UNIT 7

SOUTHWEST ASIA

CHAPTER 21

PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OF SOUTHWEST ASIA:

HARSH AND ARID LANDS

21.1: LANDFORMS AND RESOURCES

• The Arabian Peninsula

– Most distinctive landform

in in SW Asia

– Borders strategic

waterways

• The Anatolian Peninsula

– Turkey

– Marks beginning of Asian

Continent

The Suez Canal • The canal runs north-

south across the Isthmus of Suez in Egypt to connect the Mediterranean and the Red seas.

• It separates the African continent from Asia, and it provides the shortest water route between Europe and the lands lying around the Indian and western Pacific oceans

• The Suez Canal is one of the world's most significant waterways as it supports 8% of the world's shipping traffic and almost 50 ships pass through the canal daily

Bosporus and Dardenelles Straits

• The Dardanelles Strait, a vital

transportation bridge between

the Black Sea and

Mediterranean Sea

• The Bosporus Strait connects

the Black Sea to the Sea of

Marmara

• Bordered on both sides by the

massive city of Istanbul, the

strait is one of the planet's

most strategic waterways • Both separate Asian Turkey

from European Turkey, thus it

also separates the two

continents.

Straits of Hormuz

• The Strait of Hormuz is considered one of the most, if not the most strategic strait of water on the planet.

• Much of the oil from Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates passes through it.

• Plains

– Cover much of

Arabian Peninsula

– Dry, sandy, windy

– Sparsely populated

by nomadic

peoples

– Northern plain of

Afghanistan =

agricultural region

surrounded by

mountains

• Plateau

– Iran

• Surrounded by

mountains

• Stony, salty,

desert land

• High elevation

– Anatolian Plateau

• Some areas

used for

agriculture or

grazing

• Mountains

– Hindu Kush,

Zagros, Elburz,

Taurus = major

ranges

– Separate/isolate

populations

– People look to

move through

region

• Water

– Key to transportation

– Precious resource in dry region

– Tigris and Euphrates Rivers

– Jordan River

– Dead Sea

• 1,349 feet below sea level = lowest exposed point on earth’s crust

• Resources – Oil

• Most abundant resource in region

• Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Iraq

• Home to ~ ½ of world’s reserves

– Water • Most plentiful in mountains,

scarce in many areas

• Hydroelectricity

– Minerals • Scattered and not large

deposits

– Coal • Iran & Turkey

– Salts – Dead Sea

The Dead Sea

• Also called the Salt Sea, is a salt lake bordering Jordan to the east and Israel to the west

• Its surface and shores are 423 metres (1,388 ft) below sea level, Earth's lowest elevation on land.

• It is 8.6 times saltier than the ocean, and cannot support life

• It has long been a tourist attraction and it has been the supplier of a wide variety of products, from balms for Egyptian mummification to potash for fertilizers. People also use the salt and the minerals from the Dead Sea to create cosmetics http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzBJ

y6BXf5Y

21.2: CLIMATE AND VEGETATION

• Deserts - Sand – Reduce travel

– Limit interaction with environment

– Rub al-Khali – vast sand desert

– An-Nafud – Severe sandstorms, brutal heat

– Syrian

– Negev – high tech irrigation makes agriculture possible

• Deserts – Salt

– Salt flat deserts in Iran

• Salt crusted, surrounded by salt marshes, hot temps

• Almost uninhabited

• Dasht-e Kavir- central Iran

• Dasht-e Lut – eastern Iran

• Semiarid Lands

– Edge deserts

– Grass and shrubs

– Agriculture and grazing

Deserts of the Middle East

DASHT -E KAVIR Desert

• This plateau of north-central Iran

• Often referred to as the "Great Salt Desert."

• Largest desert in the country

• Mostly uninhabited

• Covered with crusty salt ridges.

DASH -E LUT (Lout Desert)

• This region of eastern

Iran is an arid, wind-

blown desert, completely

surrounded by

mountains.

