Southwest Asia Research Articles

Kaçak | qaçax | قاچاق : fugitive forms of bureaucracy and economy across Southwest Asia

ABSTRACT Electricity and petroleum stolen from grids of distribution. Livestock, tea, and tobacco traded as contraband goods across national borders. An apartment building built without permits. A defendant who refuses to show up to his trial. What unites these seemingly disparate situations in Turkey, Kurdistan and Iran is that they are all described with the qualifier kaçak. Although conventionally translated into English as the equivalent of ‘smuggled good,' the semantic domain of kaçak in Turkish (loaned into Kurdish and Persian) is more capacious than ‘smuggled’ signifies: Derived from the Turkish verb kaçmak - to run away, flee, or be a fugitive - kaçak helps us recover the act of breaching the obligations of a social or legal contract as a constitutive field of politics, framed by the socio-cultural constructions of modern bureaucracy and economy. Each participant tracks kaçak as a good, as a tapped resource or a legally sanctioned person, and shows the many forms kaçak takes in the hands of concrete social actors under historically specific material conditions. Further, kaçak provides a historically and geographically more expansive windows into the politically instituted process that is the making of states and economies in cross-regional and cross-disciplinary ways.

Remaining Palestinian

Palestinian filmmakers are largely dependent on foreign funding for production and on foreign festivals for publicity. Making a Palestinian film can seem as “impossible” as remaining Palestinian amid fragmenting effects of occupation/war and peace accords. Against such pressures, Palestinian filmmaker Annemarie Jacir tells stories with protagonists, who, for foreign funders, can seem like “unruly subjects” for remaining Palestinian. As a consequence, her films themselves can seem like “unruly subjects” to industry film critics. Her films like twenty impossibles (ka’inana ashrun mustaheel, 2003), Salt of This Sea (Milh Hadha al-Bahr, 2008), When I Saw You (Lamma Shoftak, 2012), and Wajib (2017) tell stories about Palestinians debating each other (rather than Israelis via US negotiators) during key moments in Palestinian history, including the Nakba (1948), the Naksa (1967), the Oslo Accords (1993), and Al-Aqsa or second Intifada (2000–05). Jacir’s protagonists refuse the limiting choices on offer. They demand to be recognized as Palestinian, as does Jacir as a Palestinian filmmaker against the efforts of Western industry critics, festivals, and funders to label her as an “Arab woman filmmaker,” often carrying colonial assumptions of “oppressed” or “exceptional” women throughout Southwest Asia (“the Middle East”). Her films do more than offer a glimpse of everyday life to “humanize” Palestinians; they are “unruly subjects” that unsettle assumptions to reframe the debates.

Screening sovereignty: Cold War mediations of nationhood in USIA motion picture operations in the SWANA region

This article explores how visible constructions and perceptions of sovereignty in the motion pictures of the United States Information Agency (USIA) factored into the dynamics of US Cold War foreign policy amidst the rise of the Non-Aligned Movement. Specifically, it focuses on agency films about and circulating within the Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) region – such as the locally produced Iraq al-Youm newsreels (c.1956–58). By mapping the different policy contexts of the Eisenhower and Kennedy administrations onto the USIA films’ aesthetics and themes, the article illustrates continuities in the United States’s attempts to expressively leverage images and evocations of sovereignty to sell and consolidate its policy interests in the region.

Adjoint Waveform Tomography for Crustal and Upper Mantle Structure of the Middle East and Southwest Asia for Improved Waveform Simulations Using Openly Available Broadband Data

ABSTRACT We present a new model of radially anisotropic seismic wavespeeds for the crust and upper mantle of a broad region of the Middle East and Southwest Asia (MESWA) derived from adjoint waveform tomography. The new model enables fully 3D simulations of complete three-component waveforms and provides improved fits that were not possible with previous models. We inverted over 32,000 waveforms from 192 earthquakes recorded by over 1000 openly available broadband seismic stations from permanent and temporary networks in the region with highly uneven coverage. Inversion iterations proceeded from the period band 50–100 s in six stages and 54 total iterations reducing the minimum period to 30 s. Our final model, MESWA, improves waveform fits compared to the starting and other models for both the data used in the inversion and an independent validation set of 66 events. Restitution tests indicate that the model resolves features in the central part of the model to depths of about 150 km. The new model reveals tectonic features imaged by other studies and methods but in a new holistic model of anisotropic shear and compressional wavespeeds (VS and VP, respectively) covering a larger domain with smaller scale length and amplified features. Examples include low crustal VS in the Tethyan belt and low mantle VS following divergent (Gulf of Aden, Red Sea) and transform (Dead Sea fault) margins of the Arabian plate. Low VS is imaged below Cenozoic volcanic centers of the Mecca–Madina–Nafud Line, Arabian Peninsula, and the Türkiye–Iran border region. Elevated VS tracks Makran subduction under southeast Iran with near vertical dip. MESWA could be used as a starting model for further improvements, say, using waveforms from in-country seismic networks that are not currently openly available and/or smaller-scale studies targeting a shorter period. The model could be used to improve earthquake hazard studies and nuclear explosion monitoring.

