Global Studies Test


  1. Short answer question topics:

    1. Modern History

      1. Describe the modern land claims to Ottoman Palestine & the British Mandate.  Include references to WWI-era documents & a discussion of the UN Partition Plan

        1. The modern Middle East that we know today was formed around the time when The Ottoman Empire’s Rule ended. Before World War I, the region known as Palestine was part of the Ottoman Empire. The population was diverse, consisting of Muslims, Christians, and Jews, each with historical ties to the land. Ottoman land laws allowed for various forms of land ownership, including state-owned, private, and communal lands, which complicated later claims. After World War I and the defeat of the Ottoman Empire, the League of Nations granted Britain a mandate over Palestine in 1920. This mandate formalized British administrative control and was intended to prepare the region for self-governance. 

        2. Sherif Hussein letter: In WW1, Ali Ibn Hussein suggested to Henry McMahon that The Arab forces would join The British side to defeat the Ottoman Empire in exchange for Britain supporting and helping in creating an Independent Arab State with certain borders. 

        3. McMahon Letter: In this letter, McMahon replied to what Ali Ibn Hussein has suggested. Some areas that Hussein wanted to be a part of the Arab State are not entirely Arab, so cannot be included there. However, Great Britain does support other suggestions. Great Britain would keep in mind the safety of The Holy places. The letter does not mention anything specific about Palestine.

        4. The Sykes-Picot agreement secretly divided the lands that were left by The Ottoman Empire. They claimed that they had the right to have a sort of administrative power in the region to control what was going on, they claimed they had the right to collect local loans, to transport troops at all times, etc.

        5. The Balfour Declaration (1917): It was a document that said that Jewish people had the right to have a separate state, that they could live in. Became the basis of the movement to create a Jewish State in Palestine, which also affected Zionism. 

        6. UN Partition Plan: The tensions stemming from these documents set the stage for the UN Partition Plan of 1947, which aimed to resolve the conflict by creating separate Jewish and Arab states, but ultimately led to further violence and displacement.


  1. Recent History 

    1. Describe the cause and effects of the 1948 & 1967 wars.

      1. Causes of the 1948 War:  The War of 1948, also known as “The Arab-Israeli War” broke out because the Arab neighboring countries didn’t want a country such as Israel to exist in The Palestinian mandate. The Arab nations didn’t accept the United Nations partition plan of The Palestinian mandate, as they thought it was unfair to give up “their” land to non-indigenous people who came from Europe. Some other factors that influenced the war: were religion (Arabs were primarily Muslim, and Israeli people were mainly Jewish), and post-colonial effects (Arabs opposed the settlement of Jews and the right to existence of Israel as they thought it was just a continuation of Colonialism).

      2. Effects of the 1948 war: the outcome of The Arab-Israeli war is that Israel won against the Arab nations, and declared its independence. Israeli immigrants established in Israel. Some other outcomes include the displacement of approximately 700,000 palestinian arabs (Israel authorities claim that they left of their own will), changing of borders (the borders were not exactly what The United Nations partition plan has proposed, but supposedly more), Palestinians refer to The War of 1948 as the “Nakba” (aka. catastrophe), Israeli people refer to The War of 1948 as “The First War of Independence.

      3. Causes of the 1967 war (aka. Six-Day War): In the spring of 1967, Nasser (the president of Egypt at that time)  started threatening to go to war against Israel. Later, he demanded The United Nations Emergency Force leave Sharm-Al-Shaykh and Egyptian troops to occupy the territory. Then, he blocked Israel’s access to The Red Sea - The Tiran. Israel identified the actions as moves of war and prepared for combat. The previous year Israel suffered from terroristic attacks from Jordan, Syria, and Palestinian groups. On June 5th, 1967, Israel suddenly attacked Egypt. Six days later, Israel defeated Egypt, Syria, and Jordan. Israel has also captured The West Bank, Gaza Strip, Sinai peninsula, and Golan Heights, and declared Jerusalem as its capital.

      4. Effects of the 1967 war: As a result of The Six-Day War, Israel declared a new capital - Jerusalem, which also angered a lot of Muslims, as Jerusalem is the second holiest city in Islam. Israel defeated Egypt, Syria, and Jordan. Israel captured the Sinai Peninsula, previously an Egyptian territory. More than 300,000 Palestinians fled as refugees into neighboring countries, and 1.5 million people remained in The Gaza Strip, Israel destroyed 3 Arab villages, and Israel confiscated the land to build settlements in the areas. 

    2. What are the competing narratives of the Israelis and Palestinians at this time?

      1. Israeli Narrative: Israel demanded its right to exist as a country with its nation after the events of the horrific Holocaust. Israel addresses both The War of 1948 and The War of 1967 to be threatening their existence and views the wars as a necessary action to protect themselves. The Israeli narrative also shows the threat to the existence of the young state, which also recalls the trauma caused by the previous wars, in which Jews were discriminated against. Lastly, Israeli people point out their right to exist on the land of Israel claiming that the land was originally theirs according to biblical beliefs.

      2. Palestinian narrative: Palestinians claimed that The United Nations Partition Plan was displacing them from their land. They believe that the Wars continued the displacement, and occupation of their land. Palestinians also view Jerusalem, the capital of Israel, as something more than just a city, it’s one of the holiest places in Islam, and “taking it away” from them is outrageous. Palestinians were never in favor of colonialism and saw the creation of Israel as a part of it as European people came into their land to establish a country.


  1. Afghanistan → required

    1. Who are the Taliban and how did they rise to power?  

      1. Taliban is an extremist Islamic group. It retook control over Afghanistan in 2021,  two decades after being removed from power by a US-led military coalition. In 2021, within weeks Taliban spread out across the whole country. The Taliban rose to power in the early 1990th following the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan. The Taliban returned to power by the combination of corruption and misrule of the Afghan government and a U.S. peace deal that undercut that government’s legitimacy. The deal that was signed without any Afghan government participation committed the U.S. to withdrawing any remaining troops by May 1, 2021. At that point, the Taliban laid the groundwork for a quick takeover by bribing regional governors and threatening Afghan army soldiers who had been unpaid for months. 

    2. Describe women’s rights under the Taliban regime.

      1. The Taliban follow an extreme form of Sharia law, and under their rule, women are forbidden to work, go to school, and have to wear head-to-toe burqas.  Women are being punished for what is considered to be normal. Women are not allowed to travel without a male relative, they are not allowed to look at men in public. Additionally, they are being imprisoned and are forbidden to speak up. The current laws regarding women in Afghanistan are one of the examples of abusing religion. Moreover, the Taliban does not hold the responsibility to care for women who have suffered from violence.