I've also been wondering about this. I admit I'm woefully and shamefully ignorant of the dynamics of what has been taking place in the Middle East.

Better yet, is there possibly a website that can give a synopsis?

MKM

One of the best: From Time Immemorial</font color>.

Also, check out this link: What do these people believe?

You will probably need two books one written from the west’s point of view and one written from the Arabs point of view. I've read a number of books about the Crusades in the past and I got a completely different perspective when I read the Crusades through Arab Eyes. I can't recommend any books on this subject but you might want to go to Amazon.com and search for Jihad. They have some 92 books on the topic another search term would be Islam and Politics In doing a quick review of a few of the books this one looks like it's worth investigating: "Islamic Fundamentalism in the West Bank and Gaza : Muslim Brotherhood and Islamic Jihad (Indiana Series in Arab and Islamic Studies) by Ziad Abu-Amr, Ziyad Abu 'Amr Another to take a look at is: Reaping the Whirlwind : The Taliban Movement in Afghanistan by Michael Griffin. A third that looked good would be: The Challenge of Fundamentalism : Political Islam and the New World Disorder (Comparative Studies in Religion and Society, No 9) by Bassam Tibi Good luck in your search

Time consuming, but:
Try reading King James Bible, and a good English translation of the Koran.
I recommend that, because once you start finding the seemingly repugnant verses of both, the contradictions within both, you'll have a better view of the biased mud slinging everywhere in the world.
Next, you might find books describing America's action overseas, sorta' Ugly American in the Sand Box.
I was in Tehran, on USA 'business' when we propped up the late Shah. Part of his "stability" was to beat the crap out of any locals asking a question. Those locals had kids, who are now grown, who remember the 'murican Bell Cobra helis that strafed mom's village. I only wention that as a field of subject for books of why those people, some of them, have a distaste for America.
If you can find a mosque, go in peace and ask to listen to an Islamic try to explain it. Be polite and grateful. Then go to a synagogue with ditto. Then go home and cry and puke.
Good luck!
Some might recommend T.E. Lawrence and Seven Pillars of Wisdom, but I'm not sure that's what you're looking for.
Keep an open mind and a sense of curiosity. Kinda' short supply here today.

"Bible and Sword" by Barbara Tuchman - enjoyable reading, good, non-ideological account of the forces leading to creation of Israel, European occupation of much of the Mid-East, and the collapse of the Ottoman empire. Many people think this stuff (circa 1870-1948) to be irrelevant ancient history, but it's very relevant to people in Mid-East today - it's what the parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents lived through.

Try "God has 99 Names" by Judith Miller.

Here's what Amazon.com has to say:

A comprehensive survey of militant Islam, or Islamism, from Judith Miller, former bureau chief for The New York Times in Cairo. She covers eight Arab countries, plus Iran and Israel, in providing a complete, if bleak, picture for Western readers: from poverty-stricken Egypt to rich Saudi Arabia, she believes Islamists are threatening Middle Eastern stability. Whether floundering under incompetent government, corruption, and repression, or, as in the case of Jordan, too dependent on one ruler, the states close to the West are weak, and vulnerable to a movement that promises social justice and moral righteousness. Miller is forthright in her condemnation of the intolerance and sexism of Islamic movements she sees as largely antithetical to Western democracy. A provocative and daring book.

Good choice. She's a very accessible historian.

I've read it but not for many years.

Might be time to pull out the Bible once again.

My parents would be so thrilled to hear this, I'm sure they're praying for me right now.

MKM

(Hunting BinLaden)

This is a transcription of hour-long PBS documentary on Bin Laden. It is excellent place to start understanding what's going on. Most significant quote, IMO, "They don't hate our principles, they hate us.!

If PBS rebroadcasts this show, as I'm sure they will, don't miss the opportunity to see who these people are.

Genesis.

hmmmm....

Does this do any good? (trying to undo underline...)

In my opinion, one of the best is From Beirut to Jerusalem by Thomas Friedman. Although he writes for the NYT and is seen on PBS (and I disagree with most, if not all, of his opinions on most, if not all things) he was the Beirut news bureau chief for many years and I found the read quite informative. I was especially stunned by his explanation of how people like Saddam and Assad stay in power. He also writes in a very entertaining way.

Can anyone recommend a good book that would help me to understand the long history of this conflict? It would also be nice if it analyzes contemporary issues & shows how the history is related to them. Thanks in advance!

Well, you can start by seeing what several of them said themselves. That's always a good place.

It's a religious war, and basically, it's the same kind of war that Israel fought when it was a country in years past (thousands of years ago). God fought for Israel and for "His name". You see, from what God has said -- there are certain things that will happen in the future. God says (the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob) that there is no God like Him. That He is the only one, that He will prove Himself (through Israel).

Islam's "god" is not the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob -- and is therefore the one who opposes God (which is Satan).

We've been brought into this religious war because we've (as a country) have mostly stood up for Israel and their peace and safety and their right to the land (as the Bible says that they have).

And from what is said below -- you can tell that this is exactly the issue.

