Iraq

The once respected nation deemed the cradle of all civilization has since fallen from their acclaimed greatness. Iraq is a primarily landlocked country residing in the Middle East with an economy driven solely on fossil fuel production. For centuries the Iraqi capitol of Baghdad has been respected as a cultural and economic hub for the Islamic world. In the contemporary era Iraq shares boarders with a multitude of nations such as Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria, Turkey, and Iran. These borders were established following world war one by the League of Nations under British control. Through this a monarchy was established which was later overthrown in a 1958 coup that established a parliamentary democracy. From '58-1979 leadership was in constant teeter with coups become thematic for establishing new governance. To cease this incessant shift in power a 'visionary' stepped up making the name Saddam Hussein etched in stone throughout history books. Following this revolution a man by the name Khomeini an Iranian official who openly called for an Islamic revolution in Iraq. His plan was to begin arming Shiite and Kurdish rebels to create chaos in Iraq as assassination attempts were set into place. Following months of cross boarder raids Iraq retaliated by declaring all out war on Iran in September of 1980 initiating the first Persian Gulf War. In 1982 an Israeli war plane launched an airstrike on an Iraqi nuclear testing facility at Osirak. Iraq responded with a campaign of chemical warfare on Iran. The conflict lasted a ruthless 8 years and resulting in between 1 and 1.5 million lives lost. In addition to this the Ba' Athist Iraqi regime led the Al' Anfal, a genocidal campaign targeting Iraqi-Kurds and resulting in an additional 50,000-100,000 more casualties.

In late summer of 1990 Iraq invaded and annexed Kuwait. This action subsequently resulted in the United States making a military intervention based on their own interests in the Middle East. By launching a 100-hour ground assault on Iraqi forces in southern Iraq and Kuwait the First Gulf War spawned. Leaving Iraqi forces devastated in 1991 Shia and Kurdish rebels initiated several rebel uprisings against the Hussein regime but were suppressed by Iraqi security forces and the use of chemical weaponry. During the uprisings a no fly zone was enacted over Iraq by the US, UK, France, and Turkey claiming authority under UNSCR 668 to minimize Kurdish and Shiite populations from unwarranted attack. The result of this incursion was another 100,000 civilians slaughtered. Following the attack of 9/11 the Bush administration made plans to overthrow the Hussein regime triggering the US and its allies to invade Iraq.

Following the US's declaration of war Saddam Hussein was overthrown and hung by the Iraqi people. However the United States' presence in the Middle East wouldn't end there as Afghanistan emerged on the horizon once again.

Egyptian Constitution

Despite Egypt's location in North Eastern Africa it is still through and through a Muslim-Arabic nation just as a majority of North African countries tend to be. Egypt is a historically and culturally rich ancient nation that has mastered the art of civilization. From innovation in metallurgy to a seemingly omniscient knowledge of astrology Egypt has maintained superiority for millenniums putting almost all other nations to shame. However as the rise of the Ottoman empire and the United Kingdom became an issue of global concern as nations began to fall into their world order. Egypt found itself as a primary target for Ottoman and British control resulting in a several century long dispute over the rights to ownership. These series of wars reaped much bloodshed of countless lives leaving the country weakened enough for the British to take pity as world war one was commencing removing the Ottomans from control. This was supposed to benefit Egypt however the real reason was for the British to lessen Ottoman control as they entered into all out war. Egyptian citizens were fed up with imperial oppression resulting in the Free Officers Movement's revolution taking back their homeland and declaring it a Republic. As power shifted from one hand to another Egypt to deformed from the Soviet Union pledging allegiance to the United States through president Sadat. Following his assassination president Mubarak assumed power as a major population boom struck Egypt leaving many people who were once farmers in poverty forcing them to move into Cairo slums.

