IRAN, SAUDI ARABIA AND TURKEY: EMERGING RELIGIOUS IDENTITY OF AZERBAIJAN

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 157-167
Author(s):  
Askar Battalov ◽  
Svetlana Kozhirova ◽  
Tleutai Suleimenov
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Religious Identity ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Political Factor ◽  
Religious Identities ◽  
The Caucasus ◽  
Islamic World ◽  
Southern Caucasus ◽  
The Impact

The authors discuss the evolution of religious identity of Azerbaijan and the impact of Middle Eastern actors (Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey) on the process. Today, the pro-Islamic leaders of the Middle East are attempting, with the persistence that can hardly be overestimated, to move into the Southern Caucasus, one of the world’s strategically important regions. Thus, the uncompromising rivalry of religious ideologies is hardly surprising. It means that the national and religious identities of post-Soviet Azerbaijan have come to the fore in the context of Iranian-Turkic, Iranian-Arab and Shi‘a-Sunni confrontation. Today, there are enough drivers behind the already obvious awareness of their religious identity among young Azeris. The complicated search for national and religious identities in independent Azerbaijan is driven by an outburst of national and religious sentiments during the protracted Karabakh conflict and two wars with Armenia (in 1992-1994 and 2020). The process is unfolding under the huge influence of theocratic Shi‘a Iran, the closest neighbor with its twenty-five million-strong Azeri diaspora; proliferation of the puritanical Wahhabi teaching of Saudi Arabia and Salafism as its export variant throughout the Caucasus, and, last but not least, strategic rapprochement with Turkey that is moving away from nationalism towards Islamism. This has made Azerbaijan a fertile soil for a confrontation within the multipolar Islamic world, which is expanding the geography of its conflicts to the Southern Caucasus. The proxy wars in Syria and Iraq, in which the Shi‘a-Sunni confrontation is also obvious may destabilize the Caucasus in the future. Here the authors assess the impact of the Middle Eastern heavyweights—Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey— on the process of shaping the Azeri religious identity as an Islamic political factor.

After Luther: Visual Culture, Materiality and the Legacy of 1517

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
JENNIFER SPINKS
Keyword(s):  
Visual Culture ◽  
Early Modern ◽  
Public Engagement ◽  
Religious Identity ◽  
Visual Images ◽  
Important Work ◽  
Religious Identities ◽  
Public Activity ◽  
Material Turn ◽  
The Impact

Do historians look at Luther and the Lutheran Reformation differently in the aftermath of the Lutherjahr of 2017, and its frenzy of academic and public activity? As recent publications on Luther demonstrate – notably Lyndal Roper's 2016 biography Martin Luther: renegade and prophet – there is a still a great deal to say about Luther, and how his friendships, passions, prejudices and physical experiences shaped him. But while Luther was the monumental public figure of 2017, some of the most important work coinciding with the anniversary addressed instead Lutheranism as a movement, and the nature of religious identities in Luther's aftermath. It also demonstrated and furthered the impact of the visual and material turn in history and in Reformation studies. Building upon decades of scholarship on Lutheran visual images, recent Reformation scholarship has demonstrated in increasing depth how religious identity can and should be read through both material and visual culture. The three publications examined here – a monograph by Bridget Heal, a website by Brian Cummings, Ceri Law, Bronwyn Wallace and Alexandra Walsham, and the exhibition catalogue Luther! 95 treasures – 95 people – contribute to the material, sensory turn in Reformation and early modern scholarship, and in the latter two cases also reveal the impact of this upon public engagement with Reformation histories.

Middle East Experience in Palliative Care

2012 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 94-99 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ghaith F. Abu Zeinah ◽  
Sadeer G. Al-Kindi ◽  
Azza Adel Hassan
Keyword(s):  
Palliative Care ◽  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Formal Education ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Third Party ◽  
Political Issues ◽  
Education And Awareness ◽  
Scarcity Of Resources

