Learn about the relationship of the U.S. with Saudi Arabia and Morocco

Overview: Terrorist attacks in Morocco and the Middle East claimed dozens of lives over the weekend. While government officials held emergency meetings to discuss how to deal with the aftermath of the assaults, experts discussed possible shifts in international terrorist tactics.

After students read "Weekend terrorism shatters lives in Morocco, Middle East" present the following:

RESOURCES • Holt, Rinehart and Winston: Palestine  • Holt, Rinehart and Winston: The Founding of Israel  • U.S. Department of State: Morocco  • U.S. Department of State: Saudi Arabia  • U.S. Department of State: Historical Background on United States - Morocco Relations  • Saudi-U.S. Relations Information Service  • CNN.com: Saudis: Suicide bombers linked to al Qaeda  • CNN.com: Morocco bombs claim another victim

1. What countries have been sites of recent terror attacks this past week? Who is suspected to be behind the attacks in Saudi Arabia and Morocco? What are "soft targets"? Why do experts think the recent attacks are a shift in the terrorist methods of al Qaeda?

2. Remind students that terrorism expert Peter Bergen states in the story, "Al Qaeda is not just an organization, it's also an ideology...The people in Morocco may well not have actually been part of al Qaeda, the organization. They just signed up, basically to attack Westerners." Ask: What is an ideology? Have students conduct research, if necessary, to learn what this word means. Direct them to find examples of different ideologies. Then ask: What does it mean to say that al Qaeda is an ideology? What part of the al Qaeda ideology do experts think is the reason for the attacks in Saudi Arabia and Morocco? Do you agree or disagree with U.S. officials who say that the war against terrorism is largely a war against ideas? Explain.

3. Refer students to the Holt, Rinehart and Winston World Atlas (http://go.hrw.com/atlas/norm_htm/world.htm) to locate Saudi Arabia and Morocco. Have student groups choose one of these countries to investigate further using the sites provided and other sources. Ask the following questions to guide the groups' research:

• What type of government does this country have?

• Who is the leader of this country?

• What is the current status of the relationship between this country and the U.S.?

• What has this relationship been like over the past 50 years? What agreements and disagreements has this country had with the U.S.?

• Why do you think this country might be attacked by enemies of the U.S.?

• What do you think the terrorists are attempting to accomplish by attacking this country?

After groups share their research with the class ask: How do you think the recent terrorist attacks in Saudi Arabia and Morocco might affect each country's relationship with the U.S.?