Fed up with poverty many terrorist groups began to spring up throughout Egypt during the 80's through early 2000's. In the 90's specifically an Islamist group came to fruition known as Al Gama's al-islamyya primarily targeting tourists and high level officials to cripple Egyptian politics and economics. Following this president Mubarak put forth restrictions on potential presidential candidates causing his almost unopposed reelection with a 25% voter turnout. Mubarak's 30 year presidential term tallied up countless human rights violations of routine torture. In fact Egypt had become an international center for torture as other nations such as the US would bring prisoners to be ruthlessly tortured. These atrocities were done primarily in efforts on the War on Terror however creating even greater terror is idiotically counter productive. Mubarak's reign lasted well into the 21st century ending in the Egyptian revolution on January 25, 2011. Mubarak chose to fled Cairo as protests broke out leaving Egypt completely ungoverned. The military assumed governance as multiple prisons were left unattended letting inmates run free sending Egypt into a chaotic state of emergency.

As I spoke with an Egyptian man who I will leave anonymous he told me stories of how villages had to take up arms and defend their town from potential insurgent threats. Each village would change their insignia regularly to tell ally from outsider. If anyone entered their village unwarranted the people of the village would tie them to a flag pole in the town center and leave them for the military to detain. This lasted up until a coup d'etat in which a transitional government administered a new constitution.

Jordan Justifications

Ethnic dichotomies are all too common in this day in age making race a deciding factor for socioeconomic statuses. In the US there is a deep seeded issue over racial discrimination of African Americans dating back to the Atlantic Slave Trade. All human beings naturally have a psychological tendency to flock amongst those of their own race and a biological drive for racial superiority/dominance. Today The Headliner will address the country of Jordan which maintains the same level of segregation that is thematic for most major nations worldwide. Jordan like many other Middle Eastern nations still maintains a monarchy completely controlled by those who claim nativity known as the Bedouins. Despite their origins as desert dwelling goat and camel herders the Bedouins were established as royalty in 1948 following the Arab-Israeli conflict honoring king Abdullah as the first Jordanian king.

The Bedouins maintained the status of majority up until the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait forcing 600,000 Palestinians to flee to Jordan in aversion of persecution. Saddam Hussein enacted this invasion in effort to maintain a balancing act of Iraqi control throughout the Middle East. Even with this surge of refugees the Bedouins managed to maintain full control and utilized the population stimulus to employ a strong working class. This opportunity warranted a massive economic evolution making Jordan officially a command capitalist economy. This meaning the government still upholds restrictions on choice in products and subject matter but with a free reign entrepreneurial freedom allowing businesses to expand freely and quickly. The lower class Palestinians who were accustomed to oppression became intoxicated in the flood of economic possibilities launching them quickly into a state of opulence. As the Palestinian population grew in affluence they subsequently became more and more educated and politically powerful. The Bedouins in turn grew fearful of a political uprising which made them restrict Palestinian purchases of weapons and deeming them residents of Jordan instead of actual citizens.

As it goes in the west capitol equals power therefore the Bedouin monarchy made some fatal errors when establishing their economy. The Palestinians have in response begun buying weapons illegally arming the millions of people belonging to this neglected Arab group in efforts to free themselves from region wide oppression. We may very well witness a massive Palestinian uprising in our life time rendering the current state of the Middle East temporary until the tipping point is achieved. This situation dauntingly reflects that of our social state in the US as once minorities begin to educate and arm themselves to seek justification for the wrong doings of the white majority. Don't get comfortable and start to accept other peoples cultural identities or else the current will take you under and disintegrate you back into the primordial delta of our origins.

Lebanon Phenomenon

In a nation renowned for its snow capped mountains and lush cedar forests laid dormant a violent beast of civil strife. The nation of Lebanon once boasted impressive financial prosperity establishing itself as a popular tourist destination throughout the mid 20th century. This glorious title was stripped away with the emergence of civil war on April 13, 1975 dividing the country into multiple opposing factions. This was in part due to the establishment of the "State of Israel" in 1947 which forced 400,000 Palestinian refugees into Lebanon with a significant portion of them belonging to the Fatah as well as other insurgent groups. These (Muslim) Fatah members and insurgents opposed the Maronite christian government that maintained religious dominance over the country. Due to the United State's strong investment of interest in a christian dominated Lebanon a 15 year religion orientated conflict commenced. Violent clashes between Palestinian/Lebanese Muslims and the US backed Maronite's resulted in another 250,000 lives lost in a pointless pursuit to deem a nation Christian or Muslim. In the lieu of a war zone now lies the most religiously diverse country in the Middle East encompassing integrated groups of Maronite Christians, Shiite/Sunni Muslims, and even Druze/Greek orthodox.  

