Topic 10: The struggle for peace in the Middle East (1945–   )

The Middle East is a region of cultural diversity and contested territories. Students investigate how the complex relationships between nation states in the region have been shaped by political, religious, ethnic, and cultural identities. They consider ways in which the involvement of external powers, the conflicts, and the attempts at peace brokering have contributed to the shaping of the modern Middle East.

After studying an overview of the Middle East from 1945–60, students may choose to focus on one case, or on a comparison of two or more cases.

The following are focus areas for study in this topic:

• a contested region
• national and regional conflicts
• peace processes
• unresolved issues.

A contested region

• An overview of the Middle East from 1945–60. Examples include the diversity of nations and ethnic, religious, political, and cultural groups; the political and economic interests and influence of international powers; the control of oil resources; Palestine; the establishment of the state of Israel; and the significance of the 1952 Egyptian revolution, the 1953 Iranian coup d’état, and the 1956 Suez Crisis.

National and regional conflicts

• The causes and course of one or more significant conflicts, and the short-term and long-term impacts on nations, states, regions, and peoples. Examples include the Arab–Israeli conflicts (1967, 1973); the Lebanese Civil War (1975–1990); the Iranian Revolution (1979); the Iran–Iraq War (1980–88); the Intifada (1987, 2000); the First Gulf War (1990); the Second Gulf War (2003); the Arab Spring (2011); the struggle of a people for national self-determination; and the impact of conflict on people’s lives and cultures.

Peace processes

• The course and short-term and long-term impacts of peace processes and settlements. Examples include the role of key individuals, movements, nations, regional governments, international powers, and the United Nations in brokering ceasefires and peace settlements; the terms of peace settlements, including how they were negotiated, and how they were viewed by parties to the conflict(s); and the process of monitoring peace and preventing further conflict.

Unresolved issues 

• The ongoing nature of post-conflict issues. Examples include refugees and migration; persecuted minorities; pan-national militant groups; the recognition of and threats to national sovereignty; civil war; military incursions; border protection; and access to resources such as oil, water, and land.