• In the summer months, it

can be one of the hottest

and driest spots on the

planet.

• In some areas here rain

has not been measured.

Rub al-Khali Desert

• The largest (only sand) desert in the world.

• It is famed for huge sand dunes that can extend for over 25 miles.

• It covers most of southern Saudi Arabia, and is almost entirely devoid of moisture

An-Nafud Desert

• Desert of western

Saudi Arabia – which

is part of the Arabian

Desert - is famous for

gigantic sand dunes,

some reaching over

100 ft.high

• It is distinguished by

the reddish color of its

sands

• Coast Lands

– Mild, rainy winters,

dry summers

– Along

Mediterranean and

across most Turkey

and around Tigris

and Euphrates

– Year-round

growing season

– Densely populated

21.3 HUMAN-ENVIRONMENT INTERACTION

• Water

– Fresh water in great demand

but short supply

– Use dams, irrigation

systems, and modern

technology to provide for

needs.

– Dams provide

hydroelectricity, but

construction has been

controversial

– National Water Carrier

project

– Drip Irrigation

– Desalinization

– Fossil Water

Drip Irrigation

• Israelis have transformed stretches of desert into tracts of fertile land

• Since 1948, the Israeli’s have believed their survival depends on transform desert into usable land

• Technological advances such as drip irrigation have enabled the Israelis to better preserve their limited water supply.

• Oil

– Home to ~ ½ of world’s

reserves

– Petroleum products

important to world economy

– 1st discovered in Persia in

1908

– Al-Ghawar

– Crude oil

– pipelines

– Petroleum processing and

methods of transport

– Production levels

– Spills

Who has the oil?

CHAPTER 22

HUMAN GEOGRAPHY OF SOUTHWEST ASIA:

RELIGION, POLITICS, AND OIL

22.1 THE ARABIAN PENINSULA • Geography/History

– Location at intersection of Africa, Asia, and Europe has promoted trade and resulted in cultural diversity

– Arabic, Turkish, Farsi languages

– Original inhabitants = Bedouins

• Nomadic peoples lived in harsh desert and developed fighting skills

• Islam

– Monotheistic

religion based on

teachings of

Muhammad

– Unifying force for

peoples of the

Arabian

peninsula

– People who

practice Islam

are called

Muslims

• 5 Pillars of Islam

– Faith

– Prayer

• Mosque

– Charity

– Fasting

• Ramadan

– Pilgrimage

• hajj

• Islam spreads

– Bedouin fighters

helped to conquer new

lands and put Muslim

leaders in control of

them

– The Ottoman Empire

governed the region

from 1299-1922

• Islam in government

– Theocracy

– Legal system based

on Shari’ah

Shari’ah Law • Shari'a is an Arabic word

meaning “path” or “way.” Today it is used most commonly to mean “Islamic law”

• Shari'a tries to describe in detail all possible human acts, dividing them into permitted (halal) and prohibited (haram)

• The mandates of shari'a are extremely harsh compared to modern Western standards. They infringe on many modern principles of human rights, religious freedom, and equality of all before the law

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=616052n

Deera Square, central Riyadh.

Known locally as "Chop-chop

square", it is the location of public

beheadings

http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/viewSubCategory.asp?id=774

• Colonialism

– Beginning in the late 1700s, discontent and ethnic and religious rivalry caused Ottoman power to deteriorate

– By the 1800s, the empire began to weaken.

– Great Britain, France, and Russia began to interfere in the affairs and territories of the Ottoman Empire and Egypt

– After WWI, the Ottoman Empire was reduced to Turkey.

– The independent Arab state was limited to Arabia and Yemen.

– The remaining Ottoman lands were divided into a number of nations and protectorates after World War I by European powers

Saudi Arabia

• The modern Saudi state was founded in 1932 by ABD AL-AZIZ bin Abd al-Rahman Al SAUD (Ibn Saud) after a 30-year campaign to unify most of the Arabian Peninsula.

