This paper examines the phenomenon of Islamic fundamentalism in Egypt and Iran; comparing the effects that fundamentalism has had on these two countries. It tries to justify whether or not the resurgence of Islam has benefited or hindered these countries when it comes to religion in politics and if Islamic fundamentalism is the answer for these countries. All over the Middle East there are fundamentalist groups who are fighting for the return of the "traditional" Islamic religion, untainted by Western ideologies and modernization.

Islamic fundamentalism can be seen as a threat by the Western societies, because they

Iran's fundamentalist movement is by far the most accomplished one. Inspired by the Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, they have turned their old pro-Western Shah's regime into a fully Islamic one. Their most notable fundamentalist leader was Ayatollah Khomeini who served as the living symbol of revolutionary Islam.

The Shah was always increasing his ties with the West and depended upon their help. He made his society more and more Western while inching away from Islam. Many of the ulama supported the Shah at first thinking he was protecting Iran from communism. As his power grew, the more reforms and restrictions he mandated. As power become more concentrated in the hand of the Shah and secular, westernized elite's, ulama state relations began a long, slow process of deterioration. The religious class leaned more and more towards a more natural alliance with the traditional class and values. (Peretz 105)

Political protests began to emerge and many demonstrations mounted in 1978 so did the repressive measures of the state. On September 8, events cam about in Teheran on Black Friday. Unable to break up the demonstration police and military forces from helicopter gun ships fired into a crowd of 75 thousand people. These tanks were made the west and manned by western-trained Iranian men. Black Friday was the Turing point in the revolution, people of all ranks engaged in the opposition and in political action. Women who had worn modern attire went back to the traditional veiling as a symbol of protest against the monarchy that had banned it. On January 6, 1979, the Shah unable to get protection from the military and his western allies fled Iran. Khomeini came to power, but few people where aware of the revolutionary years to come. In February the new Islamic Republic of Iran was established battling the struggle between moderates and militants. Many problems needed to be taken care of between the religion of Iran with ulamas and how the country was to be ruled. After years of this unbalance, things settled down in Iran. Shii Islam became recognized as the most viable solution. It offered a common sense of history and identity symbols and values. Shiism offered an ideological framework that gave meaning and legitimization to an opposition movement of the disinherited and oppressed.

Kohmeini was arrested and sent to exile in Turkey, because his beliefs clashed with those of the people in charge. From his exile he continued teaching and speaking out against the Shah and condemns his 'un-Islamic ' policies. His writings and pamphlets were smuggled into Iran and distributed throughout mosques in Iran. His Islamic ideology was holistic, regarding Islam as a total and complete way of life that provided guidance for social and political life:

Some common words found in the essay are:
Middle East, Reza Shah, Koran Islam, Sadat Mubarak, Muslim Brotherhood, Accords Muslim, Middle Eastern, Iran Islamic, Shii Islam, Islam Appleby, egypt iran, middle east, middle eastern, muslim brotherhood, islamic fundamentalism, resurgence islam, political economic, political legitimacy, camp david accords, political participation, brotherhood suppressed, pro-western political economic, muslim brotherhood suppressed, middle eastern countries,
Approximate Word count = 3058
Approximate Pages = 12 (250 words per page double spaced)