterranean—the crescent-shaped region stretching along the Mediterranean coast from Asia to southern Palestine. It includes parts of what are today Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Jordan. As they conquered territory they gained new converts, some by choice and others by force.

  In 638 C.E., the Jews in Palestine assisted the Muslim forces in defeating the Persians, who had reneged on an agreement to protect them and allow them to resettle in Jerusalem. As a reward for their assistance, the Muslims permitted the Jews to return to Jerusalem.

  By the year 641 C.E., the Muslims had conquered most of the Fertile Crescent south of Iraq and had expanded into Africa with the defeat of Egypt. For nearly a century, the Arab march continued before being defeated by the French at Tours (south of Paris) in 732 C.E. By then, however, much of North Africa, as well as Spain, was in Muslim hands. Byzantium, meanwhile, continued to resist further Arab expansion eastward.

  Dissension Leads to Change

  Over the years, dissension grew between Muslim groups that had close links to Muhammad and those who were later converts to Islam or whose power and influence were not based on their relationship to the Prophet. The first four caliphs hold a special place in Islam. Referred to as the Rashidun (“Rightly Guided”), the authority of these men derived largely from their relationship to Muhammad. The last of these, Ali ibn Abi Talib, was challenged by the Syrian governor Muawiya ibn Abi Sufyan. Ali was unable to defeat Muawiya and was eventually killed, allowing his rival to seize power. From that point on (661 C.E.), the caliphate (the territory controlled by the caliph) remained in the hands of Muawiya’s family and came to be known as the Umayyads, named for their ancestor Umayya.

  A New Dynasty Is Born

  The Umayyads moved the capital of the Islamic empire to Damascus, Syria. This put the rulers more in the center of the action, so to speak, than they’d been in Mecca and Medina. The area was more fertile, closer to major trade routes, and more convenient for maintaining control of the territories the Muslim armies had conquered in northern Africa.

  The Umayyads introduced the idea of family succession, which was at odds with the view of many Muslims that leadership should be based on either virtue or kinship with the Prophet. One of the latter groups deserves special attention because it became an important political factor later.

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  Ask the Sphinx

  Shiites believe that the imams were descendants of Muhammad, whose interpretation of the Koran is considered to be infallible. Most Shiites believe that Muhammad, the twelfth imam, who disappeared in 874 C.E., was the last. They are known as Twelver Shiites.

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  This is the group that regarded Muhammad’s son-in-law, Ali (the fourth caliph, who was ultimately defeated by Muawiya), and his descendants as the legitimate leaders (imams) of the community. This faction came to be known as the shi’at ‘Ali, the “partisans of Ali,” or Shiites for short.

  The Shiites were not powerful enough to overcome the Umayyads’ grip on power. However, the governor of Armenia, Marwan II, led his army to victory over the caliphate in Syria in 744. The empire was in decline, though, and Marwan had to devote his attention to holding it together against a rising tide of anti-Ummayad feeling. Marwan’s victory was short-lived, as a combined force of Iraqi, Persian, Shiite, and Abbasid soldiers defeated Marwan II (who was subsequently killed) in 750. Abul Abbas, who led the conquering army, was the leader of the clan that Muhammad had belonged to and traced his lineage to the Prophet’s great-grandfather. His ascension as caliph ended the Umayyad dynasty. The seat of power was then moved from Damascus to Baghdad, and for the next 500 years the Muslim Empire was ruled by the followers of Abbas, who became known as the Abbasids.

  To insure the Umayyads would not return, Abbas tracked down and killed most of the members of the old ruling family. The few who survived fled to Spain, which succeeded in remaining independent from the Abbasid empire and established an independent state in 756.

  The Abbasid Dynasty

  Perhaps because of their emphasis on religious devotion, the Abbasids treated non-Muslims harshly. It was during this period, for example, that Jews were first required to wear a special badge (discussed later), a foreshadowing of the policy Hitler would adopt more than a millennium later.

  The change in leadership also led to a shift in the Muslim Empire’s center of power. The Umayyads had been tremendously successful in expanding their reach eastward through the southern Mediterranean countries, North Africa, and into Spain. After moving the seat of government from Damascus to Baghdad, the Abbasids turned their attention eastward toward Iran and Asia.

  One of the problems with such a vast empire was that it became increasingly difficult for the caliph to control the local governors in m
ore distant lands. The local governors, taking advantage of the distance between them and the caliph, grew in strength and began to develop bureaucracies, collect their own taxes, and build up their own armies.

  Tension also grew among Muslims. More than the Umayyads, the Abbasids used the teachings of Islam to justify their rule. The Abbasids claimed that because they were members of the Prophet’s family, they had divine authority and were adhering to the laws of the Koran.

  Over the course of the first two centuries after the Abbasids came to power, a group of believers adopted a common acceptance of the centrality of the Koran and the Prophet’s behavior (sunna). They recognized the first four caliphs as Muhammad’s rightful successors. They rejected the more narrow or extreme views of factions such as the Shiites in favor of a more inclusive system of beliefs that allowed for the adoption of the views and practices of the majority of the community. These Muslims became known as Sunnis.

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  Hieroglyphics

  The majority of Muslims are Sunnis and follow the first four caliphs, whom they believe followed the practices of the prophet Muhammad and his companions. The Shiites reject the first three caliphs, and follow the fourth, Ali, Muhammad’s son-in-law, because they believe he was closer to the Prophet.

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  At the beginning of the tenth century a group of Shiites called for a revolt against the Sunni rulers. A breakaway faction recognized Ismail, a descendant of the Prophet’s daughter Fatima, as the legitimate successor to the sixth imam. His followers, who became known as Ismailis, made particular headway in North Africa. Ubayd Allah, claiming kinship to Fatima, proclaimed himself caliph in Tunisia in 909 C.E. The dynasty he created, which is referred to as the “Fatimids,” began to challenge the Abbasids when their armies conquered Egypt, part of Arabia, and Syria.