• One of his male descendents rules the country today as required by the country's 1992 Basic Law.

• King ABDALLAH bin Abd al-Aziz ascended to the throne in 2005

• Economy

– Oil discovered in the

region in 1932 and is

the Arabian

Peninsula’s primary

resource

– Oil $$$ used to fund

infrastructure

– OPEC

• Saudi Arabia,

Qatar, United Arab

Emirates, Iran, and

Iraq

Oil Dominates the Economy

• Culture

– Modernization

– Urbanization

– Demand for skilled

workers

• Foreign workers

– Influence of Islam

• Women and

family

• Prayer

Muslim Women

• The family is the most important social unit in Saudi Arabia

• Women have an honored position in Saudi society, but have limited freedoms.

• They stay within the home and depend on permission from their husbands to engage in almost any activity outside of the home.

ISLAMIC

DRESS

CODES

Hijab (Head Scarf) Worn in the West and Iran

Chador Iran

Abaya Saudi Arabia

Burqa Afghanistan

Jilbab Indonesia

22.2 THE EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN

• Birthplace of three

major world religions

• Jerusalem = holy city

to all three.

Jews

• Historical

– “Old City”

– Western Wall

• Modern

– Capital of Israel

– Visited my many each

year

– Temple Mount

Christians

• Historical

– Crucifixion

– Crusades

• Modern

– Mount of Olives and

Church of the Holy

Sepulchre visited by

thousands each year

Muslims

• Historical

– Jerusalem = 3rd most

sacred city in religion

– Dome of the Rock

• Modern

– Al Aqsa

Colonialism

• The Ottoman Empire governed the region from 1299-1922

• During WWI, the British government promised help free the Arabs of the region from Ottoman rule and to support a homeland for the Arabs.

• After WWI the land was divided into protectorates or “mandates”.

Syria and Lebanon

• French took control of

present-day countries of

Syria and Lebanon after

WWI

• The French play on

religious rivalries

• Syrians rebellions

• Independence

– Lebanon – 1943

– Syria followed - 1946

Religions – Syria/Lebanon

The Zionist Movement • Zionists believed the solution to

oppression was to create their own

country

• 1882 – First Zionists emigrated to

Palestine

• As Nazi Germany began to persecute

Jews, thousands emigrated to

Palestine

• Britain issued the Balfour Declaration

supporting the creation of a Jewish

state in Palestine. • The Arab League of Egypt, Syria,

Lebanon, Trans-Jordan, Iraq, Saudi

Arabia, and Yemen formed to oppose

creation of Israel

Theodor Herzl

• In 1939, the British called a halt

to Jewish immigration to

Palestine

• In 1947 Britain turned the issue

over to the United Nations

• The United Nations

recommended that Palestine be

partitioned into a Jewish and an

Arab state

• Jerusalem would be an

international city

• Under the plan more than half

the total land would thus go to

less than 1/3 of the population.

• Most of the best land went to the

Jews.

Tensions between Arabs and Jews

Israel Gains Independence

• In 1948, Israel declared its independence.

• Within hours it was attacked by neighboring Arab countries.

• By the end of 1949 Israel controlled ¾ of Palestine

• Jordan and Egypt divided the rest of Palestine between them

• Israel subsequently defeated its Arab neighbors in a series of wars which led to the occupation of additional territory

• Israel has withdrawn from some of this territory as a result of treaties.

Arab-Israel Tensions

• Over the years, increasing Israeli settlement in the West Bank and Gaza has caused increasing concern among Palestinians hopeful for a homeland

• Israel and Palestine have agreed to a two-state resolution with self-rule for the Palestinians

• Arab-Israeli violence over the years has undermined these plans.

Palestinian Arabs • Palestinian Arabs who

had fled from Israel and

were settled in refugee

camps near Israel's

border in 1948

• Some have remained in

these camps, while

others have scattered

across the region

• Their status continues to

be a volatile factor in

Arab-Israeli relations.

