Karl Yambert received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Davis, and is a former editor of Middle East Studies at Westview Press.

• Preface to the Third Edition -- A Note on Editorial Matters -- Summary of Recent Events, 2011-2012 -- History and Perspectives -- The Peoples and Cultures of the Middle East -- The Roots of Arab Bitterness -- Islamist Perceptions of US Policy in the Middle East -- Global Energy and the Middle East -- New US Policies for a New Middle East? -- Cairo Speech -- Israel and the Palestinians -- Israel and the Arabs, and Beyond -- The United States and Israel -- The Palestinians -- Sharon's Fence -- Whither the Palestinians? -- Ethnicity and Nation-Building in the State of Israel -- Syria's Threat to Israel -- The Iranian Nuclear Threat Against Israel -- Iraq and Iran -- Pashtunistan: Afghanistan, Pakistan-and Iraq -- The Land and People of Modern Iraq -- Impacts of the Iraq War -- America's Troubled Moment in the Middle East -- Maliki Consolidates Power in Post-Saddam Iraq -- The Iranian Revolution and Its Consequences -- Islamic Republic of Iran: Political Dynamics and Foreign Policy -- Iran's Regional Foreign Policy -- Iran, Israel, and the United States -- The Iranian Predicament -- The Islamists -- Islamists and Democracy: The Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood -- Talking to Terrorists: Hamas and Hezbollah -- The Arab Spring -- The Arab Spring, 2011 -- Egypt: Mubarak and After -- Bashar al-Asad, Syria, and the Arab Spring -- The Arab World at the Intersection of the National and Transnational -- Looking Forward -- The Contemporary Middle East: Some Questions, Some Answers -- Select Bibliography -- Notable Persons