Table of Contents

PART ONE: THE FORMATION OF THE MODERN STATE SYSTEM
The Ottoman Empire and its Legacy in the Middle East
Introduction
The Middle East in the Imperial Era
The Middle East′s Religious and Imperial Heritage
The People of the Ottoman Empire
The Emergence of National Identities
The Legacy of Ottoman Rule in the Middle East
Ottoman Rule in the Middle East
The ′Tanzimat′ Reforms and "Modernisation"
The Military and Political Authority
Europe and the Ottoman "Sick Man"
Conclusion
The Colonial Period in the Middle East
Introduction
The Dawn of European Colonialism in the Middle East
World War I and Turkey
The Arab Revolt and the Hussein-McMahon Correspondence
Balfour Declaration
Sykes-Picot Agreement
Versailles Treaty and the League of Nations Mandates
The Republic of Turkey
Colonies, Protectorates, and Client States
The Interplay of Ottoman and Colonial Legacies
Centralised Rule
New Elites and New Institutions
Control of the Religious Sphere
The Cultural Challenge
Dependency
Palestine and Israel
Zionism
The King-Crane Commission
The British White Papers and the Arab Revolt
British Colonialism in Iraq
Conclusion
Superpower Rivalry and the Cold War in the Middle East
Introduction
WWII and a New International Relations of the Middle East
The Establishment of Israel
The Cold War in the Middle East
Geopolitics and Cold War Allegiances in the Middle East
An Arab Cold War: Egypt and Saudi Arabia
The Lebanese Civil War
The Iran-Iraq War and Cold War Machinations
Conclusion
Nationalism, Islamism, and the Politics of Ideology
Introduction
Ideology and Politics in the Middle East
Nationalism
Middle Eastern Nationalisms
Political Islam
Islam as a Political Ideology in the Contemporary Middle East
Conclusion
PART TWO: POLITICAL DYNAMICS OF THE MODERN MIDDLE EAST
Authoritarianism in the Middle East
Introduction
Understanding Authoritarianism
Authoritarian Rule in the Middle East
Examples of Authoritarianism in the Middle East
Conclusion
Oil, Economy, and Development in the Middle East
Introduction
An Economic Overview of the Middle East
The Politics of Oil
Liberalisation and Reform
Conclusion
The Military, Security, and Politics in the Middle East
Introduction
The Military and Politics in the Middle East
The Middle East and the Nuclear Question
Terrorism and Political Violence in the Middle East
Conclusion
PART THREE: CONTINUING CRISES IN THE MIDDLE EAST
US Military Intervention in the Middle East
Introduction
US Intervention in Iraq
US Intervention in Afghanistan
Post-Iraq US Interventionism in the Middle East
Conclusion
Israel, the Palestinians, and the Peace Process
Introduction
The Israeli-Palestinian Peace Process
The Parameters of Negotiations
Competing Norms and Competing Narratives
The Israeli-US Relationship
Conclusion
Democratisation and the Arab Uprisings
Introduction
Understanding Democratisation in the Arab Middle East
Uprisings, War and Transition in the Arab World
The Arab Uprisings
Conclusion

About the Author

Dr Benjamin MacQueen is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Political and Social Inquiry at Monash University. His research and teaching focuses on the politics of conflict, its resolution, and issues surrounding post-conflict reconstruction with a specific emphasis on the Middle East and North Africa, with publications including American Democracy Promotion in the Changing Middle East: From Bush to Obama (London: Routledge, 2013), with Shahram Akbarzadeh, James Piscatori, & Amin Saikal and Political Culture and Conflict Resolution in the Arab World: Lebanon and Algeria (Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 2009).

Reviews

Ben MacQueen has provided the perfect introductory textbook for students of the Middle East, galloping through the region′s modern political history, and signposting all the key events and issues in a lively, accessible and structured manner. Teachers of undergraduate Middle East Politics have been waiting for this one.
Emma C. Murphy
School of Government and International Affairs, The University of Durham This is an expansive survey of Middle East politics that takes into account not only novel topics, such as human rights, environment and democratization, but also geographies that are generally neglected in such studies. Benjamin MacQueen captures the dynamics of continuity and change in the region and does so in a quite accessible manner to students and general readers. This is a comprehensive view of the region in the post-Arab uprisings era and an essential textbook on Middle East politics.
Meliha Benli Altunişik
Department of International Relations, Dean of the Graduate School of Social Sciences, Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Turkey Teaching Middle Eastern politics during the throes of the so-called Arab Spring is both exciting and daunting. Exciting because the peoples of the region seem closer to genuine democracy than ever before, and daunting because we have few scholarly guides to this new reality. For decades, scholarship on the Middle East tended to focus on the longstanding continuities in that region, leaving students ill-equipped to fathom the sources of and possibilities for change. MacQueen′s textbook is thus a welcome companion to any course that seeks to help students understand the region′s newfound political dynamism. Written with insight and verve, and covering a vast amount of terrain with efficiency and accuracy, this is likely to be the single best textbook in the field.
Tarek Masoud
Associate Professor of Public Policy, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University

The book by MacQueen is a dynamic text that will accompany its readers – both students and practitioners – in a journey throughout the political development of the region by highlighting the changes and continuities that have always characterised this part of the world.
*Silvia Colombo*