| From: | GKoth2258@***.COM |
|---|---|
| Subject: | The Middle East |
| Date: | Sat, 12 Apr 1997 17:19:21 -0400 |
There are five main powers in the Middle East in 2057; the Saud Caliphate,
Israel, Egypt, the Syria, and Iran (also known in some circles as the Persian
Empire). There is also the small nation of Palestine but they are a small,
minor power. The most prominent of these powers is Syria and the Saud
Caliphate.
Syria
Syria consists of the nations of Syria, Turkey and parts of what was once
Yugoslavia, territory gained in conquest from 2012 to 2018. Their avowed
policy of Jihad (loosely meaning "religious war") and relentless support of
terrorist groups worldwide makes Syria extremely unpopular. They have many
internal problems, like Kurdish and Turkish Separatists (both supported by
the Caliphate and Israel). There is a very strong social dynamism here and
contrary to popular belief, the average citizen isn't a fanatic. But the
fanatics are in control. Perhaps most disturbing to leaders of foreign
powers, Syria is the home of the revived Hashishin, the Assassins League.
Between terror for hire and the Damascus and Istanbul Free Trade Zones and
the rental fees for Desert Wars, the League has plenty of financing for the
Jihad, much to the consternation of most of the rest of the world.
>I seem to remember my Grandpa (may he rest in peace) telling me "All those
damn towel heads are fanatics ready to die for their Allah! F**kin'
infidels!" or something like that. I guess it's true, eh?
>Space Cadet
>Time for a brief lesson in religion. First of all, Allah is only the Arabic
word for god. The Muslims worships the same god as the Jews and the
Christians. Just a different name. Because of this, many teachers for many
years have been teaching that the Jews and Christians are "people of the
Book," because they are.
There is nothing in any of the teachings of Muhammed, including the Quran,
that says there should be some kind of Jihad. Islam is actually a very
peaceful religion. It's just there are fanatical humans with strange ideas
involved...and most people think it's the Shi'as (or as they are commonly
called in the West, Shi'ites) because of what Iran did back in the 1980's.
But the fact is that the majority of radicals historically have been Sunni,
with the Shi'as being normally very laid back and open to progress. Part of
that is philosophy, part of that is that the Shi'as have never been more than
about 8 or 9% of the Muslim population, despite the fact they control Syria.
Did you know that the whole Palestinian/Israeli conflict had almost nothing
to do with religion? Did you know that the large majority of Palestinians
were at least originally Christians? And that much of their support came
from various Christian factions, even today? That some of the most feared
terrorist groups, even back in the 20th Century, were run by either
Christians or Atheists? Even today, you'll get a bigger reaction out of
Middle Eastern governments if you mention water rights than if you run off at
the mouth about religion. Frag, the Israelis and the Palestinians still
fight about water; it's still their major stumbling block, 70 plus years
later.
In other words, don't assume anything about the Middle East. It's very
confusing, even to experts (and I sure can't claim that title).
>St. Stan
Egypt
Egypt is one of the most ancient nations in the world and has an ancient
magic tradition. Rumors abound on the streets of UCAS about what has been
going on here since the Awakening, even to the point it has been claimed that
Ramses II has returned, or that Cleopatra is in power. But the fact is that
the pharaohs have not returned, despite the actions of a small group
dedicated to that cause.
Egypt is in fact very similar to the nation it was before the Awakening, with
an elected (at least that is what is claimed) president and legislature.
The power of Islamic fundamentalists, on the rise before the Awakening, has
seen a drastic drop. So much so that not a single person in the elected
legislature describes themselves as proponents of an Islamic state.
Part of this can be attributed to the dramatic rise in magic. As a result,
the Nile has become vastly more bountiful and strange paranimals, not yet
seen anywhere else, roam the shifting deserts. In addition, the Great
Pyramids, the Sphinx and many other ancient Egyptian monuments have slowly,
inexplicably, been restored by some unknown magical process.
Geographically, Egypt includes much of what was Sudan, extending along the
Nile all the way to the Sabat River. Borders in the desert aren't very
fixed, but the Algerian Theocracy and the Pan-African Federation aren't
trying to expand at the Egyptian's expense anymore. In fact, no one is, a
fact that can be attributed to the highly trained and well equipped Egyptian
military. And perhaps the strange paranimals that roam the deserts.
