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Mattis, James

(Encyclopedia)Mattis, James, 1950–, American general and secretary of defense (2017–18), b. Pullman, Wash., grad. Central Washington Univ. (1971). Commissioned as a second lieutenant (1972) in the Marines after...

Ras al-Khaimah

(Encyclopedia)Ras al-Khaimah räs äl-khīˈmä [key], sheikhdom (1995 pop. 144,430), c.650 sq mi (1,680 sq km), United Arab Emirates, SE Arabia, on the Persian Gulf; the northernmost of the seven sheikdoms in the ...

Ahvaz

(Encyclopedia)Ahvaz or Ahwaz both: äwäzˈ [key], city, SW Iran, on the Karun River. It is an oil center, a transportation hub, and an industrial city that has petrochemical, textile, ...

Arabia

(Encyclopedia)Arabia ərāˈbēə [key], peninsula (1991 est. pop. 35,000,000), c.1,000,000 sq mi (2,590,000 sq km), SW Asia. It is bordered on the W by the Gulf of Aqaba and the Red Sea, on the S by the Gulf of Ad...

Talabani, Jalal

(Encyclopedia)Talabani, Jalal, 1933–2017, Iraqi political leader, president of Iraq (2005–14), b. Kelkan. He joined the Kurdish Democratic party (KDP) in 1947, becoming a member of its central committee in 1951...

United Arab Republic

(Encyclopedia)United Arab Republic, political union (1958–61) of Egypt and Syria. The capital was Cairo. The two countries were merged (1958) into a single unit comprising the Southern (Egypt) and the Northern (S...

Parthia

(Encyclopedia)Parthia pärˈthēə [key], ancient country of Asia, SE of the Caspian Sea. In its narrowest limits it consisted of a mountainous region intersected with fertile valleys, lying S of Hyrcania and corre...

Shatt al Arab

(Encyclopedia)Shatt al Arab shät äl äˈräb [key], tidal river, 120 mi (193 km) long, formed by the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, flowing SE to the Persian Gulf, forming part of the Iraq-Iran bo...

Tantawi, Hussein

(Encyclopedia)Tantawi, Hussein (Mohamed Hussein Tantawi Soliman), 1935–, Egyptian field marshal. Joining the army in 1956, he became defense minister (1991) and commander-in-chief of the armed forces (1995). He s...

Schwarzkopf, H. Norman

(Encyclopedia)Schwarzkopf, H. Norman (Herbert Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr.), 1934–2012, U.S. army general, b. Trenton, N.J. He graduated from West Point (1956) and served two tours of duty in the Vietnam War, the firs...