ABSTRACT
BEGINNING OF WAR AND ROLE OF OTTOMAN EMPIRE The Ottoman Empire joined the conflict on the side of Germany and Austria-Hungary in November 1914 and immediately faced Allied forces, primarily British, on four fronts: Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq), the Sinai Peninsula and Palestine, the Caucasus Mountains in the northeast of present-day Turkey, and southeastern Europe. Although
the Ottomans posed a serious threat in terms of sheer numbers, they were outclassed both technologically and tactically by the Allied Powers. Aside from Mustafa Kemal, the Turkish military commander who would later found the modern state of Turkey, their only capable military leaders were actually German or Austrian. In battle after battle, they excelled at defending fortified positions, but as Britain developed
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Bank, destroying much of the infrastructure of the Palestinian National Authority. The occupation wreaked havoc on the West Bank’s economy, primarily due to Israeli restrictions on Palestinian movement. Israel also began construction of an immense concrete barrier 436 miles (702 km) long between the West Bank and its own territory; Israel contended that the barrier is a way to protect its citizens from terrorist attacks, while Palestinians accused Israel of effectively annexing the West Bank by controlling traffic into and out of it.
