Connection Across Time: The Division of the Ottoman Empire

Following the defeat of the Central Powers in World War I, the Ottoman Empire was handed over to the British Government which was tasked with dividing and partitioning it as they saw fit, essentially granting Britain to shape the Middle East into new nations as they saw fit. In doing this, the British Government consolidated many different ethnic groups together into new lands such as Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine, which consisted of groups of both Sunni and Shia Muslim peoples and Kurds. While this seemed inconsequential at the time, this adjustment of borders and movement of peoples upset the age old tribal system of boundaries that had been in place in the Middle East for centuries prior to European control of the region. The effects of this can still be seen today in the bitter conflict, most notably between Sunni and Shia insurgent groups throughout the Middle East, predominantly in Iraq and Afghanistan where the United States and Coalition troops from across the world are currently engaged in the War on Terror. These religious and cultural conflicts have resulted in countless lives lost through suicide bombings of mosques, public squares and other densely populated areas across these regions, proving that even after nearly 90 years to acclimate to their new boundaries these warring peoples simply cannot learn to live together in peace.