Modern Middle East History

Lower oil prices may mean that Saudi Arabia no longer dominates in oil production. The United States, Russia, and China are all hoping for a slice of the pie, which means some very interesting diplomatic maneuvering must take place. For example, even though Russia and Saudi Arabia support different sides in the Syrian civil war, Putin’s Russia has made moves to promote energy deals with Saudi Arabia. China wants not only to import oil as its own oil production declines but wants Saudi Arabia to invest in its petrochemical and refinery industries. And President Trump has called for the proposed initial public stock offering of Saudi Aramco, a deal potentially worth hundreds of billions of dollars, to be listed on the New York stock exchange.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/25/business/energy-environment/saudi-oil-world.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fmiddleeast&action=click&contentCollection=middleeast&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=6&pgtype=sectionfront

Op-ed

LINK

The Valdai discussion club is a forum where middle eastern leaders meet in Russia to discuss the future of the middle east as well as the potential for Russia involvement as a contributor to  the peace process in the middle east.  One such conflict is the Syrian civil war. the conference and this article suggests that Russia might not only be an ally for Syria in their attempt to end their civil war, but the rest of the middle east in their journey to peace.

Government officials in Israel are planning to propose a bill into parliament that would give police the power to break into mosques. The purpose of breaking into mosques would be to silence the Muslim call to prayer. Police would be able to break into mosques in Israel and Jerusalem and confiscate loudspeakers. The article states that this is a move towards suppressing religious freedoms. The bill is described as being a racist bill. It seems as if it part of a plan to suppress and erase the identity of Palestinians in Israel.

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180221-israels-anti-athan-bill-allows-police-to-storm-mosques/

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-43051249

Israeli police say they have enough evidence to indict Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu on charges of “bribery, breach of trust and fraud”. Netanyahu is facing corruption charges for allegedly receiving positive press from an Israeli newspaper in exchange for “reining in” a rival publication. Additionally, Netanyahu is being accused of excepting lavish gifts from a Jewish Hollywood mogul in exchange for passing a law that would make Jewish Americans returning to Israel exempt from paying taxes for ten years. These are just a few of the corruption charges Netanyahu is facing although he denies any wrong-doing. The investigation/case could take up to a year to resolve.

The film “Padmavaat” was recently released in India. It is based on the 16th century epic by the Indian Sufi poet Malik Muhammad Jayasi. It is the most expensive Hindi film ever produced, and it provoked protests led by Karni Sena, a Rajput caste organization. Protesters claim that the film depicts a distorted version of Rajput history. The film is opening at some theaters in the U.S. this week.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/01/bollywood-film-padmaavat-releases-tight-security-180125110730219.html 

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2018/02/11/saudi-arabia-should-not-force-women-to-wear-abaya-robes-top-cleric-says.html

Sheikh Abdullah Al-Mutlaq, talks about how women in Saudi Arabia shouldn’t not be forced to wear the abayas. That they can dress modestly but does it can be done with out the abaya.  Because of this some of the Saudi Women have decided instead that they would wear colorful abayas instead of the black ones they always wear.

Iran Is Losing Its Jihad on Tobacco

http://foreignpolicy.com/2018/01/29/iran-is-losing-its-jihad-on-tobacco/

Ayatollah Sayed Hassan Moin Shirazi talks about his attempts to stop Iranians from smoking. He believes it is bad for their health and is against Islamic principles because it violates the decree to do no harm to yourself or others.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/31/opinions/iran-america-deal-opinion-oren/index.html  

This op-ed offers ways the US might improve its credibility in the Middle East. Many Arab nations believed that the US was/is “secretly allied” with Iran based on its tolerance of the nation and supporting Iran’s desire to have nuclear materials–even if only authorized for power and research purposes– and its failure to offer support the 2009 Green Revolution and to punish ayatollahs who support terror (outside of sanctions). If the US takes a stronger stance against these issues and continues to stay out of the Iran nuclear deal, it may restore some of this lost credibility. *These opinions are those of the author, I am merely sharing the article.

Sandra