Some like it hot: Past and present phylogeography of a desert dwelling gecko across the Arabian Peninsula

AbstractAimDeserts represent dynamic ecosystems that support communities of endemic and specialised species. We analysed the role of present and past climatic conditions in shaping the distribution of the widespread Bunopus geckos in the Arabian and south‐west Asian deserts. We studied their phylogeographic and demographic history to test whether the Bunopus geckos colonised Arabia from Asia or, vice versa, Asia from Arabia and to identify migration corridors that have historically enabled the dispersal of Bunopus geckos.LocationThe Middle East, especially the Arabian Peninsula.TaxonGenus Bunopus (Squamata; Gekkonidae).MethodsWe generated sequence data for four genes and performed maximum likelihood, Bayesian inference and time‐calibrated phylogenetic analyses and ancestral area reconstruction to infer the phylogenetic and biogeographic history of the genus. We modelled the species' distribution and projected it to several past time periods spanning from mid‐Pliocene to the present. We analysed contemporary landscape connectivity across the peninsula to identify dispersal corridors that enable migration and promote gene flow among Bunopus populations in Arabia.ResultsBunopus is formed by deeply divergent lineages that correspond to up to eight candidate species. The genus originated in southwest Asia and dispersed to Arabia in the late Miocene. The Arabian populations were stable through most of their history in terms of size and distribution extent. Major corridors for contemporary Bunopus dispersal stretch along the eastern Arabian coasts from where they cross through the peninsula to the northern Red Sea coasts.Main ConclusionsThe evolutionary history of Bunopus was substantially influenced by paleoenvironmental conditions. The generalist habits and ground‐dwelling lifestyle enabled the geckos to colonise most of the arid regions of southwest Asia, with Arabia being colonised from the Iranian Plateau in the late Miocene. The distribution extent of Bunopus responded to the past climatic and habitat oscillations; the range was fragmented during moist climatic phases, and it expanded in times of increased aridity. The genus requires taxonomic revision to formally assess its diversity. Based on the results obtained in this study, Crossobamon orientalis is reassigned to Bunopus.

Clinicopathologic features and survival outcomes of CD30 expression in extranodal natural killer/T-cell lymphoma.

Previous studies have been inconsistent concerning the association between the prognostic value of CD30 expression and extranodal natural killer/T-cell lymphoma (ENKTL). CD30 expression in 82 patients with newly diagnosed ENKTL (mean age, 50 years; 73.2% male) was assessed by immunohistochemistry on paraffin-embedded sections. The level of CD30 expression was categorized into negative (0%, no staining) and positive groups. Sixty-seven cases exhibited positive CD30 expression, and the main between-group difference was the Chinese Southwest Oncology Group and Asia Lymphoma Study Group (CA) ENKTL stage and Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status. The cutoff point for CD30 expression was 40% by restricted cubic splines analysis. The overall survival of patients with high expression (>40%) was statistically superior to negative (0%) and low-expression groups. A positive correlation was observed between CD30 and Epstein-Barr virus-encoded small RNA status (r = 0.305). Multivariable analysis suggested that positive CD30 expression (hazard ratio, 0.420 [95% CI, 0.193-0.914]; P = .029) and CA advanced stage (hazard ratio, 2.844 [95% CI, 1.371-5.896]; P = .005) were independent prognostic factors for ENKTL. Positive CD30 expression was a favorable prognostic factor for ENKTL, and CD30 expression could restratify the survival of patients in clinical subgroups.

