The 9/11 Attacks: A Defining Moment in Modern History

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  The 9/11 Attacks : A Defining Moment in Modern History The attacks on September 11, 2001, widely referred to as 9/11 , stand as one of the most significant events in modern history. On that day, 19 terrorists associated with the extremist group al-Qaeda carried out coordinated attacks on U.S. soil, killing nearly 3,000 people, injuring thousands more, and shaking the global order. The attacks led to profound changes in U.S. domestic and foreign policy, triggering wars, reshaping global security strategies, and influencing international relations for decades. This article provides a comprehensive overview of the events of 9/11, its causes, immediate impact, and long-term consequences on the United States and the world. The Events of September 11, 2001 On the morning of September 11, 2001, four commercial airplanes were hijacked by 19 al-Qaeda terrorists. Their plan was to use these airplanes as weapons against iconic American landmarks. First Attack - American Airlines Flight...
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HOW CAMP DAVID AGREEMENT AND IRANIAN REVOLUTION CHANGED THE COURSE OF PALESTINE ISSUE FOREVER

 

HOW CAMP DAVID AGREEMENT AND IRANIAN REVOLUTION CHANGED THE COURSE OF PALESTINE ISSUE FOREVER

Palestine issue is one of the longstanding issues in the world that alone is enough to depict how selfish and merciless is the world we inhabit. Jews from across the world had started to move to Palestine in the late 19th century after the Ottoman Empire had been weakned by long term warfare. After World War 1, Palestine was given to the British as a mandate territory by the League of Nations. British control of Palestine further facilitated Jews relocation to Palestine as was also envisaged in the Balfour Declaration. Hence, number of jews had increased in Palestine exponentially in the 50 years between 1895 and 1945.Palestinians were expelled from their motherland in huge numbers to pave the way for the establishment of Zionist settlers in their land.



 Hence,after the end of World War 2, State of Isreal was suucessfully established in Palestinian territories with the ultimate support of the US and the UN. That was the time when the entire Arab world stood with their Palestinian brothers and sisters on all fronts. Creation of Israel , therefore, led to a war between Arabs and Israel in 1948 , as Arabs could not tolerate the armed robbery of Palestinians’ homeland.They again went to war with Israel in 1967 , when the famous 7 days war was fought. Again they used their military force to defeat Israel in 1973. Although, Arabs were not able to overcome Israel due to their weak military forces and had to bear great losses in money, men and territory, they still stood with their Palestinian counterparts loyally and faithfully. OIC, the largest Muslim organization, was also formed to address the Palestine issue comprehensively.



However, things started to change drastically in the late 1970s. Two developments were very important in this regard.

First, the famous Camp David Agreement that was signed in 1978 through the intercession of the US between Egypt and Israel. Israel returned Egypt's occupied territory in Sinai and Egypt extended formal recognition to Israel. Hence, relations between Israel and Egypt were normalized. Later on, Egypt's Morsi became the most active leader in putting pressure on Yasser Arafat to sign the famous Oslo Accords of 1990s which proved to be gravely disadvantageous for Palestine. He even lashed out at Arafat and called him "dog" when he hesitated to sign the deal that encompassed an agreement between PLO and Israel on those territories, like Jericho, which were not included in the Oslo Accords. After Oslo Accords, Jordan also normalized its relations with Israel in 1994. Hence, two of the biggest and most active states in favor of Palestine, who had also fought three wars with Israel, became friends of Israel and gave up their struggle for Palestine.

Second, the Iranian revolution of 1979 had long lasting impacts on the entire Muslim world and also on Palestine issue. After this revolution, relations between Iran and Gulf states, especially Saudi Arabia and the UAE, deteriorated very sharply. Iran became the focus of attention for Saudi Arabia and its allies in the region.Iranina Revolution had overthrown a monarch, Raza Shah Pehlavi. This incident, therefore, sent a wave of horror to the monarchical states of the Gulf. Monrachs of states like Saudi Arabia and UAE feared that Iranina Revolution might have set a trend for the people to rise in rebellion against established monarchies in the region, thereby endangering their power and prestige. Hence, relations between the Gulf states and Iran turned sour which impacted the entire Muslim world. Such tensions badly impacted Muslim support for the Palestininas. Iran- Iraq war(1980-1988) further created rifts in the Muslim world. The Saudi-Iran tussle reached at its all time high in the recent years when King Salman became the ruler of the kingdom. His very ambitious son, MBS, also did a lot to increase tensions with Iran. Saudi Arabia and Iran became actively involved in many conflicts in the region, especially the Yemen War. MBS started building strong relations with Israel with the support from Donald Trump's America so as to curtail Iran's increasing influence in the region. This bonhomie between the two countries led to the recognition of Israel by the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan. This would not have been possible without Saudi Arabia's support. Saudi Arabia just wanted to gain some time and see the reaction of Muslim world on these recognitions. Ironically, the reaction was almost non existent. Now , it is easy for the kingdom to recognize Israel anytime in the future.

Hence, all countries who once upheld the case for Palestine are no longer interested in its independence. More importantly, those countries that still stand for Palestine have their own crippling limitations. Iran is under heavy sanctions; Pakistan is facing a lot of domestic issues; Malaysia is militarily weak; Libya and Iraq have been destroyed; Syria is burning; and Turkey has its own problems. So, Israel has a" field's era".

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