The middle east is the birthplace of three great and before world war i, the controlled the middle east but by the end of the war, their rule was limited to what is today turkey. received the lands called palestine, transjordan, and iraq to be governed on behalf of the league of nations. many people in the middle east did not want to be ruled by outside governments. became a republic after overthrowing the last ottoman emperor. persia was led by after overthrowing the governments influenced by great britain and france. it became the country of in arabia, a sheikh named set out to extend his power. it eventually became the country of saudi arabia. the was a british document that recognized palestine as the national home of the jewish people but not at the expense of the arab peoples. this conflict between the arabs and the jews in this area has been going on for much of history. although there was much nationalism in the middle east, there was also much outside interest in the area due to the fact that the region is rich in a valuable natural resource,