Objectives
Upon completion of Section 3,
students should be able to:
◆
summarize how political
condi-tions have changed society in
Jordan;
◆
describe how Lebanon has
recov-ered from civil war;
◆
list the geographic factors and
eco-nomic activities that make Syria a
prosperous land;
◆
explain why there has been a
series of conflicts in Iraq.
National Geography
Standards
The following National Geography
Standards are highlighted in this
section: 1, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13,
14, 16, 17
Bellringer
Ask students to suggest ways that
they would be affected if a war were
being fought in the United States.
Point out to students that war has
been part of life for many people in
Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq.
L E S S O N P L A N
1.
Focus
Ask students to skim
the section and read the headings
and subheadings. Then have them
formulate one question for each
of the countries covered in this
section.
2.
Instruct
Write the headings
Syria
and Iraq
on the board. Ask
students to volunteer facts about
each country’s economy. Write
each fact under the appropriate
heading.
3.
Close/Reteach
List the
fol-lowing events on the board: Israel
gains control of the West Bank;
Palestinian refugees flee to Jordan;
civil war erupts in Lebanon; Iraq
invades Kuwait.
Ask students to
copy the list and to write an effect
or consequence of the event next
to each entry. Have students
discuss what they have written.
A
A
long with Israel, the land that is now the modern countries of Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq made up the center of the ancient Middle East. An arc of rich land known as the Fertile Crescentran through this area, where farming and the first civilizations devel-oped. These countries remain at the center of Southwest Asia today and often are the focus of political, economic, and social challenges that affect the entire region.Jordan: Political
and Social C
h
ange
Notice on the map on page 483 that Jordan is bordered by Israel, Syria, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. Its position between Israel and neighboring Arab countries puts it in the middle of political strug-gles in the region. Since 1948, Jordan has been greatly affected by conflicts in the area.
Changing Boundaries When Jordan
was given its independence in 1946, almost all of its land was dry, rocky desert. However, after the 1948 war between the Arab countries and Israel,
Jordan annexed the West Bank and East Jerusa-lem. The addition of the West Bank to Jordan’s territory supplied it with fertile land for growing crops. Workers built irrigation canals and farm-erslearned modern methods of growing vegeta-bles, fruit, and wheat. Herders raised large flocks of sheep and goats. Jordan also opened indus-tries in the area. By the mid-1960s, about one third of Jordan’s gross national product came from the West Bank. Then, in 1967 Jordan, Egypt, and Syria attacked Israel. Jordan lost its second-largest city, East Jerusalem. The im-pact on Jordan’s economy was devastating. Is-rael gained control of the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Migrations The Arab-Israeli wars of 1948 and 1967 also had a significant effect on Jordan’s population. After each of these wars, many Pales-tinian refugees fled to Jordan. Today about half of Jordan’s population are Palestinian Arabs. Un-like other Arab countries, Jordan encouraged Palestinians to become part of its society. Most became Jordanian citizens. The Palestinians are a strong political force in Jordan. In the past, they
Reading Focus
• How have political conditions changed society in Jordan?
• How has Lebanon recovered from civil war? • What geographic factors and economic
activi-ties make Syria a prosperous land?
• Why has there been a series of conflicts in Iraq?
Key Terms
Jordan, Lebanon,
Syria, and Iraq
3
3
Main
Idea
Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq share a similar past and a variety of new challenges for the future.
Physical Characteristics
Barren mountains rise above Aqaba, Jordan’s port city on the Red Sea. Fertile Crescentmilitia
anarchy
embargo
Chapter 23 ■The Countries of Southwest Asia
482
RESOURCE DIRECTORY
Teaching Resources
Unit 6, Chapter 23
• Section 3 Guided Reading and Review, p. 28
Guide to the Essentials (English/Spanish)
• Section Summary, Chapter 23, Section 3
Mental Mapping booklet
• Unit 6 Checklist, p. 79
Technology
Guided Reading Audiotapes (English/Spanish),
Chapter 23, Section 3
Section Reading Support Transparencies,
Chapter 23, Section 3
World Geography Map and Photo Transparencies
• Central and Southwest Asia: Maps and Photos
Book on CD,
Chapter 23
Social Studies Skills Tutor CD-ROM
Companion Web site, www.phschool.com
• Chapter 23 Activities
C
h
apter 23
4
8
2
S
ection
3
pp. 482–487
The Physical World
The Fertile Crescent
American
Egyptologist James Henry Breaster
coined the term Fertile Crescent.
