Abbas resigns!

Look at this!!

Abbas resigns!

I think that from our classes that you'll be able to understand all of this article!  Please let me know!!

Maestro.

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Middle East Conflicts

During the 20th and 21st centuries, there have been a number of conflicts in the Middle East.

World War I

World War II

Arab-Israeli conflict

▪ 1948 Arab-Israeli War

▪ 1956 Suez War

▪ 1967 Six Day War

▪ 1970 War of Attrition

▪ 1973 Yom Kippur War

▪ 1978 South Lebanon conflict

▪ 1982 Lebanon War

▪ 1987-1993 First Intifada

▪ 1982-2000 South Lebanon conflict

▪ 2000-2007 al-Aqsa Intifada

▪ 2006 Lebanon War

▪ 2008-2009 Israel-Gaza conflict

It is interesting to see that in the Middle East there have been always problems between the countries. And all the main characters of the world movement, as the UK and France before and after the world wars I and II, the United Nations, and potencies as the United States and Russia have been trying in certain way to solve the critical situations that are always there.

In a reflection to all this problems, I can say that those problems are caused only because of the religion. The point of view of the Jews and the Palestinians has been always too opposite that that causes many diplomatic problems. And when an external management the situation makes something gets better, but then after some time the situation changes and other diplomatic problems come.

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Iran smuggling arms into Syria and Lebanon

It was recently on the news that Israel's navy has intercepted a ship carrying hundreds of tonnes of Iranian weapons intended for Hezbollah in Lebanon. The arms were apparently intended to strike Israeli cities. Iran and Syria have both rejected the allegations of being receiving weapons illegally in order to attack Israel and the ship's crew were not thought to have been aware of the smuggling operation.

A spokesperson for the military said there were "dozens of shipping containers, carrying numerous weapons, disguised as civilian cargo among hundreds of other containers on board." The spokesperson added: "The weapons originate from Iran and were intended to reach the Hezbollah terror organisation for use against the state of Israel and its citizens."

Also, the Israeli military said an Iranian document had been found on the ship. A military spokesperson said: "All the cargo certificates are stamped at the ports of origin and this one was stamped at an Iranian port." Since Israel's offensive in Gaza last December and January, the Israeli navy and air force have been have conducting intense searches in the Mediterranean and the Red Sea for ships smuggling weapons either to Hezbollah or to Hamas in Gaza.

In February Israel said a vessel detained off Cyprus was carrying Iranian weapons to Hamas in Gaza. Iran denied the claim.

Who are the Hezbollah?

Hezbollah - or the Party of God - is a powerful political and military organisation in Lebanon made up mainly of Shia Muslims.

It emerged with financial backing from Iran in the early 1980s and began a struggle to drive Israeli troops from Lebanon.

Hostility to Israel has remained the party's defining platform since May 2000, when the last Israeli troops left Lebanon due in large part to the success of Hezbollah's military arm, the Islamic Resistance.

Hezbollah also adopted the tactic of taking Western hostages, through a number of freelance hostage taking cells.

In 1983, militants who went on to become members of Hezbollah are thought to have planned a suicide bombing attack that killed 241 US marines in Beirut.

"Who are Hezbollah?." BBC News (2008): n. pag. Web. 4 Nov 2009. .

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Interactive Middle East

I found a very useful and complete map of the Middle East, where we can find further information on each country. It includes information such as ethnic groups, religion, resources, language and borders throughout the years. Also, in the same webpage you can find a summary of Middle East informations, including Geography, Religion, Politics, Economy, among others. There's also an interactive timeline that can help us understand this region's history. Here's the link for youto take a look:

Global Connections - The Middle East

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Clinton in the Middle East

Sometimes I feel the United States sees itself as the ultimate saviour of the world and therefore, that he needs to be involved in every single conflict and act as (or sometimes just pretend to be) the wise peacekeeper. Like in marital problems it is better to have no third-person participating, sometimes world conflicts need the US to step aside. Of course, if the problems within the marriage evolve into overwhelming verbal and physical abuse, there will be a need of intermediaries... and then, the world needs the United States to use its power of a dominant nation and do its best to stop the quarrel. However, being the US the key for the cease of conflict, it is extrasupermegaimportant to perform its peacekeeper role with neutrality and non-biased political movements. Really hard to do, considering the US is another country, not an alien arbiter, and so it will always have its own interests. Knowing this reality, it is crucial that, at least, it presents itself committed to the end of conflict, but always minding the power of the government's words and its consequences. Why am I saying all this? Palestinians are now accusing Clinton of slowing down and damaging peace talks in the Middle East. Their statement comes once Clinton began to praise Israel for its progressive attitude concerning the negotiations with Palestinians and the restrain concerning the Jewish settlements in Palestinian territory. Mohammed Nazzal, member of Hamas said in relation: "The Arab and Muslim people know well that the U.S. position is biased." Palestinians are urging Israel to freeze the expasion of Jewish settlements in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. Rage has grown for Israel had already accepted to halt the settlement activity back in 2003, but the action never occured. And you know, none of them respects the other's territory, this problem will go on forever. Moreover, Saeb Erekat said Palestine will refuse to continue any further peace negotiations unless the Israel redirects its "natural growth" back to Israeli territory, outside from the West Bank and East Jerusalem. I have never really trusted numbers (being a human invention, numbers can fool you any time), but according to some information given on a newspaper, there are about 500 000 Israeli settlers both the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Persuaded by my skepticism, I decided to look around if there was any other number and I found in the World Factbook that there are 187 000 settlers in the West Bank and around 177 000 in East Jerusalem. Notice that even if you add these two last numbers, you do not obtain the first number (500 000) and in the real world, more than 100 000 settlers really make a difference. So who am I to believe? And even though Clinton praised Israel for its commitment, it seems that Israel will not limit itself in East Jerusalem and that will obviously not please Palestinian leaders. Clinton also told Abbas that it was impossible for the United States to persuade Israel to immeadiately freeze the construction of settlements. Saeb Erekat expressed himself again with the following words: "If America cannot get Israel to implement a settlement freeze, what chance do Palestinians have of reaching agreement with Israel on permanent status issues?" See the importance of the US in this conflict? :)

More information:
http://dailyme.com/story/2009110100002405/palestinians-accuse-clinton-hurting-peace-talks.html
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1256799053633
http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/internacional/64186.html
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/we.html

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The Full Story of Iran's Nuclear Program...

Here is a video I found that explains the truth behind Iran's nuclear program. It talks about their motives and it makes us ask ourselves if Iran should really be punished so severely for having nuclear weapons, if they have never invaded anyone.

It was made by journalist Robert Fisk, who has recently been fighting for equality and comprehension for the people of the Middle East.

The only thing that we sould ask ourselves is: is it so wrong for them to have weapons, even if they have been invaded before and they have been attacked by the biggest and most powerful countries?

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The "TNT" in "suicide bomber"

Recently, the FBI has been investigating about suicide bombers and their motives, as there have been a good number of attacks lately. Normally, one would think that suicide bombers are just people who want to damage our world, but we have to remember that they are still people on the inside. What could be the motives to drive someone to an action like that?

Recent studies have proven that there are 3 elements in the minds of young suicide bombers, wich have begun to be called TNT: Testosterone, Narrative and Theater. Testosterone is mentioned because the mindset that has arisen among them is dominated entirely by men. The narrative consists in that each of them has a story to tell and dreams to fulfill, even if those dreams are not the most innocent. And last but not least, each one of them wants to attract attention from the world by way of explosions.

If you want to know more about the study and their way of thinking, please visit:

http://www.newsweek.com/id/216401

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