Despite this positive progress and social reform Lebanon is not free from social unrest as it lies directly juxtapose to Syria and Israel. Due to continuous disputes between Israel and Palestine an incessant flow of refugees has caused a lack stability in Lebanon and surrounding Mediterranean nations causing economic imbalance. Lebanon's governance is formally a parliamentary democracy however the country has been without a president since 2014 when Michel Sulayman's term expired leaving political power to Prime Minister Tammam Salam as a transitional president. As of recently the current Lebanese government has experienced tension between them and Hezbollah creating outbursts of violence and occasionally political deadlock. Due to recent disputes between Iran and Saudi Arabia Lebanon has found itself cut off from billions of dollars in aid as well as a political battleground between these two countries.

Lebanon claims an unfortunate position geographically in the middle east as it finds itself amidst Israeli-Palestinian and Iranian-Saudi upheaval. Though facing a barrage of hardships the Lebanese still find the time and energy to educate 100,000 Syrian refugees in attempt to lend a humanitarian hand to its Arab brothers despite religious practices or beliefs. Paralleled with this the Maharishi foundation has been acting as a 'lighthouse of coherence and peace' for the middle east through Transcendental Meditation.

It's safe to praise the resilience of the Lebanese and commend their passion for obtaining peace in the Middle East despite their ongoing conflicts and reform.
Links;
News Story: http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/lebanon/index.html
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NWwuEIsiZk
Image:
http://glamroz.com/lebanese-civil-war-13-april1975-1990-%D8%AA%D9%86%D8%B0%D9%83%D8%B1_%D9%88%D9%85%D8%A7_%D8%AA%D9%86%D8%B9%D8%A7%D8%AF/

Syria: Uncivil War

In this blog I will be addressing pressing matters occurring in the Middle East as well as Arab-African nations. This post specifically will be in regards to the Syrian civil war that emerged in early 2011 following the Arab Spring. Each installment of "The Headliner" will be focusing on the political/military situation of individual nations respectively. Though each of these nations differ immensely from one another they all are bound together through a single issue; that issue is simply freedom. Something we all have taken for granted in one way or another.

Century upon century of political and social hardships have left the Middle East in a vulnerable transitional state of political renewal. This vast adoption of democracy is commonly known as the Arab Spring. Arising in December 2010 with the revolution in Tunisia known as the Jasmine Revolution laying a critical foundation for political revolution. Marking the start of a decade riddled with turmoil Tunisia's revolution inspired many other Arabic countries throughout 2011. With the first step taken by Tunisia's people Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and Syria all followed valiantly towards deliverance. The tolerance for oppressive governments was at a breaking point for the Middle East triggering a regional surge of insurgent rebellions and unfortunately opening a window for extremists groups such as the so called Islamic State to bully their way into the conflict. Syria has found itself in a global spotlight as interventions from the United States and Russia have made the country into a sinister chess match between super powers.

With the United States funding Syrian rebels (SNC) and Russia supporting the Assad regime unrest and violent outbursts have exponentially increased. Each funding airstrikes against one another with no clear benefit forces many people to speculate the rationale behind what is becoming a neo-Cold War clash between two overly powerful militaries. The European Union strongly speculates that Russia is purposefully creating turmoil to force refugees into the continent in hopes to potentially destabilize social structures for European nations. This international conflict is seemingly identical to that of the Soviet-Afghan war where the United States funded the Sunni Mujaheddin to over throw the Russian supported Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (more like proletarian socialist Republic). The outcome of this conflict resulted in a war torn Afghanistan and the subsequent evolution of Al Qaeda and the modernly known Taliban.

The true intentions of the United States in Syria are undeniably unclear as we support multiple insurgent groups who oppose each other. It's as if Russia and the US are utilizing the Syrian civil war to test their fire power on one another without directly declaring war. With a death toll recently hitting 250,000 people the gun show has gone on long enough. These are peoples lives we are talking about and decisions are made in the US for these people as if they were just another figure. We truly need to wake up and smell the napalm or else the world will burn to the ground we sleep in America blind and tranquil.