It
refers to the swath of arable land
that extended in a semicircle from
the Persian Gulf, north over the
Syrian desert, along the southeastern
coast of the Mediterranean Sea, to
the Nile River. The area also includes
the river valleys of the Tigris and
the Euphrates.
Enrichment
Charting Economic Activity
Ask
students to refer to the Economic
Activities and Resources Map on
page 449 of Chapter 21. Instruct
them to make a chart showing the
major economic activities in Jordan,
Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq. They may
use symbols on their charts if they
wish. (Visual/Spatial)
Ku¯h-e H¸a¯ji¯ Ebra¯hi¯m 11,812 ft. (3,600 m)
SYRIAN DESERT
Tig
ris
R.
EuphratesR.
Shatt al Arab Jordan R.
Dead Sea
Gulf of Aqaba
Persian Gulf Mediterranean
Sea
Karkuk Mosul
An Najaf Damascus
Aleppo
Hims Hamah Al Ladhiqiyah
Amman
Aqaba Beirut
Al Basrah Irbil
Baqubah
Al Amarah
An Nasiriyah Bayji
Baghdad
IRAQ
KUWAIT
SYRIA
JORDAN
EGYPT
SAUDI ARABIA
IRAN TURKEY
ISRAEL LEBANON
GAZA WEST BANK
GOLAN HEIGHTS
30°N
40°E 50°E
40°E 50°E
N
S
W E
0
0 100 200 km 100 200 mi
have challenged Jordan’s government, which is a constitutional monarchy. Palestinian political groups threatened to overthrow King Hussein if he did not support them in their struggle for a homeland.
A Modern Country Despite the chal-lenges of the last decades, Jordan has established itself as a modern country. Since the early 1990s, its economy has been improving. In 1989, King Hussein began a process of political reform. Since his death in 1999, his son, King Abdullah, has continued on that same path—to unite an Islamic heritage with modern political freedoms.
Lebanon: Civil War
and Recovery
The tiny country of Lebanon was looked upon for many years with a mixture of awe and envy by people from other Southwest Asian countries.
Lebanon had a mild climate, beautiful beaches, and an open social and political atmosphere. It also had a thriving economy. Lebanon’s capital, Beirut, was a center of international tourism, bank-ing, and trade. A glamorous and free-spirited city, Beirut was often referred to as the “Paris of the Middle East.” In recent years, however, a bloody civil war left the country in ruins. Today Lebanon struggles to rebuild itself.
The Beginning of the War The chaos in Lebanon grew out of a breakdown in the po-litical system. Since Lebanon became independ-ent of France in 1943, its many religious groups shared responsibility for governing the country. Power was divided among the Maronite Chris-tians, Sunni Muslims, Shiite Muslims, Greek Or-thodox Christians, and Druze based on the size of their populations. The Maronites, who were the largest group according to a census taken in 1932, held the most power.
483
Chapter 23 ISection 3
APPLYING THE GEOGRAPHIC THEMES
쎲Location The Tigris and Euphrates rivers provide water for the people, animals, and vegetation of this region. This is why the area is often referred to as the Fertile Crescent.
• How do the Tigris and Euphrates rivers affect patterns of settlement in Iraq? Explain.
Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq:
PHYSICAL-POLITICAL
KEY
Lambert Conformal Conic Projection 14,000
7,000 1,500 700 (sea level) 0
4,270 2,135 457 213 0 (sea level) Feet
Elevation Meters
National capital Area controlled by Israel after 1967 Palestinian self-rule Major city Mountain
B A C K G R O U N D
Answer to Map Caption
Most of Iraq’s cities are located along
the two rivers.
A C T I V I T Y
CUSTOMIZE FOR...
Honors/PreAP
Voc
a
bul
a
ry
Militia
Refer to the Key Terms list
on page 482. Write the term militia
on the board. Ask students to look up
the word in the Glossary and
para-phrase the definition. Ask several
volunteers to use militia
in a sentence.
Connecting With . . .
Literature
Tell students that the
Lebanese poet and artist Kahlil
Gibran is admired worldwide. His
poetry taught universal peace and
tolerance for all religions based on a
spirit of love. Ask students to find a
poem by Gibran and bring it to class
to read aloud.
