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88-577: It is an ancient town, overlooking the Persian Gulf , in the north end of the oasis of Al-Qatif . It is located about 2.1 km south of Safwa city and about 1 km north of Al-Quddaih . It has a mangrove area. One of its neighborhoods is Al-Zara , which used to be a historic city and the capital of the historic province of Bahrain since the early Islamic times. Despite a ban on public demonstrations in Saudi Arabia, on 29 July 2006,

176-464: A tributary which joins the waterway from the Iranian side, deposits large amounts of silt into the river; this necessitates continuous dredging to keep it navigable. The area used to hold the largest date palm forest in the world. In the mid-1970s, the region included 17–18 million date palms: an estimated one-fifth of the world's 90 million palm trees. However, by 2002, more than 14 million of

264-709: A Portuguese force led by commander Antonio Correia invaded Bahrain to take control of the wealth created by its pearl industry. On April 29, 1602, Shāh Abbās , the Persian emperor of the Safavid Persian Empire , expelled the Portuguese from Bahrain, and that date is commemorated as National Persian Gulf day in Iran . With the support of the British fleet, in 1622 'Abbās took the island of Hormuz from

352-616: A coastline on the Persian Gulf are (clockwise, from north): Iran; Oman 's Musandam exclave ; the United Arab Emirates ; Saudi Arabia; Qatar , on a peninsula off the Saudi coast; Bahrain , an island nation; Kuwait ; and Iraq in the northwest. Various small islands also lie within the Persian Gulf, some of which are the subject of territorial disputes between the states in the region. Exclusive economic zones in

440-508: A combination of fresh and salt water for growth, and act as nurseries for many crabs, small fish, and insects; these fish and insects are the source of food for many of the marine birds that feed on them. Mangroves are a diverse group of shrubs and trees belonging to the genus Avicennia or Rhizophora that flourish in the salt water shallows of the Persian Gulf, and are the most important habitats for small crustaceans that dwell in them. They are as crucial an indicator of biological health on

528-642: A few coral reefs . Compared to the Red Sea, the coral reefs in the Persian Gulf are relatively few and far between. This is primarily connected to the influx of major rivers, especially the Shatt al-Arab (Euphrates and Tigris), which carry large amounts of sediment (most reef-building corals require strong light) and causes relatively large variations in temperature and salinity (corals in general are poorly suited to large variations). Nevertheless, coral reefs have been found along sections of coast of all countries in

616-550: A giant field across the territorial median line (North Field in the Qatari sector; South Pars Field in the Iranian sector). Using this gas, Qatar has built up a substantial liquefied natural gas (LNG) and petrochemical industry. In 2002, the Persian Gulf nations of Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE produced about 25% of the world's oil, held nearly two-thirds of the world's crude oil reserves , and about 35% of

704-465: A period of acute Iraqi-Iranian tension that was to last until the Algiers Accords of 1975. All United Nations attempts to intervene and mediate the dispute were rebuffed. Baathist Iraq claimed the frontier agreed to in 1937 was still the legitimate frontier. In response, Iran in the early 1970s became the main patron of Iraqi Kurdish groups fighting for independence from Iraq. In 1974 with

792-461: A pro- Hezbollah march took place in Al-Awamiyah and al-Qatif, protesting against Israel ’s military campaign against Lebanon . Further protests took place on 3 August of the same year and on 28 April 2009. In March 2009, at least four people, including a minor, were arrested after taking part in rallies which were organized to protest the warrant for the arrest of Sheikh Nimr Baqir al-Nimr ,

880-552: A senior Shiite cleric and Imam of a mosque in Al-Awamiyah. He had criticised attacks against Shias traveling to the tomb of Muhammad . On 5 April 2015, a security officer was killed during a raid on suspected government opponents. According to the government, at least four citizens were detained and weapons seized. In January 2016, Saudi Arabia executed the prominent Shiite cleric Sheikh Nimr Baqir al-Nimr , who had called for pro-democracy demonstrations, along with forty-seven people accused of terrorism. In May 2017, Al-Awamiyah

968-470: Is a diverse cradle for many species who depend on each other for survival. However, the Persian Gulf is not as biologically diverse as the Red Sea . Overall, the wildlife of the Persian Gulf is endangered from both global factors, and regional, local negligence. Most pollution is from ships; land generated pollution counts as the second most common source of pollution. Along the mediterranean regions of

