Always worth reviewing is the fact that, prior to European division of the Eastern Mediterranean region into "spheres is influence," the Arab world was a place of relative calm. The Ottoman Empire, for all its shortcomings, was a stable system and existed as such for centuries. The common assumptions that the region's volatility and violence are the product of Arab culture, or Islam, or ancient blood feuds, fall apart when one examines Middle Eastern history prior to 1920. And realistically, it was not until the 1950s and later that the Middle East began developing its reputation as a "rough neighborhood" - a euphemism containing much racism and historical alteration.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-25299553
