The Modern Middle East Rise of Islamic Extremism - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

The Modern Middle East

Rise of Islamic ExtremismSlide2

Middle East After WWI

The Ottoman Empire after WWI was divided between France and Great Britain – essentially becoming colonies under the Mandate

System (*question on final about this!)It is during this period that oil production began to boom in the Middle East and gained extreme regional importance

, especially to modern Western nationsIn the small region of Palestine (historical/biblical homeland of Hebrews/Jews), Jewish immigrants increased causing tensions between Jews and PalestiniansNationalist regional leaders during this time began to push for independence from Europeans Slide3

The Middle East Since WWII

End of WWII led to

decolonization across the Middle EastMany places were taken over by dictators, military leaders, and Islamic religious leaders who seized powerThe strict belief in Shiite and Sunni Islam and the wealth of the vast supplies of oil often complicated relations between the nations1990 – Iraqi dictator

Saddam Hussein invades Kuwait to seize oilPrompts U.S. to lead an invasion to stop him (Persian Gulf War)Slide4

Soviet War in Afghanistan

When a

communist uprising occurred in Afghanistan in 1979 the Soviet Union sent in its military in supportThe U.S. supplied and funded the Afghan forces battling the Soviets known as the MujahedeenYoung Osama bin Laden rises as a prominent leader

Upon the defeat of the Soviets, Afghanistan fell under the control of a strict Islamic government called the TalibanImplemented Sharia Law across the country

VS.Slide5

Rise of al-Qaeda

Osama bin Laden

and another Mujahedeen fighter Ayman al-Zawahiri created an organization based on an extreme interpretation of the Quran.Al Qaeda claims to have two goals:Establish a

caliphate of Muslim control over Middle EastRemove all infidels (non-Muslims) from Muslim landsSlide6

View U.S. and allies as enemies for supporting IsraelBegin using acts of terrorism against civilian targets in Western countries to

create fear1993 – Car bomb at World Trade Center1998 – USS Cole bombedSlide7

9/11 Attacks

September 11, 2001

al-Qaeda carries out the deadliest terrorist attack in U.S. historyFour airplanes are hijacked by al-Qaeda suicide terroristsCrash two planes into the World Trade Center

in New YorkCrash third plane into the Pentagon building in D.C.Slide8

Fourth plane crashes into field in Pennsylvania when passengers fought back

Nearly 3,000 Americans killed in the attacksU.S. responds by launching the Global War on TerrorSlide9

War in Afghanistan

U.S. learns that

Osama bin Laden was behind that attacksThe Taliban government of Afghanistan had been protecting him and allowing him to plan the attacksU.S. responds by leading a NATO

attack into Afghanistan in October 2001 to capture bin Laden and remove TalibanInitially successful at ousting the Taliban and overseeing democratic elections, the war carried on as insurgents fought back until U.S. leaves in 2014Nearly 2,500 U.S. soldiers killedSlide10

War in Iraq

In 2003 the U.S. led an invasion of Iraq based on two claims:

Iraq’s dictator Saddam Hussein was helping al-QaedaIraq secretly had Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs)Like Afghanistan, the war was initially successful as the U.S.

ousted Saddam and held democratic electionsBetween 2003 and 2011 the U.S. battled an insurgency and still has troops present overseeing the Iraqi Army’s fight against extremistsNearly 4,500 U.S. casualtiesSlide11
Slide12

Rise of Islamic Extremism

The insurgencies in Afghanistan and Iraq

led to the rise and spreading of extremist Islamic groups and beliefsSlide13

Groups such as al-Qaeda begin operating against U.S. troops across the middle eastBin Laden is killed by Navy SEALS in May 2011, but splinter groups of al-Qaeda carry onAl-Qaeda in Iraq; al-Qaeda in YemenSlide14

The Arab Spring

Beginning in the spring of 2011 a

mass wave of demonstrations and uprisings spread across the Middle EastStudents and others organize against existing dictators over factors such as political oppression and unemploymentMany of them use

social media such as twitter and Facebook to organize their effortsSlide15

Several long-time dictators are overthrown and democracies are establishedEgypt, Tunisia, Libya, etc…

Other places are still experiencing conflict today due to the political vacuum left in placeSlide16

Syrian Civil War

During the Arab Spring, Syria erupts into civil war between forces loyal to the

dictator Bashar al-Assad and those who want to overthrow himCivil war is still ongoing an hundreds of thousands have been killedIn 2013 an al-Qaeda fighter in Iraq named

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi creates ISIS and sends fighters into the Syrian Civil War Slide17

Rise of ISIS

Al-Baghdadi uses his recruits to begin

taking control of land in the war-torn areas of Iraq and Syria beginning in 2013Also begin controlling oil-fields which bring in huge amounts of money to fund operationsISIS stands for Islamic State in Iraq and SyriaBegin recruiting thousands of soldiers from across the disaffected Muslim populations of the Middle East and Europe

Use a powerful propaganda machine and social media to recruit membersSlide18

Goals of ISIS

Create a

world-wide caliphate (Islamic Government) and establish Islam as the supreme form of government for all Muslims around the worldLeader claims to be a direct descendent of Muhammad which gives him legitimacy to lead the caliphPropaganda has influenced Muslims around the world to join himUltimate goal is to

wage the great war against all non-Muslims around the world that they believe was predicted in Muhammad’s teachingsThis is why they have carried out attacks not just in the Middle East, but in Europe and the U.S.Slide19
Slide20
Slide21

ISIS Terrorist Attacks

Many, many more attacks have occurred and killed huge numbers across the Middle East, but the ones that target European and US civilians have received the most coverage.

Paris Attacks - November 2015

Gunmen attack restaurant and nightclub in Paris killing 130 and wounding 400San Bernardino Shootings – December 2015

Husband and wife attack a government center in California killing 14 and injuring 22Not directly tied to ISIS, but influenced by ideas and carried out based on ISIS beliefsBrussels Airport Attack – March 2016Three suicide bombers in Belgium kill 32 at the airport and train station in Belgium’s capital

Pulse Nightclub Shooting – June 2016Omar Mateen, a 29-year-old security guard, killed 49 people and wounded 53 others in a terrorist attack/hate crime inside Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, FloridaBastille Day Attack (Nice, France) – June 2016Berlin Christmas Market – December 2016Ariana Grande Concert (Manchester, England) – May 2017