Iran

1
Iran
Section 2 Middle East Governments and Resources

• In 1979, the Islamic, or Iranian, revolution
  overthrew the monarchy that had ruled Iran
  for centuries.
• Today, Iran is a theocratic republic.
• This means that the government is based on
  religious principals (Islam) and the wishes of
  its people.
• The head of state is the Supreme Leader, who is
  always an ayatollah, or recognized religious
  authority.

2

• The Supreme Leader is chosen by the Assembly
  of Experts and holds the position for life.
• The assembly consists of 86 religious scholars.
• The people elect the assembly and the
  president by popular vote.
• The president governs based on the religious
  guidance of the ayatollah.
• The supreme leader has final say over many of the
  presidents decisions.
• The president can serve two terms of four years
  each.
• Irans legislature is called the Consultative
  assembly.
• Citizens 16 and older can vote for the 290
  members of the Assembly.

3
Israel

• Israel has a representative parliamentary
  democracy.
• The head of state is the president, who actually
  does not have much power.
• The Israeli prime minister is the head of the
  government.
• The legislature elects the president.
• The president then chooses the head of the
  largest political party to be the prime minister.
• The prime minister must organize a coalition to
  govern.
• A coalition is a group of several different
  political parties that have to cooperate in order
  to make decisions.

4

• This type of government is known as a coalition
  government.
• The Israeli legislature is called the Knesset.
• The Knesset holds most of the power in the
  Israeli government.
• Israelis eighteen and older elect these officials
  by popular vote.
• While most of Israels Jewish citizens see
  themselves as secular, meaning they do not feel
  the countrys laws should be based solely on
  religious beliefs, many Israeli laws are
  influenced by the Orthodox Jews, those who want
  government policy to be made according to
  religious law
• These people represent about 25 percent of the
  Israeli population.
• Elections are held in Israel every four years

5
Saudi Arabia

• Saudi Arabia's government is one of the few
  absolute monarchies in the world today.
• The government is a monarchy governed by Islamic
  Sharia Law.(law based on the Quran)
• In 2004, however, the Saudi government began
  allowing men who are 21 and older to vote for
  half of their local officials.
• Men can also vote for one-third of the members of
  the legislature.
• The king has a cabinet called the Council of
  Ministers.
• The Council mostly consists of members of the
  royal family.
• The Saudi legislature is called the Consultative
  Council.
• The king chooses two-thirds of the members of the
  Council.

6

• Saudi Arabia is ruled by a hereditary monarchy,
  which means the government is led by a king who
  comes from a family that has ruled the country
  for several generations.
• The King of Saudi Arabia has been a member of the
  al-Saud family since the 1920s.
• The king and his advisors, many of whom are his
  family members or influential business and
  religions leaders in the country, make the laws
• There is no written constitution, and the king
  rules for life
• The people of Saudi Arabia do not choose the king
• When a king dies, the Saudi family announces
• who the next king will be from among their
  
• male family members
• Conservative religious leaders also have a great
  deal of influence in decisions made by the
• monarchy

7
Religion and Southwest Asian Governments

• In the United States and many western nations,
  religion and politics tend to be separate.
• In much of the Middle East, however, religion and
  politics are often mixed.
• Countries like Iran based their systems of govt
  on religion.
• Religion is important even in countries that
  dont base their governments on religion.
• Many political parties in the Middle East are
  religious
• Many parties represent different branches of
  Islam.
• Since the majority of the people in the region
  are Muslim, religion also influences the way
  people vote
• Israel is a democratic state, but it was founded
  as a Jewish homeland.