For many years this system of government worked well. But as the Muslim population grew, Muslims began to demand a greater share of power in the country’s government. At the same time, growing economic inequality between groups in different parts of the country created dis-turbing social and political tensions. In southern Lebanon the Shiite Muslims felt that government policies particularly discriminated against them. A civil war erupted in 1958. Although a compro-mise was reached, the political system remained unchanged. In 1975 civil war broke out again.
A Lengthy Civil War The situation grew
far more complicated by 1975. Thousands of Palestinianslived in refugee camps in Lebanon. The Palestinian Liberation Organization, or PLO, set up military bases in Lebanon in order to conduct raids across the border to Israel. The Israelis, in turn, struck back at PLO forces in Lebanon.
Because of the conflict between Israel and the PLO, other countries including Syria, Iran, and the United States, became involved in Lebanon’s civil war. Syrian troops occupied part of Lebanon in 1976. In 1982 Israel invaded Lebanon, de-stroying PLO bases in southern Lebanon, and bombing Beirut. An international peacekeeping
force that included the United States tried to end the conflict. After separate attacks in 1983 and 1984 by the radical Shiite group Hezbollah de-stroyed the American embassy and a Marine bar-racks in Beirut, peacekeeping troops withdrew.
Muslim and Christian groups split into dif-ferent factions. Each faction had its own mili-tia,or citizen army. By the mid-1980s, Lebanon was in a state of anarchy,or lawlessness. No gov-ernment, army, or police force could maintain or-der.Militia bands roamed the streets kidnapping members of other groups and foreign citizens whom they held hostage.
A Fragile Balance By the early 1990s, after 16 years of civil war, Lebanese political groups agreed to share power once again. A formal agree-ment established a more equitable political sys-tem in 1991. Muslims gained more influence in the political process, while sectarian divisions in the government were solidified. The militias stopped fighting each other, and the economy slowly started to rebound. Banking services were restored. Manufacturing and tourism both in-creased.
The struggles of its neighbors continually placed stress on Lebanon. Prime Minister Rafik Hariri died in a car-bomb attack early in 2005.
Chapter 23 ■The Countries of Southwest Asia
484
War-Torn Beirut
Understanding the Past
As this archaeologist looks for clues to Lebanon’s ancient Phoenician culture, Lebanon’s recent history can be read in the surrounding destruction.
Place Why was Lebanon in a state of anarchy during the mid-1980s?
C
h
apter 23
4
8
4
Answer to Photo Caption
A civil war was raging. No government,
army, or police force co
u
ld maintain
order as militias fo
u
ght each other.
A C T I V I T Y A C T I V I T Y
Connecting With . . .
History
In 1967, Israel seized the
Golan Heights from Syria after Syria
launched rocket attacks from the
area on Israeli settlements. Today
the resolution of the status of this
strategic region, which is situated at
the meeting point of Israel, Syria,
Lebanon, and Jordan, is considered
a key to establishing peace in
South-west Asia.
Enrichment
Making a Collage
Ask students
to do outside research on the city of
Damascus, Syria. Tell them to use
magazines, drawings, or other
illus-trations to make a collage about the
city. Collages may include images
representing the city’s economic
activities, attractions, architecture,
art, culture, and inhabitants. (Visual/
Spatial)
Public demonstrations and international pressure soon forced Syria to remove troops, but tensions remained high. When Hezbollah captured two Israeli soldiers in 2006, Israel invaded southern Lebanon to try to eradicate that militia. Hezbol-lah responded with rocket attacks on Israel. Al-though Israel withdrew a month later, about one fifth of Lebanon’s residents had been dis-placed and the economy was severely disrupted.
Syria: C
h
allenges
and Reforms
Since the time of its earliest settlers, Syria has been a prosperous land. Its location on the east-ern edge of the Mediterranean between Europe, Africa, and Asia has made cities like Damascus, the capital, and Aleppo busy centers of trade. For thousands of years, Syria’s people have taken ad-vantage of its rich farmlands and its thriving cities to make a living. They grow cotton, wheat, fruit, and vegetables on the fertile land.
In recent decades, more and more Syrians have left their farms to work in the cities. Al-though Syria is fortunate to have fertile farmland, many farming methods are out of date. Few farm-ers have modern machinery and only about one third of the farms are irrigated. Most of Syria’s farmers depend on rainfall to water their crops. However, rainfall is unreliable. When droughts occur, farmers are unable to make a living.
The Syrian government is trying to improve farming methods in the hope of encouraging farmers to stay on their land. It has given money to farmers to help them buy modern machinery. In the last decade, Syria has also been focusing more attention on research to improve crop out-put. The government has built dams in the north to irrigate more acres of land.
