THE CLASH OF CIVILIZATIONS AND THE NEW MIDDLE EAST

Mehmet Gurses

DESCRIPTION: Samuel P. Huntington’s The Clash of Civilizations is arguably the most influential thesis in the post-Cold War era. In this controversial theory, Huntington argues that cultural and religious identities will be the primary source of conflict in post-Cold War era. Drawing attention to “bloody borders” between Western and Islamic civilizations, Huntington also argues that the conflict will be “particularly prevalent between Muslims and non-Muslims.” The September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States and the events that ensued have generated enormous public interest in Huntington’s theory. As the civil war in Syria rapidly changes character, however, one cannot help thinking of “bloody internal borders” within the Muslim world. How does the war in Syria relate to the clash of civilizations? Is the conflict in Syria a harbinger of a proxy war between Sunni and Shiite Muslims? Is the Middle East on the verge of a long and bloody cold war between Iran-led Shiite Muslims and a Saudi-Turkey­led Sunni block? Can the war in Syria lead to the re-making of the Middle East? What are the implications of a renewed rivalry between Turkey and Iran? These questions and more will be addressed in this lecture series. Professor Gurses will first present a general overview of the “clash of civilizations” thesis, and then address the implications of a Muslim versus Muslim war in the Middle East. In so doing, he will analyze the fault lines within the Muslim world and discuss the prospects for re-drawing the map of the region.

SIX LECTURES:

1. The Clash of Civilizations Thesis
2. The Fault Lines within the Muslim World: The Roots of Shiite Islam
3. Iran: Shiites, Politics and Religion
4. The War in Syria: Iran vs. Turkey?
5. The Re-Making of the Middle East: Drawing the Map Again
6. The Middle East in the 21st-Century: What Might We Expect?

BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION:Dr. Mehmet Gurses joined the Department of Political Science at Florida Atlantic University (FAU) in 2007, after completing his doctorate at the University of North Texas. An expert on Middle East politics, he specializes in ethnic and religious conflict, post-civil war peace building, democratization, and Islamist parties in the Middle East. Dr. Gurses frequently speaks to groups in several communities on a range of topics relating to the Middle East. His scholarly publications have appeared in International Interactions, Social Science Quarterly, Civil Wars, Defense and Peace Economics, Democratization, International Studies Perspectives and Nationalism and Ethnic Politics.