The Arab- Israeli conflict has been one of the critical elements in American Foreign policy for decades. The manner in which the US has approached this conflict has impacted the country’s relations with all of the nations in the region as well as nations around the world. It has had implications on American energy policies as well as how “terrorists” view America and the West. This struggle far predates the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948 and is likely to continue for the foreseeable future.  The course will examine the historical background of the Arab-Israeli conflict and will examine the conflicting claims by Arabs and Jews for the same geographic territory. It will cover many of the efforts to resolve the conflict and analyze why, so far, all have failed. Finally, the course will cover the impact this region has on American foreign policy.