Changes upstream along the Euphrates may affect Syria’s future. Turkey is building dams on the river that control the amount of water flow-ing downstream into Syria and Iraq. As a conse-quence, Syria claims to have less water available for agriculture and the production of electricity. Turkey claims that Syria wastes water through inefficient irrigation. No agreement has been reached between Turkey and Syria thus far, and drought conditions are likely to continue.
In 1970, General Hafez al-Assad took power in Syria. Assad made all of the country’s political
485
Chapter 23 ■Section 3
Damascus Marketplace
Economic Activities At Damascus’s center is a souk, or marketplace. Stalls, selling a range of produce, line the streets. Behind the stalls, craftsmen make their wares in workshops.
Place How does this souk reflect the Syrian spirit of nationalism?
and economic decisions. He allowed little politi-cal freedom. When Assad died in 2000, his son, Bashar Assad, became president. Rather than continuing his father’s policies, Bashar Assad launched a series of economic and political re-forms. New policies began to convert Syria’s state-controlled economy into a market-based system, but economic progress was slow. Under pressure from the United States, Syria finally withdrew troops from southern Lebanon in 2005. The United States still accuses Syria of supporting ter-rorists in Iraq, Lebanon, and other places.
B A C K G R O U N D
Answer to Photo Caption
Possible answer: Syria’s flags are str
u
ng
across the marketplace.
A C T I V I T Y
TEST PREPARATION
Have st
u
dents read t
h
e s
u
bsection Syria:
C
h
allenges and Reforms on t
h
is page to
answer t
h
e following q
u
estion.
The most serious obstacle to making a living
faced by Syrian farmers is the lack of —
Group Work
Activity:
Fact-finding
Purpose:
Each group selects five
facts about each of the countries
discussed in Section 3. Group
mem-bers should write each fact on one
side of an index card and identify
the country on the other.
Roles:
Each group should have
fact-finders, a scribe, and a spokesperson.
Result:
Shuffle the cards together.
Have group spokespersons take
turns reading facts. The rest of the
class should determine which
coun-try is being described.
Using Prior Knowledge
Have students read the headings and
subheadings in the subsection Iraq:
A Series of Conflicts beginning on
this page. Ask them to make a few
notes regarding anything they may
have heard previously about these
topics. Ask volunteers to share their
remembrances aloud. Then have
stu-dents read the section and compare
the text with their notes.
Iraq: A Series of Conflicts
Iraq has a special location. A large part of the country lies on the well-watered plain between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Grains, fruits, and vegetables grow easily. For thousands of years, farming was the most important activity in this land.
Conditions changed dramatically after large quantities of oil were dis-covered in the late 1920s. Iraq spent billions of dol-lars of oil money to de-velop the country. It built roads, airports, and hospi-tals. It opened new schools and universities. Dams and irrigation systems were con-structed to increase agricul-tural output. Iraq also rebuilt its capital, the ancient city of Baghdad.
War With Iran Since 1980, however, a se-ries of wars has brought misfortune to Iraq. When Iran erupted in turmoil in 1980, Iraqi dic-tator Saddam Hussein occupied a disputed bor-der area and then pushed deeper into Iran. Iran
counterattacked. Iraq used its superior weapons, tanks, airplanes, and even poison gas to stop Iranian soldiers. When both sides attacked tankers and oil fields, the United States sent war-ships to protect Persian Gulf shipping lanes. By 1988, despite enormous human and economic losses, neither Iraq nor Iran emerged victorious. Exhausted, both sides accepted a UN cease-fire. The war severely damaged the economies of both countries and left Iraq heavily in debt.
The Persian Gulf War Iraq invaded its
neighbor Kuwait in 1990. Saddam Hussein de-clared Kuwait a historical province of Iraq, but most thought his real motive was to control a larger share of the world’s oil reserves. Many na-tions joined a military coalition led by the United States to liberate Kuwait in 1991.
Iraq suffered major losses during this war, but Saddam Hussein retained power and resisted calls by Iraqi Kurds and Shiite Muslims for more autonomy. When Iraq failed to comply with the terms of the agreement ending the war, the United Nations imposed an embargo,or a se-vere restriction on trade with other countries. The embargo significantly limited the export of Iraqi oil. The loss of export income caused great suffering for the Iraqi people.