Palliative Care (PC) is still a relatively new concept in the Middle East (ME). It was first introduced in Saudi Arabia in 1992 and only recently in countries such as Qatar, Bahrain, and the UAE. Although the majority of Middle-Eastern countries, including Palestine, Iraq, Oman and Lebanon are in the capacity building phase, others such as Saudi and Jordan already have localized provision. In the absence of any of the ME countries approaching integration with the mainstream service providers, Saudi Arabia and Jordan are currently setting examples of achievement in the field. There are still countries with little or no known Palliative Care activity (Yemen and Syria). Political issues, scarcity of resources, and lack of education and awareness seem to be the common factors restricting the progress of this field in most countries. In order to improve the suboptimal PC services in the ME, emphasis should be directed toward providing formal education to professionals and raising awareness of the public. It is also necessary to put all differences aside and develop cross-border collaborations, whether through third party organizations such as the Middle East Cancer Consortium (MECC) or otherwise. This review compiles the available literature on the history and progress of the field of PC in most ME countries, while pointing out the major obstacles encountered by the active parties of each country.

scholarly journals Environmental Performance and Economic Growth in Middle East and North Africa Countries

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (24) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hichem Dkhili
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Middle East ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Environmental Performance ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Smooth Transition ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Mena Region ◽  
Mena Countries ◽  
The Impact

Background. Studies on environmental performance/quality and economic growth show inconclusive results. Objective. The aim of the present study is to assess the non-linear relationship between environmental performance and economic growth in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region from 2002–2018. Methods. A sample of fourteen (14) MENA countries was used in the present analysis. However, due to important differences between countries in this region, the whole sample was divided into two sub-samples; nine Middle Eastern countries (MEAS) and five North African countries (NAF). We performed the panel smooth transition regression model as an econometric approach. Discussion. Empirical results indicate a threshold effect in the environmental performance and economic growth relationship. The threshold value differs from one group of countries to another. More specifically, we found that the impact of environmental performance and economic growth is positive and significant only if a certain threshold level has been attained. Until then, the effect remains negative. Conclusions. The findings of the present study are of great importance for policymakers since they determine the optimal level of environmental performance required to act positively on the level of economic growth. MENA countries should seek to improve their environmental performance index in order to grow output. Competing Interests. The authors declare no competing financial interests.

scholarly journals Iran and Saudi Arabia’s Strategic Rivalry and the Middle Eastern Security: An Assessment

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 17-19
Author(s):  
Azeem Gul ◽  
Rizwana Karim Abbasi ◽  
Syed Arslan Haider
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Political Power ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Positive Development ◽  
Nuclear Program ◽  
Syrian Crisis ◽  
External Power ◽  
Regional Influence

The strategic rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran has been worsened for the last two decades. This historical sectarian divisions led by Saudi Arabia and Iran has now morphed into a struggle for regional influence between Shia political power led by Iran and Sunni political power led by Saudi Arabia. Against this backdrop, the study examines the contours of the Middle Eastern security in the context of Saudi and Iran strategic rivalry in various conflicts such as crisis in Syria, Yemen, and situation in Iraq including proxy wars and Iran’s nuclear program. The study finds out that the security situation of the Middle East would have been much better if Saudi and Iran would have cooperated on various issues such as Yemen and Syrian crisis. In addition, the internal vulnerabilities of the Middle East with Iran and Saudi strategic antagonism provided opportunities to the external power intervention that further has intensified the conflicts in the region. The study concludes that the solution of the Middle Eastern problem would lie in building cooperation between Iran and Saudi Arabia relations and in this respect the current rapprochement between the two states is a positive development for Middle Eastern security.

Examining the Brand Communication Tools that Impact Brand Preferences of Women Consumer buying intentions-Empirical Investigation of Middle East

2015 ◽  
pp. 358-372
Author(s):  
A. M. Sakkthivel ◽  
B. Sriram
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Empirical Investigation ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Sultanate Of Oman ◽  
Women Consumers ◽  
Communication Tools ◽  
Brand Communication ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Brand Preferences

The chapter aims to design a model of constructs of brand communication tools (direct and indirect) and test the impact of the same on brand preferences of women consumer buying intentions from Middle Eastern countries with specific evidences from Sultanate of Oman. The survey was conducted among 200 women consumers with reference to identifying the influence of brand communication tools on their buying intentions. The results revealed that both the communication tools found to have a significant impact. It is found that the direct brand communication tools have a higher impact over women buying intentions.

