The intra-Islamic conflicts and the shifting dynamics of the Middle East regional security complex from the Iraq war to the rise of Isis

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Tezin Türü: Yüksek Lisans

Tezin Yürütüldüğü Kurum: Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi, Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü, Türkiye

Tezin Onay Tarihi: 2019

Tezin Dili: İngilizce

Öğrenci: HADI KHODABANDEH LOUI

Danışman: Mustafa Şen

Özet:

This thesis aims to analyse the impact of intra-Islamic conflicts on the security interactions in the Middle East regional subsystem in the context of the ongoing structural transformation of the region. This study will evaluate two main narratives concerning the role of the sectarian identities on the intra and inter-state security dynamics: 1) Deep Sunni-Shīʿī antagonism as a primordial conflictual factor in the Middle East 2) Sectarian strife has a secondary impact on the ongoing conflicts and is mainly a cover for geopolitical interests. Considering the chronological approach of the study, the author firstly examines the history of the transformation of the intra-Islamic relations from the intra-state conflict within the framework of the Arab and Turkic Muslim states to the inter-state conflicts following emergence of the Safavid state in Iran. Secondly, the research analyses the transformation of Iraq to the only Shīʿī Arab state, the rise of Sunni and Shīʿī Jihadist organizations in the context of the Syrian civil war and the Yemeni crisis in which has obtained an inter-state dimension. From this analysis, the research tries to portray the complex nature of the conflict through the integration of theological, sociological, historical and geopolitical aspects into one united vision.