The web page for this below is at --

http://www.fas.org/irp/world/para/docs/980223-fatwa.htm

Jihad Against Jews and Crusaders

World Islamic Front Statement

23 February 1998

Shaykh Usamah Bin-Muhammad Bin-Ladin
Ayman al-Zawahiri, amir of the Jihad Group in Egypt
Abu-Yasir Rifa'i Ahmad Taha, Egyptian Islamic Group
Shaykh Mir Hamzah, secretary of the Jamiat-ul-Ulema-e-Pakistan
Fazlul Rahman, amir of the Jihad Movement in Bangladesh

Praise be to God, who revealed the Book, controls the clouds, defeats factionalism, and says in His Book: "But when the forbidden months are past, then fight and slay the pagans wherever ye find them, seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem (of war)"; and peace be upon our Prophet, Muhammad Bin-'Abdallah, who said: I have been sent with the sword between my hands to ensure that no one but God is worshipped, God who put my livelihood under the shadow of my spear and who inflicts humiliation and scorn on those who disobey my orders.

The Arabian Peninsula has never -- since God made it flat, created its desert, and encircled it with seas -- been stormed by any forces like the crusader armies spreading in it like locusts, eating its riches and wiping out its plantations. All this is happening at a time in which nations are attacking Muslims like people fighting over a plate of food. In the light of the grave situation and the lack of support, we and you are obliged to discuss current events, and we should all agree on how to settle the matter.

No one argues today about three facts that are known to everyone; we will list them, in order to remind everyone:

First, for over seven years the United States has been occupying the lands of Islam in the holiest of places, the Arabian Peninsula, plundering its riches, dictating to its rulers, humiliating its people, terrorizing its neighbors, and turning its bases in the Peninsula into a spearhead through which to fight the neighboring Muslim peoples.

If some people have in the past argued about the fact of the occupation, all the people of the Peninsula have now acknowledged it. The best proof of this is the Americans' continuing aggression against the Iraqi people using the Peninsula as a staging post, even though all its rulers are against their territories being used to that end, but they are helpless.

Second, despite the great devastation inflicted on the Iraqi people by the crusader-Zionist alliance, and despite the huge number of those killed, which has exceeded 1 million... despite all this, the Americans are once against trying to repeat the horrific massacres, as though they are not content with the protracted blockade imposed after the ferocious war or the fragmentation and devastation.

So here they come to annihilate what is left of this people and to humiliate their Muslim neighbors.

Third, if the Americans' aims behind these wars are religious and economic, the aim is also to serve the Jews' petty state and divert attention from its occupation of Jerusalem and murder of Muslims there. The best proof of this is their eagerness to destroy Iraq, the strongest neighboring Arab state, and their endeavor to fragment all the states of the region such as Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Sudan into paper statelets and through their disunion and weakness to guarantee Israel's survival and the continuation of the brutal crusade occupation of the Peninsula.

All these crimes and sins committed by the Americans are a clear declaration of war on God, his messenger, and Muslims. And ulema have throughout Islamic history unanimously agreed that the jihad is an individual duty if the enemy destroys the Muslim countries. This was revealed by Imam Bin-Qadamah in "Al- Mughni," Imam al-Kisa'i in "Al-Bada'i," al-Qurtubi in his interpretation, and the shaykh of al-Islam in his books, where he said: "As for the fighting to repulse [an enemy], it is aimed at defending sanctity and religion, and it is a duty as agreed [by the ulema]. Nothing is more sacred than belief except repulsing an enemy who is attacking religion and life."

On that basis, and in compliance with God's order, we issue the following fatwa to all Muslims:

The ruling to kill the Americans and their allies -- civilians and military -- is an individual duty for every Muslim who can do it in any country in which it is possible to do it [EMPHASIS ADDED], in order to liberate the al-Aqsa Mosque and the holy mosque [Mecca] from their grip, and in order for their armies to move out of all the lands of Islam, defeated and unable to threaten any Muslim. This is in accordance with the words of Almighty God, "and fight the pagans all together as they fight you all together," and "fight them until there is no more tumult or oppression, and there prevail justice and faith in God."

This is in addition to the words of Almighty God: "And why should ye not fight in the cause of God and of those who, being weak, are ill-treated (and oppressed)? -- women and children, whose cry is: 'Our Lord, rescue us from this town, whose people are oppressors; and raise for us from thee one who will help!'"

We -- with God's help -- call on every Muslim who believes in God and wishes to be rewarded to comply with God's order to kill the Americans and plunder their money wherever and whenever they find it. We also call on Muslim ulema, leaders, youths, and soldiers to launch the raid on Satan's U.S. troops and the devil's supporters allying with them, and to displace those who are behind them so that they may learn a lesson.

Almighty God said: "O ye who believe, give your response to God and His Apostle, when He calleth you to that which will give you life. And know that God cometh between a man and his heart, and that it is He to whom ye shall all be gathered."

