Early History:
The area of land among the north-western territory of the Arab Peninsula on the edges of Israel near the Jordan River and Red Sea has been contested and inhabited by devout followers of Judaism, Islam and Christianity since the birth of each respective religion. As a major point of influence are the cities of Mecca, Gaza City, Jerusalem (now part of the state of Israel) and other land marks of significant religious importance. This part of the Middle East is some of the oldest in civilization and has been inhabited continuously for nearly 6 thousand years. Tribal groups lived here as they had in other parts of the continent for thousands of years during which they experienced conquest by ruling dynasties of various origin but ultimately resulted in a system of feudalism where homage was paid to certain rulers at the time. Nomadic herders and settled peasants with farmland accounted for a superior portion of the people prior to the discovery of advancements of what's traditionally known as a modern society society in the centuries before common era.
These early period experienced some benefits from trading, technical improvements provided by the Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Achaemenid Empire as well as innovation of the indigenous tribes that offerred improvements to the area. While some of the land was considered uninhabitable as arid and poorly suited for farming, other parts along the Jordan River and further inland developed into popular routes during this time of exploration.
PreIslamic Beliefs:
Shared pagan beliefs had been standard before and for a period after the introduction of various forms of monotheistic religion around 1000bc. At that time Abraham is said to have settled his people in the land of Canaan according to God's orders and the land later became known as Israel in reference to the prophet Jacob, who along with Isaac and Abraham are the three patriarchs of Judaism. Most of it's people were forced into exile however by the Romans in 135 AD after defeat in a three year war and they did not regain political control again until 1948. It had since the time of it's historical beginnings been claimed by Jews as the proper homeland except for a minor sect of ultra orthodox Jews who object to the state's existence because the messiah has not yet come. From the time of the Roman crusades, strong infiltration of Christian belief spread though pagan tradition among many of the people remained until the full conversion of most of the population to Islam during the existence of the prophet Mohammad.
Mecca was a place of mighty importance during the sixth and seventh centuries as a leading trade hub operated under wealthy tribesman and dealers conducting exchange from people of other regions. The less fortunate land dwellers and peasants made their living mostly as subservient loyalists to the ruling class which at times offerred peaceful existence through trade and orders of fiefdom.
The Creation of Islam:
In 622 Mohammad received revelation from the angel Gabriel of the new faith that he was ordered to share with the community. The teachings weren't a renouncement of the existing religions at the time but professed changes from what was perceived as laxities that had developed with the religions that he had seen develop during the early years of his life. The doctrines of the Torah and New Testament where the heritage for the Koran. The Muslim gospel taught of equality for all persons and success was no longer a reflection of tribal status. A departure from the other beliefs at the time was the notion of a single divine embodiement of God compared to the holy tinity and Jesus as a divine son of God. Islam quickly achieved a vast popular following except from some of the powerful classes in Mecca who feared a loosening influence due to this radical promotion of ideas based on cooperation and fairness. Mohammad was forced to flee Mecca and settled in Medina where he was accepted among feuding tribes and was able to rectify the tensions that were effecting that town. The quick fire adoption of Islam by people across the region was possible due to rapid migration of Arab traders and soldiers into North Africa, Turkey, and parts of Europe within the span of a hundred years. Important funadamental practices of Islam include the hadith, a collection of sayings and traditions from the prophet that identifies customs that are expected of Muslims.
The Split in Sunni and Shiite Muslim:
Various forms of Islam have developed including a large rift between Shi'a and Sunni traditions that grew out of the question of succession after the death of Mohammad. The Shia argued for a lineage of family ties and choose the prophet's son-in-law, Shiat Ali, as the rightful leader. A decisive occurence in 680AD asserted the importance of the successor question when an army of travelers under the leadership of Hoesein, the son of Ali, ventured east from Mecca and were stopped by an army of troops. It was required of Hosein's men that they swear allegiance to the local caliph Yazid or submit by force. A battle raged in the town of Karbala, near present day Iraq, that ultimately massacred Hosein's army except for Hosein was the last standing soldier of his army prior to being taken away and formally executed. Word spread of the heroic sign of martydom and a following prevailed enforcing the belief of direct lineage from Mohammad as the religious ruler. Sunni's had discredited this notion of divine right shortly after the prophet's death in 632AD and accepted nobleman within the community proven to be worthy of the role of a caliph to govern religious matters.
Basic Islamic Beliefs:
In most forms of Islam their is no central ecclesiastic hierarchy. Communities of Muslims direct their own affairs, through the local specialists of theology, the ulema. Five important tenants of universal belief though exist for all Muslims regardless of devotion that include shahada(God's existence), salat(prayer), zakat(almsgiving), pilgrimage(haji) and Ramadan(fast). Similarly other basic constructs that the religion expects of Muslim followers includes tawhid, a declaration of the oneness of God and ijma, a covenant for religious teachers, that they act in accordance with the needs and ambitions of the followers.
A Controversarial Land:
Thus the area known as Palestine that exists among the borders of those countries in the western Arab Peninsula remains extremely influenced by this system of beliefs. No easy description can account for occurrences in the region during the next thousand years which bore witness to many number of events like flourishing times of peace, periods of foreign occupation, development, famine, religious tolerance and dreadful hostility among it's inhabitants. A further study of current relations can be better understood by exploring the articles found within.