Raheel boosts Riyadh’s anti-terrorism alliance

2017 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Arms Sales ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Military Alliance ◽  
Political Relations ◽  
Military Campaign ◽  
The Impact ◽  
At Home

Subject The impact of Raheel Sharif taking over as the head of the Saudi-led counterterrorism alliance Significance Pakistan’s retired chief of army staff General Raheel Sharif was last month appointed commander of the Saudi Arabia-led Islamic Military Alliance to Fight Terrorism, which now has 41 members. The appointment boosts the image of the Islamic Alliance at a time of limited progress on Saudi-Pakistan political relations and little clarity on the goals and strategy of the Alliance itself. Impacts Saudi-Pakistan military-to-military ties will develop, partly due to their longstanding defence pact and arms sales. Islamabad will continue to improve ties with Iran, even if that means somewhat alienating Riyadh. Pakistan’s army will avoid any Middle Eastern military campaign that could worsen Shia-Sunni divisions at home.

Britain, the Transatlantic Alliance, and the Arab-Israeli War of 1973

2008 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 3-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Geraint Hughes
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
The United States ◽  
Institutional Factors ◽  
Special Relationship ◽  
British Policy ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The U.S

This article analyzes the impact on transatlantic relations of the October 1973 Arab-Israeli war, focusing on the discrepancy between U.S. and British views of Middle Eastern security before and during the conflict. Despite the institutional factors shaping the U.S.-British “special relationship” and the much greater power of the United States compared to Britain, British policy during the 1973 war was sharply at odds with U.S. policy. This article shows that British policy toward the Middle East was shaped not only by economic concerns (namely the importance of Arab oil to the UK economy) but also by the strategic requirement to undermine Soviet influence in the region and strengthen ties between the Western powers and the Arab states.

Egypt's Open Door Economic policy: An Attempt at Economic Integration in the Middle East

1981 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Osama Hamed
Keyword(s):  
Economic Policy ◽  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Economic Integration ◽  
Oil Price ◽  
The Other ◽  
Open Door ◽  
Price Hike ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Liberalization Policies

Although some may assert that it is too early to assess the impact of Anwar al-Sadat's liberalization policies on the Egyptian economy, I believe there is enough evidence to measure the important trends that have arisen in their wake. And while the statistics and conclusions may be regarded as tentative, they delineate a picture.“There is a smell of money around this place.” With this sentence J. R. Frickers, head of Mobil Oil in Egypt, gives us a feeling for the atmosphere that prevailed in Egypt in 1974. The oil price hike of December 23, 1973, created billions of-dollars in surplus funds for Saudi Arabia and the other Arab oil-producing states.

scholarly journals Islamic Fundamentalism and the Doctrine of Jihad

2004 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 162-164
Author(s):  
Mikhail Ali
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Islamic Fundamentalism ◽  
Holy War ◽  
Islamic World ◽  
Soviet Empire ◽  
Lay Understanding ◽  
Institute Of Technology ◽  
Internal Struggle

A. J. Abraham, a professor at CUNY and the New York Institute of Technology,as well as a scholar of Near and Middle Eastern History, accuratelystates that the “Islamic Tendency” has been a significant phenomenonin contemporary times and has “attracted a great deal of negative attention”(p. 2). This compendium packages two prior works: The Warriors of God:Jihad (Holy War) and the Fundamentalists of Islam and a monograph entitledKhoumani and Islamic Fundamentalism: Contributions of IslamicSciences to Modern Civilization. The former is based largely on thesismaterial coauthored with George I. Haddad at Princeton; the latter is amonograph presented during the 1979 hostage crisis in Iran. The intent ofbringing these two works together is ambitious: to foster a “sympathetic”but objective lay understanding of jihad (p. 2) that excludes the sensationalistviews exploited by all factions for political aspirations. The author’spremise, as noted in the preface, is the need for “balanced yet opposingpoints of view” (p. 3).The first work provides a background and insight on jihad that delvesbeyond the “holy war versus internal struggle” discussion. A methodologicalbreakdown of jihad into seven chapter topics, starting with thehermeneutical “Doctrine of Jihad” and ending with the legalistic “Status ofNon-Moslems,” follows a logical pedagogy in the conventional understandingof jihad from an ideological framework to an actual interpretedlaw. Abraham also acknowledges factors leading to the rise of Islamic fundamentalism(p. 12), and thereby provides a succinct framework for furtherdiscussion. Inasmuch as these factors could have been more seamlessly tiedto current developments across the Middle East, Abraham treats the defunctclash between the Islamic world and the Soviet empire as more a symptomof “resisting secularism” than of addressing the actual appeal of Islamicfundamentalism itself to individuals and the collective Muslim psyche ...

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