Policy Effect and Mechanism of China’s MSRI on Inbound Tourism Along the Route

ABSTRACT This paper adopted a difference-in-differences method and panel datasets were divided into 20 MSR countries and 60 non-MSR countries between 2010 and 2019 to identify the MSRI’s effects and mechanisms behind on inbound tourism. Results show that the MSRI had a significant and direct positive effect on inbound tourism among associated countries. Compared with the tourist arrivals (ITN), the positive effect on the inbound tourism revenue (ITR) was stronger. The MSRI increased these countries’ ITR and ITN by 27.4% and 15.0%. The positive effect on ITR demonstrated a fluctuating but rising trend. The MSRI had boosted inbound tourism by reducing social risk, enhancing infrastructure, and facilitating trade among associated countries. The MSRI had a higher inbound tourism promotion effect on countries in South Asia, West Asia and North Africa, high-income countries, lower-middle-income countries and countries with low tourism resource endowment.

Chronic respiratory symptoms following deployment-related occupational and environmental exposures among US veterans

ObjectivesCharacterise inhalational exposures during deployment to Afghanistan and Southwest Asia and associations with postdeployment respiratory symptoms.MethodsParticipants (n=1960) in this cross-sectional study of US Veterans (Veterans Affairs Cooperative Study ‘Service and...

Aerosolized Particulate Matter and Blunting of Ciliary Dynamic Responses: Implications for Veterans and Active Duty Military in Southwest Asia.

Respiratory diseases such as chronic rhinosinusitis and asthma are observed at increased rates in active duty and veteran military members, and they are especially prevalent in individuals who have been deployed in Southwest Asia during Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. Particulate matter, specifically the fine-grain desert sand found in the Middle East, may be a key source of this pathology because of deleterious effects on mucociliary clearance. With IRB approval, human sinonasal tissue was grown at an air-liquid interface and cultures were exposed to different types and sizes of particulate matter, including sand from Afghanistan and Kuwait. Ciliary dynamic responses to mechanical stimulation and ATP application were assessed following particulate exposure. Particle size of the commercial sand was substantially larger than that of the sand of Afghan or Kuwaiti origin. Following exposure to particulate matter, normal dynamic ciliary responses to mechanical stimulation and ATP application were significantly decreased (P < .01), with corresponding decreases in ATP-induced calcium flux (P < .05). These changes were partially reversible with apical washing after a 16-h period of exposure. After 36 h of exposure to Middle Eastern sand, ciliary responses to purinergic stimulation were completely abolished. There is a neutralization of the dynamic ciliary response following chronic particulate matter exposure, similar to ciliary pathologies observed in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis. Aerosolized particulate matter endured by military personnel in the Southwest Asia may cause dysfunctional mucociliary clearance; these data help to explain the increased prevalence of respiratory pathology in individuals who are or have been deployed in this region.

Valorization of the potential use of date press cake (date syrup by-product) in food and non-food applications: a review

Date palm is the most important fruit crop in the Middle East, North Africa, and Southwest Asia. However, a large amount of waste is generated through various industries related to date processing. Date press cake (DPC) is the main by-product of the date honey or syrup industry, where it gives 17–28 g of DPC /100 g of fruit and is usually discarded as waste. Due to its higher content of nutrients and bioactive compounds, it can be valorized through inclusion in various food and nonfood applications. The potential applications of DPC as a promising ingredient and innovative substrate in different applications were discussed in this review, including chemical composition, nutritional value, functionality, current applications of DPC, limitations, and future trends.

Inventions, innovations and the origins of spelt wheat

What turns an invention into an innovation? How, if at all, might we observe this process archaeologically? Loosely put, new varieties of plants or animals might be considered as inventions (whether from deliberate breeding or by chance), but ones that are only taken up by humans more systematically as innovations when certain social, demographic, economic and environmental factors encourage such take-up. The archaebotanically-observed history of spelt wheat (Triticum spelta) is an interesting case in this respect. Prior to 3000 bce, spelt is occasionally found in very small amounts at sites in eastern Europe and south-west Asia, but is usually considered to be a crop weed in such contexts, rather than a cultivar. However, rather suddenly across Central Europe ~ 3000−2500 bce spelt appears more consistently at multiple Chalcolithic and especially Bell Beaker sites, in quantities which suggest a shift to its use as a deliberate crop. By the full-scale Bronze Age in this region, spelt becomes one of the major crops. This paper discusses this Central European process in greater detail via macro-botanical evidence. It argues that demographic factors during the Neolithic may have inhibited the spread of Asian spelt into central Europe, and that while small amounts of local European spelt were probably present earlier on, it was only at the very end of the Neolithic, in tandem with human population increases and major technological changes such as the introduction of the plough that spelt was taken up as a cultivar. In particular, a shift by some communities in the region ~ 3000−2500 bce to more extensive (and sometimes plough-enabled) agricultural strategies may have favoured deliberate cultivation of spelt on less productive soils, given this variety’s relative robustness to harsher conditions. In other words, a combination of conditions was necessary for this innovation to really take hold.