Israel
Israel hasn't changed a whole lot, although it is larger, now owning the East
as well as West Bank or the Jordan river, maintaining a presence in the Golan
Heights and owning the southern portion of Lebanon. The Jews and
Palestinians still hate each other (but then again, much of the Middle East
hates the Palestinians). Israel has a large incidence of Dwarfs and an
average incidence of Orks and Trolls. There are very few Elves. Despite
this, Israel has strong ties to the Azanian Confederation, dating back to
the Twentieth Century when Israel and Azania (then South Africa) were both
outcasts in the international community and under U.N. sanctions. Ties to
Egypt go back to the late 1970s when the first peace treaty between the two
nations was signed. They have drawn closer together since, but relations are
still bumpy. Israel still has strong ties to the UCAS and the CAS to a
lesser extent. Relations with the UK, AGS and France are strong as well.
More surprising to some is the relationship with the Saud Caliphate, dating
from the early days of both that nation. Both Israel and the Caliphate
benefit, Israel with money, petroleum and secure eastern and southern borders
and the Caliphate with high-tech. Israel's Sayaret special forces teams are
renowned the world over and the Mossad is still one of the most dangerous,
experienced and efficient spy organizations in the world. Magically, Israel
has the rich tradition of ancient Jewish Qabbalists and Alchemists to draw on
as well as even more ancient, highly obscure traditions. Israel is in an
almost constant state of low-intensity warfare with Syria and Palestine.
This war is very shadowy, rarely breaking out into open conflict, but
consisting of skirmishes and shadowruns, by the Israelis to prevent Syria
from gaining on Israel's technological lead and Syria simply to hurt their
foe and demoralize the Israeli people. Syria is much more prone to outright
terrorism, although the Israelis aren't completely innocent in this respect
either. It is rumored, for example, that the Sayaret teams go on routine
training missions into Syria territory, causing havoc and not a few civilian
deaths. The Israeli government denies this of course. Similar incursions
are also thought to be common in Palestine.
Palestine
The nation of Palestine is truly the odd man out in the Middle East. During
the late Twentieth Century, the fight for a Palestinian homeland had a fair
amount of global support, which eventually culminated in the Oslo Accords,
with Israel bowing to pressure and granting the Palestinian Liberation
Organization (PLO), then headed by Yassir Arafat, much of the West Bank.
This should have been the end of the conflict. But several factors still
remained. First, Israel didn't give the PLO very good land at all. Almost
no water and the land itself was largely barren. Second, the funds needed to
start up a government nearly from scratch were simply not forthcoming from
anyone. And third, many Palestinians simply wanted more. The Intifada
(Arabic for "getting rid of," as in Israel) slowly began to escalate it's
activities, from simple rock throwing to genuine terrorist actions and in
fact became by the turn of the century the primary terrorist organization in
the Middle East. The Intifada didn't learn from it's more reasonable
forefathers however. Some of their actions seemed simply to be cold-blooded
terror, with little reason, even to other Palestinians. By the time of the
Awakening, the Intifada had lost almost all popular support, and in doing so,
Palestine did also. VITAS, Goblinization, and the Awakening hit Palestine
hard, so much so that it almost ceased to exist in the late 2030's.
Palestine has been making a comeback, but it is painfully slow, especially
since it receives almost no foreign aid. And so, Palestine views itself
(perhaps correctly) as an island in an ocean of enemies..
It should be added that Palestine now occupies what was once Northern
Lebanon, where it has been for 20 years. Given the superior resources of the
region (adequate water and fertile soil), one would expect a comeback of
Palestine, but all economic growth has been painfully slow.
>Wait a minute. Why doesn't Syria, or maybe the Saud Caliphate help them
out? They all hate Israel don't they?
>Coldcut
>Geez, maybe I should have written this whole section...it's actually pretty
simple. The Saud Caliphate doesn't really hate Israel that much anymore.
They actually get along pretty well, political posturing aside. Syria
thinks that Palestine gave up (which is probably true) and just isn't rabid
enough. They do give Palestine a small amount of aid, but it's nowhere near
what Palestine needs to become a viable nation. And on top of it all is
good-old fashioned tribalism, a factor in Middle Eastern politics from day
one.