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1056-570: Is defined as "A line joining Ràs Limah (25°57'N) on the coast of Arabia and Ràs al Kuh (25°48'N) on the coast of Iran (Persia)". This inland sea of some 251,000 square kilometres (96,912 sq mi) is connected to the Gulf of Oman in the east by the Strait of Hormuz ; and its western end is marked by the major river delta of the Shatt al-Arab , which carries the waters of the Euphrates and

1144-470: Is destroyed, or occupied by man-made structures. This has had a negative impact on the crustaceans that rely on the mangrove, and in turn on the species that feed on them. The Persian Gulf and its coastal areas are the world's largest single source of petroleum, and related industries dominate the region. Safaniya Oil Field , the world's largest offshore oilfield , is located in the Persian Gulf. Large gas finds have also been made, with Qatar and Iran sharing

1232-666: Is in the Persian Gulf Basin , which is of Cenozoic origin and related to the subduction of the Arabian Plate under the Zagros Mountains . The current flooding of the basin started 15,000 years ago due to rising sea levels of the Holocene glacial retreat . The International Hydrographic Organization defines the Persian Gulf's southern limit as "The Northwestern limit of Gulf of Oman". This limit

1320-430: Is negatively affected by new developments along the Persian Gulf coastline, particularly the construction of artificial islands by Arab states and pollution from oil spills caused during the "Persian Gulf war" and various other natural and artificial causes. Uncontrolled hunting has also had a negative impact on the survival of dugongs. After Australian waters, which are estimated to contain some 80,000 dugong inhabitants,

1408-408: Is now the Iranian province of Bushehr , is an example of such commercial port. Siraf, was also significant in that it had a flourishing commercial trade with China by the fourth century, having first established connection with the far east in 185 AD. Portuguese influence in the Persian Gulf lasted for 250 years; however, since the beginning of the 16th century, Portuguese dominance contended with

1496-496: Is particularly famous and known for its tomatoes which are called Ramsi tomatoes after the name of the land it is grown in, Al Ramis . Oil pipelines surround the village from the west and north sides along with several oil wells of which some are old and others newly drilled as part of Qatif Project . Over 2 million barrels of oil pass through the village each day on the way to the Ras Tanura terminal and refinery. The town

1584-578: Is served by the nearby King Fahd International Airport which is 25 minutes away with a distance of 30 km from the terminal to the town. The town can be accessed via either two exits from Dhahran-Jubail Highway ; the Airport exit or Qatif's main entrance near Awjam . By March 2019, a new highway connecting the city with its neighbouring area is planned to be launched. Nearly all of the residents of Al-Awamiyah practice Twelver Shia Islam . Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf , sometimes called

1672-620: Is still a deficit of 416 cubic kilometres (100 cu mi) per year. This difference is supplied by currents at the Strait of Hormuz . The water from the Persian Gulf has a higher salinity, and therefore exits from the bottom of the Strait, while ocean water with less salinity flows in through the top. Another study revealed the following numbers for water exchanges for the Persian Gulf: evaporation = –1.84 m (6.0 ft)/year, precipitation = 0.08 m (0.26 ft)/year, inflow from

1760-517: Is used by the International Hydrographic Organization . The dispute in naming has become especially prevalent since the 1960s. Rivalry between Iran and some Arab states, along with the emergence of pan-Arabism and Arab nationalism , has seen the name "Arabian Gulf" become predominant in most Arab countries. Names beyond these two have also been applied to or proposed for this body of water. The region of

1848-779: The Arabian Gulf , is a mediterranean sea in West Asia . The body of water is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula . It is connected to the Gulf of Oman in the east by the Strait of Hormuz . The Shatt al-Arab river delta forms the northwest shoreline. The Persian Gulf has many fishing grounds, extensive reefs (mostly rocky, but also coral ), and abundant pearl oysters , however its ecology has been damaged by industrialization and oil spills . The Persian Gulf

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1936-754: The Al Qasimi tribe. This led to the British mounting the Persian Gulf campaign of 1819 . The campaign led to the signing of the General Maritime Treaty of 1820 between the British and the Sheikhs of what was then known as the ' Pirate Coast '. From 1763 until 1971, the British Empire maintained varying degrees of political control over some of the Persian Gulf states, including the United Arab Emirates (originally called

