Misunderstanding the Middle East -- Cheat sheet 1: basic concepts and building blocks -- Jogging through the millennia -- Pulling the pieces together -- European designs : hacking up the Middle East -- Cheat sheet 2: 1979 and beyond : a quick look at the issues -- Iraq : pardon our mess -- Iran : isn't the party over yet? -- The kingdom of Saudi Arabia : splitsville -- Kuwait : lines in the sand -- Yemen : in another world -- The United Arab Emirates : the land of possibilities -- Qatar : trail blazing -- Bahrain : a new profile -- Oman : awake at last -- Cheat sheet 3: the westerners -- Israel : fulfilling prophecies -- Disappearing act : the Palestinian Territories--the West Bank and Gaza -- Lebanon : the cedar devolution -- Syria : crumbling support -- Jordan : stuck in the middle -- Egypt : secret society