The PLO • Political organization

claiming to represent the world’s Palestinians

• It was formed in 1964 to centralize the leadership of various Palestinian groups

• Has used diplomacy and violence to pursue its goal of regaining Israeli land for Palestinian Arabs.

• Has controlled the West Bank since 1994.

Mahmoud Abbas - Prime

Minister of the Palestinian

Authority since 2005

Intifada

• Arab frustrations over failure to achieve their own state and perceived discrimination have led to outbursts of violence.

• The violence of the Intifada was marked by stone-throwing and the use of homemade explosive devices by the Arabs.

• The Israeli troops used tear gas, rubber bullets, and demolished Palestinian homes.

• The conflict led to an Israeli military crackdown in the occupied territories

Hamas • The Intifadas have

contributed to the rise of terrorist groups in the region.

• Hamas is a Palestinian Islamic fundamentalist organization that was founded in 1987 during the Intifada

• Known for its terrorist attacks (including suicide bombings), Hamas has become a viable political force in the 21st century.

• It has controlled Gaza since 2007.

Occupied Territories Today

Hezbollah

• Arabic for “Party of God”

• Formed by a group of Lebanese Shīite clerics formed Hezbollah with the goal of driving Israel from Lebanon and establishing an Islamic state there.

• Hezbollah is considered a terrorist group by many for its attacks against Israel as well as Westerners.

• Hassan Nasrallah

Hassan Nasrallah – leader of Hezbollah

since 1992

Infrastructure -Israel

• Israel is connected to the

world's major commercial,

financial and academic

data networks

• Has sophisticated

communications network

of roads, railways,

seaports, and airports.

Predicted infrastructure development indices in Israel

(from: "Israel 2020 to 2050", Prof. A. Mazor, Neaman Institute)

Infrastructure for the Region

• Many Middle Eastern countries today lack adequate infrastructure

• Countries such as Lebanon, Syria, and Iran that have endured civil wars face challenges rebuilding and developing

• Better irrigation systems, as well as communication systems and development in the tech industry is needed.

Israel’s Arabs

Israel’s Arabs

• Almost 20 percent of Israel’s population is Arab.

• The Arabs are a diverse group, with a population that includes Muslims, Christians, and Druzes.

• Israeli Arabs are citizens of Israel, with full political rights.

• Nevertheless, Israeli Arabs believe they have been discriminated against in education, employment, and other areas.

Israel’s Jews

• Majority of immigrants to Israel are Jews – Come from around the

world

• Jews account for 76% of the total population

• ~1 million Arabs also live in Israel

• Small numbers of Christians as well.

22.3 The Northeast

• Historical Geography

– Fertile Crescent

– Mesopotamia

• Subregion includes:

– Turkey

– Iran

– Iraq

– Afghanistan

Culture

• Ethnicities

– Turks, Kurds,

Persians

• Languages

– Turkish

– Farsi

• Religion

– Sunni vs.

Shi’ite

Muslims in the Middle East

War and Refugees

• Causes – Ethnic strife

• Kurds = nation without a state

– Resources • Iraq vs. Iran for control

of oil fields 1980-1988

• Persian Gulf War I – Iraqi invasion of Kuwait

• “Operation Desert Storm”

– Religion • Shi’ites seek shelter in

Iran

• Afghans fleeing civil war also flee to Iran

Iran – Iraq War: 1980-1988 • Iraq invaded Iran in 1980

• A territorial dispute over the Shatt al-

Arab waterway and Iraqi leader

Saddam Hussein’s fear of the threat

posed by the Islamic revolution which

had brought Ayatollah Khomeini to

power in Iran the year before

prompted the invasion.

• At least half a million people died,

and upper estimates stretch to 1.5

million.

• Neither side had achieved its war

aims. Khomeini had not overthrown

Saddam. Saddam had not overthrown

Khomeini or forced him to re-draw the

border in Iraq's favor.