2024-604: The Arabs '; Persian : اروندرود , romanized :  Arvand Rud , lit.   'Swift River' ) is a river about 200 kilometres (120 mi) in length that is formed at the confluence of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers in the town of al-Qurnah in the Basra Governorate of southern Iraq . The southern end of the river constitutes the Iran–Iraq border down to its mouth , where it discharges into

2112-529: The Iran–Iraq War that lasted from 1980 to 1988, when the pre-1980 status quo was restored. The Iranian cities and major ports of Abadan and Khorramshahr and the Iraqi cities and major ports of Basra and Al-Faw are situated along this river. During the 2003 invasion of Iraq , the waterway was a key military target for the coalition forces . Since it is the only outlet to the Persian Gulf, its capture

2200-563: The Nile in the west, as well as Sind waterway, in India. The Achaemenid high naval command had established major naval bases located along Shatt al-Arab river, Bahrain, Oman, and Yemen. The Persian fleet would soon not only be used for peacekeeping purposes along the Shatt al-Arab but would also open the door to trade with India via Persian Gulf. Following the fall of Achaemenid Empire, and after

2288-466: The Persian Gulf . The Shatt al-Arab varies in width from about 232 metres (761 ft) at Basra to 800 metres (2,600 ft) at its mouth. It is thought that the waterway formed relatively recently in geological time, with the Tigris and Euphrates originally emptying into the Persian Gulf via a channel further to the west. Kuwait 's Bubiyan Island is part of the Shatt al-Arab delta. The Karun ,

2376-453: The Tigris . In Iran , this is called "Arvand Rud" (lit. Swift River ). Its length is 989 kilometres (615 miles), with Iran covering most of the northern coast and Saudi Arabia most of the southern coast. The Persian Gulf is about 56 km (35 mi) wide at its narrowest, in the Strait of Hormuz. Overall, the waters are very shallow, with a maximum depth of 90 metres (295 feet) and an average depth of 50 metres (164 feet). Countries with

2464-541: The Trucial States ) and at various times Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, and Qatar through the British Residency of the Persian Gulf . The Persian Gulf was a battlefield of the 1980–1988 Iran–Iraq War , in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers . It is the namesake of the 1991 Gulf War , the largely air- and land-based conflict that followed Iraq 's invasion of Kuwait . The United States' role in

2552-450: The collared kingfishers were raised by conservationists over real estate development by the United Arab Emirates and Oman. Estimates from 2006 showed that only three viable nesting sites were available for this ancient bird, one located 80 miles (129 km) from Dubai, and two smaller sites in Oman. Such real estate expansion could prove devastating to this subspecies. A UN plan to protect

2640-627: The " Persian Corridor ". Britain utilized the Persian Gulf as the entry point for the supply chain in order to make use of the Trans-Iranian Railway . The Persian Gulf therefore became a critical maritime path through which the Allies transported equipment to Soviet Union against the Nazi invasion . The piracy in the Persian Gulf was prevalent until the 19th century. Many of the most notable historical instances of piracy were perpetrated by

2728-521: The Arabian Sea, including the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea , the Gulf of Kutch , the Gulf of Suez , the Gulf of Aqaba , the Gulf of Aden , and the Gulf of Oman , dolphins and finless porpoises are the most common marine mammals in the waters, while larger whales and orcas are rarer today. Historically, whales had been abundant in the Persian Gulf before commercial hunts wiped them out. Whales were reduced even further by illegal mass hunts by

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2816-584: The Arabs. During the 1988 battles, the Iranians seemed tired and worn out by the nearly eight years of the war, and "put up very little resistance" to the Iraqi offensives. After the Iran–Iraq War , both sides agreed to once again treat the Algiers Accord as binding. Conflicting territorial claims and disputes over navigation rights between Iran and Iraq were among the main factors for the beginning of

2904-467: The Gulf of Aqaba), omura's whale , minke whale , and orca also swim into the Persian Gulf, while many other large species such as blue whale , sei , and sperm whales were once migrants into the Gulf of Oman and off the coasts in deeper waters, and still migrate into the Red Sea, but mainly in deeper waters of outer seas. In 2017, waters of the Persian Gulf along Abu Dhabi were revealed to hold

