Word: oman
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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...Sultanate of Oman, which means "peaceful land"in Arabic, is so remote that it has often been called the Tibet of the Arabian peninsula. Nonetheless, the thinly populated desert kingdom-820,000 people -is a country about the size of Kansas and has time and again been caught up in the vortex of international politics. Its 1,060-mile coastline is on the direct sea route from Europe to Asia; the country's northern tip overlooks the preferred deep channel of the Strait of Hormuz, 40 miles wide at its narrowest, through which pass half of the world...
...after the other, 18 Arab nations, along with the Palestine Liberation Organization and Iran, have rejected Egyptian President Anwar Sadat's signing of the peace treaty with Israel. The only country in the Arabian peninsula to remain solidly behind Sadat is Oman. Says Foreign Minister Qais Zawawi: "We do so out of the conviction that this treaty is the first step toward solving the problem of the Middle East and achieving a Palestinian solution. Even more, it is a realistic step toward improving our common regional security." But the trouble is, as a senior Western diplomat observes, "it would...
...Oman has several of the same problems that were related to the downfall of the Shah of Iran: an absolute monarchy, a rapid pace of development, a large foreign military and industrial presence, and the potential for a troublesome insurgency. And oil. While hardly in the class of Saudi Arabia, Iraq or Iran, Oman does produce about 350,000 bbl. per day, with an income of $1.2 billion a year. It is the twelfth largest oil-producing nation in the world, and at its present rate has proven reserves for nearly half a century...
...started flowing in 1967, the year when past and present began to clash in Oman. Rebel groups had already mounted an insurrection to overthrow Sultan Said bin Taimur, then 56, a paranoid tyrant who hoarded gold from oil revenues in the cellar of his ancient castle in Salalah because he believed paper currency was worthless. Under his medieval rule, slavery was sanctioned, and no one could travel abroad without his permission. It was against the law for an Omani to wear spectacles or ride a bicycle. In the whole country there were only two post offices, three miles of asphalt...
...members of the Arab League, only Oman, Sudan and Somalia still maintain embassies in Cairo and have not joined the boycott...