Persian Gulf War: 1990-1991 • Iraq’s failure to win the 1980-1988

war against Iran influenced Saddam

Hussein’s decision to invade the oil-

rich country of Kuwait which he

claimed to be a “historic province of

Iraq”

• Hussein ignored U.N. Security

Council orders that he leave

• The invasion marked the beginning of

the Persian Gulf War as the U.S. and

32 other nations fought to drive the

Iraqis out of Kuwait and away from its

oil fields.

• After 42 days of fighting, a cease-fire

was declared with most of the Iraqi

troops having fled or surrendered.

September 11th 2001 • 19 militants associated with the Islamic

extremist group al-Qaeda hijacked four airliners and carried out suicide attacks against targets in the United States

• Two of the planes were flown into the towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, a third plane hit the Pentagon just outside Washington, D.C., and the fourth plane crashed in a field in Pennsylvania

• The attacks resulted in extensive death and destruction and triggered major U.S. initiatives to combat terrorism particularly in the Middle East

• http://www.history.com/topics/9-11-attacks/videos#911-timeline

Operation Enduring Freedom: 2001-2011

• In October 2001, a U.S. led coalition invaded

Afghanistan where the Al Qaeda terrorists

responsible for planning the attacks were

being harbored by the Taliban.

• The objective was to seize their financial

assets and destroy their infrastructure.

• By March 2002 the Taliban had been

ousted.

• In May 2011, the Al Qaeda leader Osama

bin Laden was killed in an operation by U.S.

special forces at his hideout in Pakistan.

• U.S. troops left Afghanistan in the fall of

2011.

• Afghanistan is a republic, the Taliban

maintains a strong presence in parts of the

country, and corruption has been

problematic.

Operation Iraqi Freedom • U.S. President George W. Bush was

convinced Saddam Hussein was

continuing to develop WMD’s.

• American and British forces

launched an invasion of Iraq in

March 2003 when Saddam refused

to cooperate with U.N. inspectors.

• By April 2003 coalition forces had

taken Bagdad.

• Saddam Hussein was captured and

later executed.

• The U.S. gradually handed over

control of government and security

operations to the Iraqis.

• The last U.S. troops left Iraq in

December 2011

Refugees

Countries of Origin Destinations

Economic Challenges • Setbacks for Iran

– 1977 Revolution

– War with Iraq 1980-88

– Economic progress

between 1997-2005 with

Reformist govt.

– 2005 – present = struggles

• Anti-reformist

government

• Crippling economic

sanctions stemming

from their nuclear

program.

•Known to have nuclear weapons

• SuspSSuspected to have nuclear weapons

• Pursuing nuclear weapons

• SSSuspected to be pursuing nuclear weapons

Nuclear Weapons: Who has

What?

http://www.cnn.com/interactive

/2013/03/world/nuclear-

weapon-states/

Economic Challenges

• Setbacks for

Afghanistan

– Among poorest

countries in the world

– Most people engaged in

farming and herding

– Opium trade

– U.S. invasion

– Government corruption

– Resurgence of the

Taliban

Opium in Afghanistan

Cultural Challenges: Modernism vs.

Traditionalism

• Traditionalism

– Taliban in Afghanistan

– Repression of women’s rights

• Advances in women’s

rights won with the 2005

Constitution have been

reversed with the

departure of U.S. troops

– Use of violence to intimidate

those who call for reforms and

modernization

• Laws that set penalties for

rape and child marriage

have been called “un-

Islamic”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MfE9Iv07dA

The Taliban • Hard-line Sunni Muslim movement

• Promised peace, security, and Sharia law

when they came to power in the mid-

1990s.

• Men were required to grow beards and

women had to wear the all-covering burka.

• The Taliban banned television, music and

cinema and disapproved of girls aged 10

and over from going to school.

• Accused of providing sanctuary for Osama

bin Laden and Al Qaeda they were driven

from power by the end of 2001.

• They have made a recent resurgence

using roadside bombs to attack Afghan

troops and destabilize the region.