2992-710: The Iraqis decided against war, and chose to make concessions to Tehran to end the Kurdish rebellion. In March 1975, Vice President Saddam Hussein of Iraq and the Shah signed the Algiers Accord in which Iraq recognized a series of straight lines closely approximating the thalweg (deepest channel) of the waterway, as the official border, in exchange for which Iran ended its support of the Iraqi Kurds. The Algiers Accord

3080-419: The Iraqis expelled the Iranians from Salamchech and took Majnun Island . During the fighting in the spring of 1988, the Iranians showed all the signs of collapsing morale. Brogan reported: Reports from the front, both at Faw [Fao] and outside Basra, indicated that the Iranian resistance was surprisingly weak. The army that had shown such courage and élan early in the war now broke in a rout, and fled before

3168-714: The Lakhum tribe , who lived in what is now Yemen, migrated north and founded the Lakhmid Kingdom along the southern coast. Occasional ancient battles took place along the Persian Gulf coastlines, between the Sassanid Persian empire and the Lakhmid Kingdom, the most prominent of which was the invasion led by Shapur II against the Lakhmids, leading to Lakhmids' defeat, and advancement into Arabia, along

3256-628: The Middle East adjacent to the Gulf. The world's oldest known civilization ( Sumer ) developed along the Persian Gulf and southern Mesopotamia . The oldest evidence in the world for seagoing vessels has been found at H3 in Kuwait, dating to the mid-sixth millennium BC, when the Gulf was part of an extensive trade network that involved the Ubaid settlements in Mesopotamia and communities along

3344-452: The Middle East are located in this region. The wildlife of the Persian Gulf is diverse, and entirely unique because of the Persian Gulf's geographic distribution and its isolation from the international waters only breached by the narrow Strait of Hormuz . The Persian Gulf has hosted some of the most magnificent marine fauna and flora, some of which are near extirpation or at serious environmental risk. From corals, to dugongs , Persian Gulf

3432-711: The Ottomans and Safavid Empires the way they had been in 1555. However, the treaty never demarcated a precise and fixed boundary regarding the frontier in the south. Later, Nader Shah (r. 1736–1747) succeeded in restoring Iranian control over Shatt al-Arab for a time. With the Treaty of Kerden (1746), however, the Zuhab boundaries were restored, ceding the river to the Turks once again. The First Treaty of Erzurum (1823) concluded between Ottoman Turkey and Qajar Iran , resulted in

3520-442: The Persian Gulf by the United Arab Emirates and Oman also raised concerns that habitats of species such as the hawksbill turtle , greater flamingo , and booted warbler may be destroyed. The dolphins that frequent the Persian Gulf in northern waters around Iran are also at risk. Recent statistics and observations show that dolphins are at danger of entrapment in purse seine fishing nets and exposure to chemical pollutants; perhaps

3608-496: The Persian Gulf grew in the second half of the 20th century. On July 3, 1988, Iran Air Flight 655 was shot down by the U.S. military (which had mistaken the Airbus A300 operating the flight for an Iranian F-14 Tomcat ) while it was flying over the Persian Gulf, killing all 290 people on board. The United Kingdom maintains a profile in the region; in 2006 alone, over 1 million British nationals visited Dubai . In 2018,

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3696-626: The Persian Gulf has been inhabited since the Paleolithic . During most of the Last Glacial Period (115,000–11,700 years Before Present ), due to lowered sea levels (reaching around 125 metres (410 ft) metres below present values during the Last Glacial Maximum ) combined with the shallow depth of the Gulf (on average around 35 metres (115 ft) and at max around 100 metres (330 ft) metres depth) most of

3784-422: The Persian Gulf in recent years. Aside from direct damage to the coral, the construction waste creates "traps" for marine life in which they are trapped and die. The result has been a dwindling population of the coral, and as a result a decrease in number of species that rely on the corals for their survival. A great example of this symbiosis are the mangroves in the Persian Gulf, which require tidal flow and

3872-529: The Persian Gulf was called Pūdīg , which comes from Avestan : Pūitika , lit.   'cleansing', a name mentioned in Bundahishn . The body of water is historically and internationally known as the Persian Gulf. Arab governments refer to it as the Arabian Gulf or The Gulf, and other countries and organizations have begun using Arabian Gulf. The name Gulf of Iran (Persian Gulf)