Baghdad
UrbanizationIn the 1970s, Iraq used oil profits to build highways and water lines in Baghdad. Such improve-ments, however, were cur-tailed by the war with Iran in the 1980s and the Gulf Wars of the 1990s and early 2000s.
Location How does Baghdad’s location help it thrive as an economic and population center?
486
Facts
F
Facts
acts
Before 1990, Iraq exported more than $12 billion worth of crude oil each year, which accounted for nearly 95 percent of the country’s revenues.
C
h
apter 23
4
86
Answer to Photo Caption
Beca
u
se Baghdad is located on a fertile
plain along the Tigris River, it has rich
farmland and access to the river for
transportation of goods and people.
A C T I V I T Y
R E A D I N G S T R A T E G Y
RESOURCE DIRECTORY
Answers to
Section 3 Assessment
1. (a)
Fertile Crescent, p. 482
(b)
militia, p. 484
(c)
anarchy,
p. 484
(d)
embargo, p. 486
2.
Palestinian immigrants challenged
the government and threatened to
overthrow King Hussein if he did
not support them in their struggle
for their homeland.
3. (a)
disagreement among various
religious groups over who should
hold power; growing economic
inequalities between regions
(b)
An
agreement among political groups in
Lebanon has enabled them to share
power.
4.
Bashar Assad, who rose to power
in 2000, made a number of economic
and political reforms and allowed
Syrians some personal freedom.
5.
Economic sanctions imposed
after the first war harmed Iraq’s
economy by prohibiting the
inter-national sale of Iraqi oil. After the
American and British invasion,
Iraq’s economy foundered amidst
civil unrest.
6.
Continued attacks by insurgents
will most likely prolong U.S.
in-volvement in Iraq.
Activity Rubrics
Share rubrics
with students before they create
their catalogs.
Attempted
The catalog is
incomplete.
Minimal
The catalog includes
descriptions and illustrations for
several items but contains factual
errors.
Adequate
The catalog includes
well-written and accurate
descrip-tions and illustradescrip-tions for many
items.
Exemplary
The catalog is well
designed, includes a complete
sampling of regional crafts, and
contains detailed, accurate
descrip-tions and well-chosen images.
The Ouster of Saddam Hussein After the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States, the U.S. and Great Britain believed that Saddam Hussein was a threat to in-ternational security. Despite calls from other world powers to further investigate claims that Iraq was building weapons of mass destruction, American and British troops invaded Iraq in 2003 and removed Hussein from power. He later was captured, convicted in a trial by an Iraqi court, and executed for crimes against humanity. Establishing a new democratic government in Iraq proved to be very difficult. Frequent
bomb-1. Key Terms Define (a)Fertile Crescent,
(b)militia, (c)anarchy, (d)embargo.
2. Migrations How did Palestinian migrations influence politics in Jordan?
3. Cooperation and Conflict (a)What were the causes of Lebanon’s civil war? (b)How did the people of Lebanon restore calm after the war?
4. Government and Citizenship How have recent government changes in Syria affected life there?
5. Natural Resources How did conflict with the United States affect Iraq’s economy?
6. Critical Thinking Predicting Consequences
How might continued insurgent attacks in Iraq affect U.S. involvement in the region?
S
ECTION
3
A
SS
E
SS
MENT
Creating a Catalog Create a catalog of handmade crafts that are likely to be sold in the souks of the countries of Southwest Asia. Include photographs or drawings of the items in your catalog and a description as to how they were made. You might wish to do additional research in the library or on the Internet for help in completing this activity.
Activity
487
Chapter 23 ■Section 3
Regime Change
Government and Citizenship On January 30, 2005, Iraqi citizens de-fied threats of violence by insurgents and cast ballots in Iraq’s first free election in 50 years. Here, an Iraqi woman is watched by her daughter and an election official at a polling station outside the city of Basra. Although insurgents killed at least 44 people in a string of suicide bombings and mortar attacks, a new president of Iraq was elected.
Region How does this photograph show progress in Iraq?
ings by insurgents kept tensions high. Despite the violence, elections were held in 2004 and 2005 to select new leaders and a national assembly.
After the elections, escalating conflict be-tween Shiite and Sunni Muslims created condi-tions similar to civil war. Tensions between the two groups have been high for more than 1,300 years, each group believing a different person was the rightful successor to the Prophet Mo-hammed. To further complicate matters in Iraq, the Shiites outnumbered the Sunnis by a two-to-one ratio, but the minority Sunnis long held re-pressive political power.
