The Struggle for Order in the Twentieth Century

Abstract

The search for a new status quo in the Middle East began in the immediate aftermath of the Ottoman collapse. The imposition of nation-states in the region by Western colonial powers was, and still is, extremely problematic. In contrast to Europe, states in the Middle East did not develop through a long protracted process. This helps to account for the legitimacy crisis faced by the Middle Eastern state that requires regimes to employ a number of tactics, a mix of iron fisted rule and appeals to Islam as an agent of legitimacy, even in states that in effect function in a secular fashion. The previous chapter discussed the Islamic imperial age from the time of Muhammad to the end of Islamic empires in the early twentieth century. It observed the struggles and competition during this period to unify the Islamic peoples and for leaders to justify their rule in religious terms. This chapter looks at the crisis that followed the dismemberment of the Ottoman Empire and the division of the region into nation-states. It observes the failed attempts of political Islam and Pan-Arabism to unify the region and successfully legitimise their projects. In the absence of an effective discourse on unity and legitimacy, the Salafi Jihadists seek to address these issues.