Geopolitics in Arab Middle East States and Rise of Islamic Radicalism: A Literature Review

Abstract

Arab World, a cluster of Arabic speaking Middle East nations, main of them being Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar, Syria, have a long history of geopolitical power struggle that receives constant global attention and involvement. Since the time, they began thinking of making their own independent nations, this nationalist objective faced several harsh realities of humiliation, separation, negligence and even failure either via the obstructive policies of their foreign rulers or other ethnic groups who inhabited Middle East. These events devastated public life of these Arab States keeping common people under a fear, discrimination and uncertainly of losing their identity, economic status and traditions. After independence, monarchical control or dictatorial leaders failed to ensure public security and rights. These states remained primarily engaged in geopolitical rivalries and gathering regional as well as international allies to gain supremacy. As a result of persistent negligence, huge socio-economic gap, suppression and failure in every protest movements in long run, people, particularly youth and radical Islamic activists thought for an extremist armed revolutionary approach as their weapon to preserve their religion, customs, preventing foreign intrusion and bring back the past prosperous time – Golden Age of Islam. To fulfil their mission, they began conducting violent transnational militant operations within Middle East and beyond, a Jihad plan to liberate Arab World under God's Command. In this Literature Review, we've picked those researches, surveys and analyses that explains the reasons, consequences and future possibilities of all these events.