3960-635: The Persian Gulf was called many different names. The Assyrians called it the "Bitter Sea". In 550 BC, the Achaemenid Empire established the first ancient empire in Persis ( Pars , or modern Fars , also known as Persia), in the southwestern region of the Iranian plateau . Consequently, in the Greek sources, the body of water that bordered this province came to be known as the "Persian Gulf". In

4048-455: The Persian Gulf was exposed as dry land, forming a flat floodplain where a number of rivers converged. This region may have served as an environmental refuge for early humans during periodic hyperarid climate oscillations. The modern marine Gulf was formed when sea level rose during the early Holocene , from around 12,000 to 6,000 years ago. The flooding of the Gulf may have stimulated the development of Neolithic farming cultures in regions of

4136-616: The Persian Gulf was larger and the Shatt al-Arab had not then formed. Dispute over the river occurred during the Ottoman-Safavid era, prior to the establishment of an independent Iraq in the 20th century. In the early 16th century, the Iranian Safavids gained most of what is present-day Iraq, including Shatt al-Arab. They later lost these territories to the expanding Ottomans following the Peace of Amasya (1555). In

4224-448: The Persian Gulf. Corals are vital ecosystems that support multitude of marine species, and whose health directly reflects the health of the Persian Gulf. Recent years have seen a drastic decline in the coral population in the Persian Gulf, partially owing to global warming but mostly to irresponsible dumping by Arab states like the UAE and Bahrain. Construction garbage such as tires, cement, and chemical by products have found their way to

4312-580: The Persian Gulf. Persian naval forces laid the foundation for a strong Persian maritime presence in Persian Gulf, that started with Darius I and existed until the arrival of the British East India Company , and the Royal Navy by mid-19th century AD. Persians were not only stationed on islands of the Persian Gulf, but also had ships often of 100 to 200 capacity patrolling empire's various rivers including Shatt-al-Arab , Tigris , and

4400-597: The Persian Gulf: Countries by coastline length : The Persian Gulf is home to many islands such as Bahrain, an Arab state. Geographically, the biggest island in the Persian Gulf is Qeshm island , belonging to Iran and located in the Strait of Hormuz . Other significant islands in the Persian Gulf include Greater Tunb , Lesser Tunb and Kish administered by Iran, Bubiyan administered by Kuwait, Tarout administered by Saudi Arabia, and Dalma administered by UAE. In recent years, there has also been

4488-441: The Portuguese; much of the trade was diverted to the town of Bandar 'Abbās , which he had taken from the Portuguese in 1615 and had named after himself. The Persian Gulf was therefore opened to a flourishing commerce with the Portuguese, Dutch, French, Spanish and the British merchants, who were granted particular privileges. The Ottoman Empire reasserted itself into Eastern Arabia in 1871. Under military and political pressure from

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4576-631: The Shatt al-Arab captured British Royal Navy sailors who they claim trespassed into their territory: The river is also known in Iraq as the Dijla al-Awara (دجلة العوراء) and in Iran as the Arvand Rud (Persian: اروندرود, lit. 'Swift River'). The Persian epic poem Shahnameh (written between c.  977–1010 CE ) and many other works of Middle Persian literature use the name Arvand ( اروند ) for

4664-520: The Shatt al-Arab treaty, Iraq joined the Saadabad pact and Iranian-Iraqi relations were friendly for decades afterward. The Saadabad pact ultimately brought together Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Afghanistan in an alliance intended to protect their neutrality. In 1955, both Iran and Iraq were founding members of the Baghdad Pact alliance. The Shatt al-Arab and the forest were depicted in the middle of

4752-473: The Soviet Union and Japan in the 1960s and 1970s. Along with Bryde's whales , these once common residents can still can be seen in deeper marginal seas such as Gulf of Aden, Israel coasts, and in the Strait of Hormuz . Other species such as the critically endangered Arabian humpback whale , (also historically common in Gulf of Aden and increasingly sighted in the Red Sea since 2006, including in

4840-426: The Strait = 33.66 m (110.4 ft)/year, outflow from the Strait = -32.11 m (105.3 ft)/year, and the balance is 0 m (0 ft)/year. Data from different 3D computational fluid mechanics models, typically with spatial resolution of 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) and depth each element equal to 1–10 metres (3.3–32.8 ft) are predominantly used in computer models. Before being given its present name,

