Middle East Land Grants!
Recent Nation Emergences after the fall of the Ottoman empire.
Have you ever wondered why the nations in the middle East are as they
are or are where they are? It seems that many of the states that we
see at the centre of events in the Middle East were formed in their
current sites through land grants by the winning Allies and the UN
after the defeat of the Ottoman (Turkish) Empire.
Although this was a Muslim empire it did not see fit to give
independence to those areas but held them as conquered territories
under it's sovereign rule.
So in negotiations with Arab representatives the area captured from
the Ottoman kingdom was split up into the current nations by the Allies.
I understand also that none of the Arab negotiators before 1967 wanted
a Palistinian state for the Edomites who now are the focus of the news
reports coming from the Israel/Jordan/Egyptian areas of the Middle East.
This is because there was never a Palistinian state before!
Because their neighbours who encouraged them to leave their homes in
Israel, lost the wars they started, these Edomites now live in tents.
Their brothers have always lived mostly in Jordan but the displaced
Edomites living in tents have never been assimilated by them, or by any
of the neighbouring nations.
The dates on which the area controlled by the Ottoman's were
given local control is shown below. Of these newly created
countries only Israel is non-muslim and occupies just 18% of the
land originally allocated for it by the UN. Most of the other 82% was
given to make up Jordan which is a country that did not
exist before. So a Palistinian state was actually set up - called Jordan!
1906 Iran
1921 Afganistan
1922 Egypt
1922 Iraq
1924 Turkey
1930 Lebanon
1938 Syria
1946 Jordan
1947 Pakistan
1948 Israel
Israel was the last country to get it's
independence. There was an offer to give Israel
even less land than that 18% but the Arabs turned the
UN down!
But these land grants by the winning allies who won the land
from the Ottoman empire have given us the situation we find in
the Middle East today and in other areas where that Empire extended!
There is one well known people group which was not given it's own
territority; that is the Kurdish peoples. They are believed to be
the descendents of the Medes and have attempted to get a place of
their own, but no nation is prepared to cede land to them and they
have been at war with various people groups up till today.
One other people group which was considered not cohesive enough to
be given it's own territory was the Assyrians. Bible prophesy does
suggest that they will rise again though!
Israel was given a territory, and has faced wars and rocket
attacks over it's borders, ever since, because the surrounding
people groups do not want Israel to exist although interestingly
Israel is the only middle east country that gives equal rights
to all ethnic and religious groups within it's borders! And, there
have also been wars between other nation states in that area
because of their religious differences, cultural differences,
territorial desires, etc.
It seems a change of heart is required to make any difference in
this area, or in the world; while peace conferences with the old
heart leaves world situations the same.
I only know of one God who promises and has the power to give us
a new heart! The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob!
Ezek 36:26 And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will
put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh
and give you a heart of flesh.
Ask the true God for a new heart and for salvation through Jesus. He
wants to give you both!
Best wishes for grace and the peace of Jesus.
Attlee.
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