Modern Middle East Flashcards
Grade 9 · Social Studies · Flashcards
Essential vocabulary, events, people, and concepts for understanding the modern Middle East and its complex political landscape.
Flashcards
- Sykes-Picot Agreement (1916)
- Secret British-French agreement to divide the Arab regions of the Ottoman Empire into their spheres of influence; created the artificial borders of many modern Middle Eastern states.
- Balfour Declaration (1917)
- British government letter supporting a Jewish national home in Palestine, without adequately protecting rights of the existing Arab population; foundational to the Arab-Israeli conflict.
- 1948 Arab-Israeli War
- War triggered by Israel's Declaration of Independence (May 1948); neighboring Arab states invaded but were defeated. Palestinians call it the Nakba ('catastrophe') — 700,000 became refugees.
- Six-Day War (1967)
- Israeli military campaign that captured the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Sinai Peninsula, and Golan Heights in six days; these occupied territories remain at the center of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
- OPEC Oil Embargo (1973)
- Arab oil-producing nations cut off oil exports to the U.S. and allies supporting Israel in the Yom Kippur War, causing a global energy crisis and demonstrating oil's power as a political weapon.
- Iranian Revolution (1979)
- Popular uprising that overthrew the U.S.-backed Shah and established the Islamic Republic of Iran under Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini; transformed Middle Eastern geopolitics.
- Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO)
- Political organization representing the Palestinian people internationally; led by Yasser Arafat, it recognized Israel in the Oslo Accords (1993) and renounced terrorism.
- Oslo Accords (1993)
- Agreements creating mutual Israeli-PLO recognition and establishing the Palestinian Authority to govern parts of the West Bank and Gaza, intended as a framework toward a two-state solution.
- Arab Spring (2010–2012)
- Wave of popular protests and uprisings demanding democracy across the Arab world; led to regime changes in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and Yemen, but also devastating civil wars.
- ISIS (Islamic State)
- Extremist jihadist group that captured large swaths of Iraq and Syria (2013–14), declared a caliphate, and committed mass atrocities; defeated militarily by 2019 through international coalition.
- Sunni-Shia Divide
- The major sectarian split within Islam; Saudi Arabia leads the Sunni world while Iran leads the Shia world — their rivalry drives many regional conflicts including the Yemen war.
- Two-State Solution
- The most widely proposed resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: creating an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel based on 1967 borders, with Jerusalem's status negotiated.
- Gulf War (1990–91)
- Iraq's invasion of Kuwait (1990) and the U.S.-led coalition military response that liberated Kuwait in Operation Desert Storm (1991), establishing U.S. military primacy in the Middle East.
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