In 1979 the age old struggle for the control of Islam between the Shiite and Sunni sects re-emerged in the Middle East. Four events occurred in 1979 that defined the context of contemporary Middle Eastern politics: the Islamic revolution in Iran,...
This study examines the effects of democratizing Iraq in relation to the stability of the state. The international relations theory of the democratic peace states that democracies do not fight one another. Elements of the theory have been applied...
Weems, Ricardo; Ayala, Richard; Moorehouse, Salina; Rinehart, William; Winters, Steven
With the past historical perspective on terrorism, one can see exactly why it is imperative the United States remain in the Gulf region. With the U.S. military and State Department presence, Iraq has the opportunity to create a representative...
With the U.S. military and State Department presence, Iraq has the opportunity to create a representative government supporting the ideals of freedom and democracy. Over watch is provided in a region historically known for dictator and monarchy...
This paper provides Iranian considerations for war gaming from the Iranian perspective. The purpose of this paper is to provide the player representing Iran with a national security strategy. To do this, the paper begins with an analysis of Iran's...
An examination of ethnic demography, historical governments, political parties, force structure, organization, and partnership efforts within the Iraqi Ministry of Interior includes several recommendations that must be accomplished in order to...
This study examines how Saddam Hussein's past has shaped his political outlook and how he has used power to make that outlook a reality. His past is reviewed in terms of Iraq's social environment during his youth and his early political career to...
For the first time since its establishment as a nation, and following four successive victories against various Arab conventional armies between 1948 and 1973, Israel was forced to withdraw militarily from south Lebanon in May 2000. This thesis...
This paper addresses the Israeli view of the threat posed by various armed factions in southern Lebanon over an 18-year period. This was a period during which Israeli used air strikes, ground invasions, and border operations to contain or defeat...
In the past three decades, one country has stood out more than any other in opposing the United States' efforts in the Middle East: Iran. To counter Iranian influences in the Middle East, the United States has adopted a stance of containment...
Hezbollah, a successful and respected terrorist organization, has survived over a 28 year period by creating and extending its mobilization base. Hezbollah’s recruitment process has contributed to its successful growth. However, little is known...
The U.S. strategy in Iraq from 2003 to 2007 focused on transitioning Iraq into a unified democratic nation state with majority and minority leaders working toward common goals. One seemingly unforeseen issue was that primordial nationalism...
In the past decade, it has become apparent that the Iranian Government is not willing to give up its Nuclear Fuel Program. Though it claims that its endeavors are merely the pursuit of making nuclear fuel, the threat of an unsupervised Iranian...
Winning the Counterinsurgency Fight in Iraq: The Role of Political Culture in Counterinsurgency Warfare 2003-2006 in Iraq is written to provide insight into the importance of political culture in relation to developing a counterinsurgency strategy....
The end of the Persian Gulf War was followed by the establishment of Operation PROVIDE COMFORT and Operation SOUTHERN WATCH. Both of these operations have no-fly zones as their centerpieces. These first no-fly zones have already been followed by a...
The U.S. military has endured failures in the areas of understanding and performance of cultural awareness. The military must continue to prepare its warriors in order to be fully aware of the cultural environment that they will face during...
Since the death of the Prophet Mohammad sectarian violence has existed in the Middle East. This monograph details the history of the Sunni - Shia split and explains the origins of the violence still present today. This conflict presents...
The interaction between politics and military professionalism is a delicate balancing act in war. When the politics involves a revolutionary ideology, military professionalism can be subordinated to the point of hurting the war effort. The Iranian...
The Iraqi Afghanistan war and Vietnam has a lot of parallels that make them similar in nature. The purpose of this paper is to examine these parallels and outline them in order to shed light on what they are and the lessons learned from Vietnam. As...
The relationship between Iran and Saudi Arabia has been a tenuous one following the 1979 Iranian Revolution. The research question investigates what type of threat Iran poses to Saudi Arabia and how the Saudi's will respond. This threat is not...