Almighty God also says: "O ye who believe, what is the matter with you, that when ye are asked to go forth in the cause of God, ye cling so heavily to the earth! Do ye prefer the life of this world to the hereafter? But little is the comfort of this life, as compared with the hereafter. Unless ye go forth, He will punish you with a grievous penalty, and put others in your place; but Him ye would not harm in the least. For God hath power over all things."

Almighty God also says: "So lose no heart, nor fall into despair. For ye must gain mastery if ye are true in faith."

How's that for a "starter"?

The KJV Bible. In it you will find that only some non-Israeli middle easterners are Arab. There are a multitude of nationalities that are joined toghter by islam and their hate of "infidels". You will also find the ancient origins of the conflict and it's end.

Also, Joan Peters, "From Time Immemorial".

Interesting article

Samuel Huntington's "The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking Of World Order" has at it's core the ascendancy of the Islamic and Sino worlds at the cost of a West that denies its peril and doesn't answer confrontation at all necessary levels.

It was pooh-poohed by some on the left as hawkish and many on the right as pro-globalistic. I happen to feel that regarding most the trends he predicts in his book, Huntington is right on. And it was published in 1996, about the time these bastards started learning to fly and plot this mess. Inexpensive used copies can be found at many college bookstores on and off campuses, as it is a popular read in many international policy courses.

For me, the best book to read would be on the particulars of the plight of European Jewry and the establishment of Isreal in 1948. That would be Howard Sachar's "A History of Isreal", published first about 20-25 years ago. It is a good primer to understand the immigration, emmigration, and forced movement of assorted peoples 1945 and after.

So that and with John's "Book of Revelation" (unsure of exact date published or which edition is most current), you'll have all you need to know on world affairs for the next fifty years.

That book that has been referenced below is available on WorldNetDaily, too (their online store). They've advertised it quite a bit. I thought I would include their "info" on it -- for your information.

From Time Immemorial: Origins of Arab-Jewish Conflict
by Joan Peters

This monumental and fascinating book, the product of seven years of original research, will forever change the terms of the debate about the conflicting claims of the Arabs and the Jews in the Middle East.

The weight of the comprehensive evidence found and brilliantly analyzed by historian and journalist Joan Peters answers many crucial questions, among them: Why are the Arab refugees from Israel seen in a different light from all the other, far more numerous peoples who were displaced after World War II? Why, indeed, are they seen differently from the Jewish refugees who were forced, in 1948 and after, to leave the Arab countries to find a haven in Israel? Who, in fact, are the Arabs who were living within the borders of present-day Israel, and where did they come from?

Joan Peter's highly readable and moving development of the answers to these and related questions will appear startling, even to those on both sides of the argument who have considered themselves to be in command of the facts.

This book is one that has already had a major impact on the policy discussions of one of the most vital and intractable of the world's problems, shrouded until now in a fog of misinformation and ignorance.

A very Important Read IMO.

Note the date of the article is from nearly a year ago.

I also found some more info about Abdurahman Alamoudi - he's a 48 (or 49) year old BIO-CHEMIST, lives in Washington with his family, appoints Muslim clerics in the US MILITARY, defended the WTC bombers of '93, associated with the Clintons. This info I found at www.usajewish.com - Sunday, November 5, 2000 - 'Moderate' Muslim Leader Shocked at Flap
(Scroll down aways for the brief article)

The first book of the Bible or Torah, Genesis, chapters 12-32 tells the beginning of this ancient conflict. Generally, present day Jews came from family line of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (who was later named Israel), and claim God's blessing to the promised land, Canaan, which eventually becomes present day Israel. The Bible says the Israelis are God's promised people, and eventually the Messiah, Jesus, will (and has) come from this line. Paul, in the New Testament, continues to predict that God will restore Israel's status as a promised nation, after the time of the Gentiles.

Present day Arabs came from the family line of Abraham, Ishamael (Isaac's older half-brother) &/or Esau (Jacob's elder twin brother). According to the Bible, they remain outside of God's covenent of the promised land, but still receive God's promise of becoming great nations.

Helpful verses from Genesis inclue:

Genesis 12:1-3,5. God blesses Abraham and promises great nation-Land of Canaan (present day Israel) to this Father of present day Jews.

Gen. 15:1-5 Abraham's younger son ,Isaac, becomes part of God's covenant.

Gen. 16: 1-12; Gen. 17:15-21. Abraham's firstborn, Ishmael (Father of Arab nations), gets no blessing. God predicts he will grow to be "a wild donkey of a man." Ishmael will live to east of his brother. Gen. 25:12-18. Ishmael (father of Arabs) settles in area from Havilah (Assyria-present day Iraq) to Shur (Egypt), or ancient Arabia.

Gen. 25:23. Isaac's wife, Rebeka, mother of Esau and Jacob feels her twins fighting within her womb and asks God what is happening.

God replies "Two nations are in your womb; and two peoples will be separated from your body; and one people shall be stronger than the other; and the older [Esau-Arab] shall serve the younger[Jacob-Israel].

Gen. 32:3 Esau later dwells in land of Seir, Country of Edom, east of Isreal (today's Jordan). Esau also marries into Ishmael's family line in Gen. 28:9.