4928-413: The Strait of Hormuz. Writing the water balance budget for the Persian Gulf, the inputs are river discharges from Iran and Iraq (estimated to be 2,000 cubic metres (71,000 cu ft) per second), as well as precipitation over the sea which is around 180 mm (7.1 in)/year in Qeshm Island . The evaporation of the sea is high, so that after considering river discharge and rain contributions, there

5016-467: The UK opened a permanent military base, HMS  Jufair , in the Persian Gulf, the first since it withdrew from East of Suez in 1971 and is developing a support facility in Oman. Eight nations have coasts along the Persian Gulf: Bahrain , Iran , Iraq , Kuwait , Oman , Qatar , Saudi Arabia , and the United Arab Emirates . The Persian gulf's strategic location has made it an ideal place for human development over time. Today, many major cities of

5104-403: The addition of artificial islands for tourist attractions , such as The World Islands in Dubai and The Pearl Island in Doha . Persian Gulf islands are often also historically significant, having been used in the past by colonial powers such as the Portuguese and the British in their trade or as acquisitions for their empires. The Persian Gulf is connected to the Indian Ocean through

5192-403: The book of Nearchus known as Indikê (300 BC), the word "Persikon kolpos" is mentioned for multiple times meaning "Persian gulf". During the years 550 to 330 BC, coinciding with the sovereignty of the Achaemenid Persian Empire over the Middle East area, especially the whole part of the Persian Gulf and some parts of the Arabian Peninsula , the name of "Persian ( Pars ) Sea" is widely found in

5280-450: The coat of arms of the Kingdom of Iraq , from 1932 to 1959. Under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi in the late 1960s, Iran developed a strong military and took a more assertive stance in the Near East. In April 1969, Iran abrogated the 1937 treaty over the Shatt al-Arab and Iranian ships stopped paying tolls to Iraq when they used the Shatt al-Arab. The Shah argued that the 1937 treaty was unfair to Iran because almost all river borders around

5368-499: The compiled written texts. At the same period, there is the inscription and engraving of Darius the Great, which belongs to the fifth century BC: King Darius says: I ordered to dig this ( Canal of the Pharaohs ) canal from the river that is called Nile ( Pirâva ) and flows in Egypt ( Mudrâyâ ), to the sea that begins in Persia ( Pârsa ). Therefore, when this canal had been dug as I had ordered, ships went from Egypt through this canal to Persia, as I had intended. In Sassanian times,

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5456-441: The dividing line was a line drawn between the deepest points along the stream bed. In 1937, Iran and Iraq signed a treaty that settled the dispute over control of the Shatt al-Arab. The 1937 treaty recognized the Iranian-Iraqi border as along the low-water mark on the eastern side of the Shatt al-Arab except at Abadan and Khorramshahr where the frontier ran along the thalweg (the deep water line) which gave Iraq control of almost

5544-399: The early 17th century, the Safavids under king ( shah ) Abbas I (r. 1588–1629) once again regained Shatt al-Arab. Control of the river was at last permanently ceded to the Ottomans with the Treaty of Zuhab in 1639. Control of the waterway was also temporarily lost by the Safavids to the Ottomans in this treaty. In general, the Treaty of Zuhab roughly re-established the common borders of

5632-410: The entire Gulf coast. For most of the early history of the settlements in the Persian Gulf, the southern shores were ruled by a series of nomadic tribes. During the end of the fourth millennium BC , the southern part of the Persian Gulf was dominated by the Dilmun civilization. For a long time, the most important settlement on the southern coast of the Persian Gulf was Gerrha . In the second century

5720-448: The entire waterway; provided that all ships using the Shatt al-Arab fly the Iraqi flag and have an Iraqi pilot, and required Iran to pay tolls to Iraq whenever its ships used the Shatt al-Arab. Shah Reza Shah of Iran together with his close friend President Mustafa Kemal Atatürk of Turkey had been promoting the Saadabad pact intended to protect the neutrality of Muslim nations if the world should be plunged into war again. In return for

5808-429: The fall of the Parthian Empire , the Sassanid Empire ruled the northern half and at times the southern half of the Persian Gulf. The Persian Gulf, along with the Silk Road , were important trade routes in the Sassanid Empire. Many of the trading ports of the Persian empires were located in or around Persian Gulf. Siraf , an ancient Sassanid port that was located on the northern shore of the Persian Gulf, located in what