>St. Stan
Iran (The Persian Empire)
The Persian Empire (still officially named Iran) consists of Iran, Armenia,
Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Balichistan, Tajikistan
and Kyrgyzistan. Their primary external foe is Kazakhstan. The one major
sore point is Afghanistan, whose rebels refuse to acknowledge the Persian
Empire as their ruler. Which wasn't a major problem until 2054, when the
unrest began to spread outward from Afghanistan, infecting other areas of
Persia with it's revolutionary demands and hardcore Sunni Muslim fervor.
What was once a low-level, tribal conflict has exploded, sometimes
literally, into a civil war that threatens to shred the entire empire from
within.
Part of the problem, at least from the rebels point of view, is that the Shah
of Iran is widely belived to be a Sirrush, or dragon. This has never been
confirmed, but neither has is been strongly denied by the Shah. If true, it
is thought that Aden is that dragon. Aden is the same dragon that destroyed
Teheran in 2020, when the then Ayatollah of Iran declared a jihad against the
Awakened. That action led to the destruction of old Iran and was the
effective birth of what is increasingly called the Persian Empire. Trade is
strong for the empire. Most of the officers (the Persian military is
generally considered to be excellent, although recent actions with the Afghan
rebels have badly tarnished their reputation.) are humans or Orks. Persian
magic is quite effective but their tech is sub-standard. Persia is quite
well administrated, corruption is managable, the standard of living, while
not up to the standards of Europe or North America, is better than most
places in the region and there are no major enemies that are considered a
major threat. Which if it weren't for the civil war/jihad, might make the
Persian Empire the major power of the region.
>Okay, is it Iran or the Persian Empire? Lay it out straight.
>Two-Minute Man
>Officially is it still Iran. That is how they are referred to in the United
Nations and what appears on their official documents. However, the Shah
(Whatever he is. Everything indicates he is human, but the rumors refuse to
die.) has not said "Iran" since 2049. It has always been "the Persian
Empire." Slowly but surely the average citizen has stopped thinking of
themselves as Iranian (or whatever else), but as Persian. Given the fact
that they annexed numerous territories that never were a part of Iran, it
gives a certain amount of unity of thought in the nation. Unless you are
Afghani that is.
>St. Stan
The Saud Caliphate
The Saud Caliphate is led by the scion of the House of S'aud, King Jamal
al-Fakhir Muhammed. The royal house of Jordan still exists, as a sort of
cadet branch which, while royalty, is not in line for the throne. The Saud
Caliphate consists of the present-day nations of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait,
Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, Yemen, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan. All these
nations were absorbed by what was once called Saudi Arabia. During the chaos
of the teens and twenties, most of those small nations looked to Saudi Arabia
for help, for protection from the chaos and from the desires of Syria and
Iran. What started out as protection treaties in the teens became treaties
for annexation by the 30s.
The Caliphate holds enormous power in the Muslim world because it possesses
both Mecca and Medina, the two most holy places to their faith. Mecca, now
encompassing the port of Jiddah as well, is the capitol of the Caliphate.
The tremendous amounts of money made off of the Arabian and Gulf oil
reserves from the last century to the present have translated well into power
as have the occult researches of ancient Islamic scholars. Caliphate
spellcasters are almost all hermetic, Islam forbidding totemic magic as
idolatry. Cyberware is looked askance at as well but tolerated as long as it
is unobtrusive and subtle. In fact, subtlety is a byword for the Caliphate,
from their diplomacy to their armed forces. The Caliphate inherited the
nucleus of a fine army from the former kingdom of Jordan and from Saudi
Arabia and have a competent military, with many specialist "advisors" from
Israel and the UCAS. Their tech is the best that money will buy, from Japan,
UCAS, Azania and Europe. Their only overt enemy is Syria. The legal system
is surprisingly modern, a curious blend of Western jurisprudence, "temporal"
laws handed down by Muhammed and the teachings of the Quran (Koran). Most
judges are either Sheiks (a title of minor "nobility") or Holy men, educated
in the Quran and other teachings of Muhammed. All citizens are expected to
be versed in the Quran, however, many practices such as the Chador (the
wearing of veils and covering women from head to toe) haven't been rigidly
followed for several decades. Of all the Islamic nations, the Caliphate is
probably the most "Western," with western business practices and western
style schools and even shopping malls. Both Syria and Algeria support
several groups of "Freedom Fighters" in Caliphate territory, including
radical fundamentalists and such ethnic minorities as Pakistanis and
Bangladeshis (imported in the last century to work in the oil fields and as
household menials).
