Account for the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in the latter part of Essay

Account for the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in the latter part of the 20th century - Essay Example However, modern commentators do not agree with this interpretation. The word fundamentalism was first coined in the United States in the early 1900s, where it was applied to religious groups (Rippin 184). It was employed by theologically conservative Protestants, who opposed modernism and liberalism. The members of this group were wont to claim that they were great fundamentalists of their faith. Subsequently, this term was applied to any religious group that demanded the exclusive implementation of their religious beliefs (Rippin 184). The 1970s witnessed a significant amount of political victories by the Islamic fundamentalists. In 1979, Ayatollah Khomeini seized power in Iran through his Islamic movement. He was successful in his revolution against the westernized politics of the Shah of Iran. The tyrants and dictators of the Arab world lent their support to Islamic fundamentalism, in order to strengthen their position (Palmowski). Some instances of this trend, were the vocal support that was forthcoming from Saddam Hussein, in Iraq; and Muammar Gaddafi, in Libya. In Sudan, Nigeria, and several Islamic nations, the governments made several concessions to the Islamic fundamentalists, by providing them with funds and a number of concessions. This trend had commenced in the early 1990s (Palmowski). In the early 1970s, there were two major developments that enhanced to the growing influence of Islam at the international level. First, the cost of crude petroleum oil increased in an unprecedented manner, thereby rendering the oil producing countries of West Asia, extremely wealthy. Second, the invasion of Afghanistan by the USSR in 1979, which created considerable tension in the region. This was accompanied by the Islamic revolution in Iran, which brought the Islamic fundamentalist, Ayatollah Khomeini to power (Ghosh 288). The American hostage crises