5896-428: The governor of the Ottoman Vilayet of Baghdad , Midhat Pasha , the ruling Al Thani tribe submitted peacefully to Ottoman rule. The Ottomans were forced to withdraw from the area with the start of World War I and the need for troops in various other frontiers. In World War II , the Western Allies used Iran as a conduit to transport military and industrial supply to the USSR, through a pathway known historically as

5984-400: The local powers and the Ottoman Empire. Following the arrival of the English and the Dutch, the Safavid Empire allied with the newcomers to contest Portuguese dominance of the seas in the 17th century. Portuguese expansion into the Indian Ocean in the early 16th century following Vasco da Gama 's voyages of exploration saw them battle the Ottomans up the coast of the Persian Gulf. In 1521,

6072-408: The mangroves as a biological reserve was ignored by the emirate of Sharjah, which allowed the dredging of a channel that bisects the wetland and construction of an adjacent concrete walkway. Environmental watchdogs in Arabia are few, and those that do advocate the wildlife are often silenced or ignored by developers of real estate many of whom have governmental connections. Real estate development in

6160-461: The most alarming sign is the "mass suicides" committed by dolphins off Iran's Hormozgan province, which are not well understood, but are suspected to be linked with a deteriorating marine environment from water pollution from oil, sewage, and industrial run offs. The Persian Gulf is home to over 700 species of fish, most of which are native. Of these 700 species, more than 80% are reef associated. These reefs are primarily rocky, but there are also

6248-423: The most lucrative world supply of oil, and the lack of cooperation between Arab states and Iran, have had a negative impact on the survival of many marine species, including dugongs. The Persian Gulf is also home to many migratory and local birds. There is great variation in color, size, and type of the bird species that call the Persian Gulf home. Concerns regarding the endangerment of the kalbaensis subspecies of

6336-546: The open encouragement and support of Iran, the Iraqi Kurdish peshmerga rebelled against Iraq, and instead of waging a guerrilla war, the peshmerga fought a conventional war against Iraq, leading to very intense fighting. In the winter of 1974–75, Iran and Iraq almost went to war over Iran's support of the Kurds in Iraq (see 1974–75 Shatt al-Arab conflict ). However, given Iran's greater military strength and population,

6424-541: The palms had been wiped out by the combined factors of war, salt and pests; this count includes around 9 million palms in Iraq and 5 million in Iran. Many of the remaining 3–4 million trees are in poor health. The Shatt al-Arab is formed by the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers at Al-Qurnah , and flows into the Persian Gulf south of the city of Al-Faw . It receives the Karun at Khorramshahr . 3,000 years ago,

6512-688: The part of Great Britain and Russia". A protocol between the Ottomans and the Persians was signed in Istanbul in 1913, which declared that the Ottoman-Persian frontier run along the thalweg , but World War I canceled all plans. During the Mandate of Iraq (1920–1932), the British advisors in Iraq were able to keep the waterway binational under the thalweg principle that worked in Europe:

6600-462: The rebels as they could lay their hands on". In 1980, President Saddam Hussein of Iraq abrogated the 1975 treaty and Iraq invaded Iran. The main thrust of the military movement on the ground was across the waterway which was the stage for most of the military battles between the two armies. The waterway was Iraq's only outlet to the Persian Gulf, and thus, its shipping lanes were greatly affected by continuous Iranian attacks. When Al-Faw peninsula

6688-435: The same. The Second Treaty of Erzurum was signed by Ottoman Turkey and Qajar Iran in 1847 after protracted negotiations, which included British and Russian delegates. Even afterwards, backtracking and disagreements continued, until British Foreign Secretary, Lord Palmerston , was moved to comment in 1851 that "the boundary line between Turkey and Persia can never be finally settled except by an arbitrary decision on

6776-669: The southern shorelines. During the seventh century the Sassanid Persian empire conquered the whole of the Persian Gulf, including southern and northern shores. Between 625 BC and 226 AD, the northern side was dominated by a succession of Persian empires including the Median , Achaemenid , Seleucid and Parthian empires. Under the leadership of the Achaemenid king Darius the Great (Darius I), Persian ships found their way to

