This second edition of the ground-breaking textbook Middle East Politics and International Relations: Crisis Zone provides a comprehensive overview of contemporary Middle East politics.

Shahram Akbarzadeh is Research Professor of Middle East and Central Asian Politics and Convenor of Middle East Studies Forum (MESF) at the Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalization, Deakin University, Australia. He held the prestigious ARC Future Fellowship in 2013-2016.

1. Historical Context 2. The formation of the state of Israel 3. The Arab-Israeli wars 4. Palestinian politics: The failure of the 'peace-process' 5. Pan-Arabism and Islamism 6. The Iranian Revolution and pan-Shi'ism 7. Playground of the Superpowers 8. The US-led War on Terror 9. The Arab Uprising 10. The Syrian War 11. The Islamic State 12. Iran-US Relations and the Nuclear Deal 13. Shifting geopolitics in the Middle East