A history of olive and grape cultivation in Southwest Asia using charcoal and seed remains.

Evaluating archaeobotanical data from over 3.9 million seeds and 124,300 charcoal fragments across 330 archaeological site phases in Southwest Asia, we reconstruct the history of olive and grape cultivation spanning a period of 6,000 years. Combining charcoal and seed data enables investigation into both the production and consumption of olive and grape. The earliest indication for olive and grape cultivation appears in the southern Levant around ca. 5000 BC and 4th millennium BC respectively, although cultivation may have been practiced prior to these dates. Olive and grape cultivation in Southwest Asia was regionally concentrated within the Levant until 600 BC, although there were periodic pushes to the East. Several indications for climate influencing the history of olive and grape cultivation were found, as well as a correlation between periods of high population density and high proportions of olive and grape remains in archaeological sites. While temporal uncertainty prevents a detailed understanding of the causal mechanisms behind these correlations, we suggest that long distance trade in olives, grapes and their associated products was integral to the economic, social, and demographic trajectories of the region.

Changes to Middle East and Southwest Asia Compound Drought and Heat since 1999

Abstract We diagnose physical factors related to frequent compound drought and heat extremes over a Middle East and Southwest Asia (MESA; 30°–40°N, 35°–65°E) region in a recent (1999–2022) compared to a prior (1951–98) period. The recent compound extremes were related to conflict, disease transmission, and water shortages in this already semiarid region. Observed estimates and four transient climate model ensembles are used to identify the effect of El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and atmospheric forcing by greenhouse gases and aerosols on these compound extremes in autumn (September–November), winter (December–February), spring (March–May), and summer (June–August) that may lead to practical forecast skill for future compound events. Observations and climate models indicate that MESA compound drought and heat in the autumn, winter, and spring wet seasons for the recent period were related to the La Niña phase of ENSO and an attendant northward shift of the storm track that hinders precipitation-bearing storms from moving through MESA. A comparison of different conditions in the model simulations is used to isolate the effects of La Niña and the atmospheric forcing by greenhouse gases and aerosols on compound MESA drought and heat. A comparison of recent and prior periods in the climate models, which isolates the effects of the atmospheric forcing, indicates that greenhouse gases and aerosols are related to the increases in MESA heat frequency in all seasons. A comparison of La Niña to ENSO neutral and El Niño in the recent period of the climate models indicates that La Niña is related to increases in MESA drought frequency in the wet seasons. Significance Statement Compound drought and heat pose serious threats to the Middle East and Southwest Asia (MESA) where political and socioeconomic challenges leave its people vulnerable to climate extremes. In this region, frequent seasonal compound drought and heat in a recent (1999–2022) compared to a prior (1951–98) period were related to conflict and water shortages. Physical factors related to these compound extremes in the recent period over MESA were identified, potentially rendering future occurrences predictable. La Niña and atmospheric forcing by greenhouse gases and aerosols contributed to the compound extremes, with the former related to anomalously low precipitation in the September–November, December–February, and March–May wet seasons and the latter related to anomalous high temperatures in all seasons, including June–August.

European endemic Ptychostomum minii (Bryaceae, Bryophyta) - new to Turkey and its significant range extention to SW Asia

In this study, Ptychostomum minii, a European endemic species is recorded for the first time in Turkey and Southwest Asia. The species was found in the Bolkar Mountains in Turkey. Insights into recent discoveries, along with accompanying photographs, ecology, and location specifics in Turkey are presented.

Россия и Иран на пути к стратегическому партнерству

The article examines various aspects of the process of formation of a new strategic situation in South-West Asia, associated with the beginning of the implementation of large-scale transport and civilizational international initiatives of China and Russia in Eurasia. The focus is on the problem of developing new approaches to regional development based on the principle of comprehensive security with the participation of Russia and Iran. Particular attention is paid to the issue of establishing a Russian-Iranian strategic partnership in the context of developing a strategy for the development of the International Transport Corridor “North-South” in the context of mega-regionalization.

Iran’s Current Foreign Policy Course in the South Caucasus

The article is devoted to the peculiarities of Iran’s foreign policy in the South Caucasus at the present stage in the context of the degradation of Iran’s relations with Western countries and the proclaimed turn of the country to the East and Asia. The article analyzes the trends in the development of the South Caucasus as a regional subsystem of international relations, as well as logistics and energy projects promoted by various countries in the region. It is stated that for Iran, the South Caucasus is part of a complex megaregion of Southwest Asia, where Tehran’s strategic interests lie. The article examines Iran’s foreign policy course in the Transcaucasia region during the presidency of E. Raisi, especially taking into account the dynamics in the Iran-Azerbaijan-Armenia “triangle”.

