Summary
In the summer and fall of 2010, I visited Jordan and Palestine twice and then returned to Palestine and Israel in late January. I established a collaborative functional clinical network in 12 countries. Many discussions with local colleagues illuminated the difference between American perceptions of the Arab world and reality.
What's in a name? The Western perception of the region at focus starts with the Euro-centric description as the Middle East. For someone traveling from the United Kingdom, the far reaches of a foreign journey were the Far East -- India, China or Japan. On the way, there was the Near East or Middle East, which -- after the demise of the Ottoman Empire as one of the consequences of World War I -- came under the "mandate" of the European winning powers. They drew thick lines on the maps to create new borders for new nations, without bothering to ask for the locals' wishes, establishing and perpetuating a policy of "conquer and divide."See the full content of this document
Extract
U.S. Needs to Develop New Approach to Arab World
When we established our academic network, my Arab colleagues insisted that we call the region the Eastern Mediterranean, though Western Asia was also mentioned, rather than the Middle East, as adopted by mass media and some negotiating politicians.
If we start relating to the region based on its geographic...See the full content of this document
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