6864-437: The surface of the water, as the corals are to biological health of the Persian Gulf in deeper waters. Mangroves' ability to survive the salt water through intricate molecular mechanisms, their unique reproductive cycle, and their ability to grow in the most oxygen-deprived waters have allowed them extensive growth in hostile areas of the Persian Gulf. However, with the advent of artificial island development, most of their habitat

6952-551: The town was devastated by demolitions and fighting. Redevelopment Project Without consultation with local residents, a “redevelopment project” was launched in February 2018 by the governor of the Eastern Province. The main goal of the project is to enhance “security solution or the tracking of armed groups and sleeper cells”. Al-Awamiyah's economy is based mainly on petroleum production and agriculture . The town

7040-408: The waters off Qatar, Bahrain, UAE, and Saudi Arabia make the Persian Gulf the second most important habitat for the species, hosting some 7,500 remaining dugongs. However, the current number of dugongs is dwindling, and it is not clear how many are currently alive or what their reproductive trend is. Ambitious and uncalculated construction schemes, political unrest, ever-present international conflict,

7128-536: The waterway and the area of the Persian Gulf surrounding the river mouth. They were tasked until 2007 to make sure that ships in the area were not being used to transport munitions into Iraq. British forces also trained Iraqi naval units to take over the responsibility of guarding their waterways after the Coalition Forces left Iraq in December 2011. On two separate occasions, Iranian forces operating on

7216-400: The world ran along the thalweg , and because most of the ships that used the Shatt al-Arab were Iranian. Iraq threatened war over the Iranian move, but on 24 April 1969, an Iranian tanker escorted by Iranian warships ( Joint Operation Arvand ) sailed down the Shatt al-Arab, and Iraq—being the militarily weaker state—did nothing. The Iranian abrogation of the 1937 treaty marked the beginning of

7304-573: The world's natural gas reserves. The oil-rich countries (excluding Iraq ) that have a coastline on the Persian Gulf are referred to as the Persian Gulf States . Iraq's egress to the Persian Gulf is narrow and easily blockaded, consisting of the marshy river delta of the Shatt al-Arab , which carries the waters of the Euphrates and the Tigris rivers, where the east bank is held by Iran. Shatt al-Arab The Shatt al-Arab ( Arabic : شط العرب , lit.   'River of

7392-520: The world's largest population of Indo-Pacific humpbacked dolphins . One of the more unusual marine mammals living in the Persian Gulf is the dugong ( Dugong dugon ). Also called "sea cows", for their grazing habits and mild manner resembling livestock, dugongs have a life expectancy similar to that of humans and they can grow up to 3 metres (9.8 feet) in length. These gentle mammals feed on sea grass and are closer relatives of certain land mammals than are dolphins and whales . Their simple grass diet

7480-426: Was captured by the Iranians in 1986, Iraq's shipping activities virtually came to a halt and had to be diverted to other Arab ports such as Kuwait and even Aqaba , Jordan . On 17 April 1988, Operation Ramadan Mubarak Materialized which saw Al-Faw peninsula recaptured after three days of fighting. After retaking Al-Faw, the Iraqis began a sustained drive to clear the Iranians out of all of southern Iraq. In May 1988,

7568-549: Was important in delivering humanitarian aid to the rest of the country, and stopping the flow of operations trying to break the naval blockade against Iraq. The British Royal Marines staged an amphibious assault to capture the key oil installations and shipping docks located at Umm Qasr on the al-Faw peninsula at the onset of the conflict. Following the end of the war, the UK was given responsibility, subsequently mandated by United Nations Security Council Resolution 1723 , to patrol

7656-592: Was put under full siege by the Saudi military after violence broke out due to evictions. The government blamed the violence on terrorist activities. Reports indicate that between 10 and 25 people were killed from gunfire and shelling, including two infants. Residents also reported soldiers shooting at homes, cars and everyone in streets. During the crackdown the Saudi government demolished several historical sites and many other buildings and houses in Qatif. 20,000 residents were forced to flee from their homes to survive. and

7744-399: Was seen as a national humiliation in Iraq, causing much bitterness over what was seen as Iranian bullying. However, the Algiers Accord saw Iran cease supporting the peshmerga as the Iranians closed the frontier, causing the Kurdish rebellion to promptly collapse. The British journalist Patrick Brogan wrote that "the Iraqis celebrated their victory in the usual manner, by executing as many of

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