The use of Sambucus ebulus L. in folk medicine and chemical composition

Sambucus species are distributed in regions with temperate and subtropical climates on earth. The high economic value of Sambucus species to humans has increased their economic cultivation in recent years, which has encouraged their rapid spread. Sambucus ebulus L. species is widely distributed especially in Southern and Central Europe, Northwest Africa and Southwest Asia (especially Northern Iran). S. ebulus plant is an important medicinal plant used in folk medicine by the peoples of the Balkan Peninsula, Western Europe and the Middle East. The plant has no special soil requirements. It can be grown in almost any soil type. It has high resistance to prevailing winds. Various parts of the plant have been traditionally used to treat bites, burns, infectious wounds, edema, eczema, urticaria, arthritis and sore throat.

The use of Styrax officinalis L. in folk medicine and chemical composition

Styrax officinalis L. species is a shrub-shaped plant belonging to the Styracaceae family, distributed in Central America, Southeast Europe, Southwest Asia and the Mediterranean region. The Styracaceae family consists of small trees and shrubs mostly distributed in tropical and subtropical regions. The genus Styrax differs from other genera of this family in that it produces a resinous substance that is usually secreted when the bark and stems are damaged. The resin of the Styrax officinalis L. species, which was called “storax” in the past, is used in traditional medicine in the Mediterranean basin, especially for antiseptic purposes and against respiratory diseases. It is also used externally medicinally, to heal skin wounds and to treat scabies. In Latin America it is used as an antiseptic, expectorant and also for the treatment of heart diseases, stroke, leprosy, constipation and bronchitis. The leaves, fruits, resin, fruit peels, flowers and seeds of Styrax officinalis have natural products rich in various biological properties. It has been determined that the herbal materials, crude extracts and isolated chemical components of the plant are used biologically and pharmacologically. As a result of this research; cardiovascular diseases, tuberculosis, edema, paralysis, leprosy, constipation, skin wounds, scabies, skin rash, diphtheria, intestinal ulcers, acute earache, toothache, eye inflammations, kidney and bladder pain, diphtheria, leukorrhoea have been revealed to be an important medicinal plant used in the treatment of malignant tumors, fever and respiratory diseases.

Ecological niche differentiation among three subspecies of the vulnerable Russian tortoise Testudo horsfieldii through its distribution range

Hosseinian Yousefkhani S. S. 2023. Ecological niche differentiation among three subspecies of the vulnerable Russian tortoise Testudo horsfieldii through its distribution range 2023. Folia Biologica (Kraków) 71: 171-180. T. h. horsfieldii, T. h. rustamovi and T. h. kazakhstanica – are all allopatric. In the present study, the ecological niche divergences among three subspecies were evaluated using a bioclimatic dataset. Suitable habitat predictions and niche similarity tests indicated that the three subspecies have significantly different ecological niches. Temperature is an important factor for the presence of a subspecies, but the threshold is different for each subspecies. Temperature appears to limit the range for the northern subspecies T. h. kazakhstanica, but not for the two southern subspecies T. h. rustamovi and T. h. horsfieldii, which have relatively wide ranges in Central and Southwest Asia. Local adaptations to distinct climates and the microevolution process may have played important roles in this differentiation. It is recommended to evaluate these subspecies using molecular markers, in order to estimate the demographic relationships amongst them and to make taxonomic decisions.

NEOLITHIC LITHIC INDUSTRIES OF THE EASTERN WING OF THE FERTILE CRESCENT: PAYING HOMAGE TO PROFESSOR STEFAN K. KOZŁOWSKI

A systematic study by Stefan K. Kozłowski during the 1990s and the 2000s revealed marked techno-typological differences between the Neolithic lithic industries of the “Eastern and Western Wings” of the Fertile Crescent of Southwest Asia. The present article addresses regional variability in Pottery Neolithic flaked stone industries within the Eastern Wing. It suggests the potential existence of lithic variability between the plains and the mountains of central Mesopotamia. Given the known lithic variability also in the Eastern Wing of northern Mesopotamia, the present study suggests the need to define the variability of lithic industries in other parts of each wing; such research would help better explain the historical, ecological, and cultural backgrounds of regional differences.