By 1948, enormous tension had built up in the Middle East. This tension actually arose 19 centuries earlier and began due to differences in religion and nationalism between Jews and Arabs. After the Romans took control of Judea, this caused a Jewish diaspora to all parts of the world. Eventually, the majority of Jews returned to the region, after the official establishment of the State of Israel, which led to the Arab-Israeli War of Liberation, during which surrounding Arab states, such as the Egypt, Syria, Iraq and Jordan. attacked Israel in order to reclaim this land, which originally belonged to Palestine. The Arabs were defeated, which increased nationalism among them in order to take revenge, which ultimately led them to 3 future wars: the Suez Canal Crisis of 1956, the Six Day War of 1967, and the Arab War. Yom Kippur in 1973. These three wars were of significant importance as it was the first time that major superpower involvement was seen. These superpowers, namely the United States and the USSR, were interested in the Middle East, mainly because of its strategic location, as well as its natural oil resources. These factors forced the superpowers to become involved in the region, and this involvement eventually led to a proxy war within the region. Although the wars were fueled by superpower interests, great Arab nationalism also led to the wars against Israel, from 1948 to 1978. The War of Liberation of 1948 was the first war that sparked the Middle East conflicts and created a foundation for many other wars to follow. This conflict in the Middle East eventually became embroiled in the global Cold War, but it was much different, a...... middle of paper ...... also because of the recurring sentiment of Arab nationalism that in fueled conflicts in the Middle East. Thus, it could be demonstrated that the Middle East conflict was in fact fueled by both the interests and concerns of the superpowers in the region. Both the United States and the USSR wanted to increase their individual spheres of influence in the region, in order to gain a greater foothold in the Middle East and, eventually, acquire the major oil resource. This was also due to their concerns over each other's actions in the region, which caused them to support their respective allies, which led to the direct influence of the Cold War in the Middle East. It was therefore the total involvement of the superpowers in the region which led to the prolongation of the conflict in the Middle East from 1948 to 1948. 1978.