Riyadh Islamic Federation

Riyadh, officially the Riyadh Islamic Federation, is an Arabian Constitutional Monarch comprised of seven Emirates the largest being Riyadh. It's neighbored to the south by Atlantsia, Iran to the north, Qatar to the west and the Indian Ocean to the east. Riyadh is currently lead by Sheikh Hamad Al Nashid. Its seat of government is in the capital city, Riyadh. The country is made up of ten Emirates: Riyadh, Dharhan, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Muscat, Ajman, Ras Al Khaimah, Umm Al Quwain, and Fujairah. the most populous of which is Riyadh. The Federation is a developed nation, and has a long and illustrious history due to it's strategic location in the Middle East. Because of this, it has been ruled by the British and Roman Empires. RIF's economy is highly dependent upon its oil exports but in recent years has strived to distinguish itself in the tourist industry.

History
Caravans between Syria and Iraq began to migrate to the area now known as Riyadh as early as 1 AD

Arrival of Islam
The arrival of envoys from the Islamic prophet Muhammad in 630 caused a massive conversion to Islam. After Muhammad, major battles of the Ridda War were fought, resulting in the defeat of non-muslims In 637, Ra's al-Khaimawah used as the starting point of the Islamic invasion of Sasanian Iran.Over many centuries, Ra's al-Khaimawah became a wealthy port and pearling center from which dhows traveled throughout the Indian Ocean especially to Sindh and the cities of Thatta and Debal.

Portuguese Rule
Portugal expanded its empire to the Indian Ocean in the 16th Century following Vasco Gama's exploration. Battles between Persia and Portugal ended with the Portugese taking control of the Arabian Peninsula and ruling for over 150 years.

British Rule


During the 16th Century the Arabian Peninsula was greatly influenced by European Powers which lead to the British taking control. To the the British, Riyadh was called "Pirate Coast" due to Riyadh's continuous harassment of the European shipbuilding industry. British expeditions to protect the Indian Ocean trade from raiders at Ras al-Khaimah led to campaigns against that headquarters and other harbours along the coast in 1819. The following year, Britain and local rulers signed a treaty to combat piracy along the Gulf coast. From this, and later agreements, the area becomes known as the Trucial Coast. Raids continued intermittently until 1835, when the sheikhs agreed not to engage in hostilities at sea. In 1853, they signed a treaty with the British, under which the sheikhs (the "Trucial Sheikhdoms") agreed to a "perpetual maritime truce." It was enforced by the United Kingdom, and disputes among sheikhs were referred to the British for settlement.

Pearl Industry
During the 19th and early 20th centuries, the pearling industry thrived in the relatively calm sea, providing both income and employment to the people of the Persian Gulf. It began to become a good economic resource for the local people. Then the First World War had a severe impact on the pearl fishery, but it was the economic depression of the late 1920s and early 1930s, coupled with the Japanese invention of the cultured pearl, that all but destroyed it. The industry eventually faded away shortly after the Second World War, when the newly independent Government of India imposed heavy taxation on pearls imported from the Arab states of the Persian Gulf. The decline of pearling resulted in a very difficult era, with little opportunity to build any infrastructure.

Oil Discovery
Oil was first discovered in the 1950s. At the beginning of the 1960s, the first oil company teams carried out preliminary surveys and the first cargo of crude was exported from Abu Dhabi in 1962. As oil revenues increased, the ruler of Abu Dhabi, Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, undertook a massive construction program, building schools, housing, hospitals and roads. When Dubai’s oil exports commenced in 1969, Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the de facto ruler of Dubai, was also able to use oil revenues to improve the quality of life of his people. In 1955, the United Kingdom sided with Abu Dhabi in the latter's dispute with Oman over the Buraimi Oasis, another territory to the south. A 1974 agreement between Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia would have settled the Abu Dhabi-Saudi border dispute; however, the agreement has yet to be ratified by the UAE government and is not recognized by the Saudi government. The border with Oman also remains officially unsettled, but the two governments agreed to delineate the border in May 1999.

Formation of Islamic Federation
The original 7 Trucial States decided to form a Council to allow better communication between them, The Riyadh Islamic Federation. Territorial disputes between Abu Dhabi, and Dubai resulted in the formation of a 8th Emirate, Riyadh. The capital was moved out of Abu Dhabi, to Riyadh a few months later. A year later another dispute between the 2 northern Emirates ended with the creation of the 9th Emirate, Dhahran. The last Emirate to join was Muscat. Violent uprisings between Muscat and other parts Oman resulted in Muscat leaving the country and joining Riyadh, giving the federation control of major shipping lanes between the Persian Gulf and The Indian Ocean.



Independence
In 1966 Britain could no longer continue to govern the Trucial States (Now Riyadh Federation). Talks between the two began in Riyadh and four years later their decision was announced. Riyadh would become Independent. In 1971 the Treaties between The Trucial States and Britain would end. On December 2, 1971 Riyadh had become independent, under the leadership of Sheikh Mohamed Basim Rashid. That same year Riyadh joined the Arab League and in 1981 become a founding member of the Gulf Cooperation Council. Qatar and Bahrain joined the Federation in 1971 after gaining Independence from Britain, But in 1972 fighting between Qatar, Bahrain, and the other Emirates lead to both Qatar and Bahrain's departure from the Federation.

Civil War
The nation struggled politically as well as economically, its government was corrupt, large amounts of the population lived in poverty and Riyadh was under heavy sanctions from the U.N. for violating human rights laws and the development of a nuclear arsenal. By early 1973 civil war swept across the nation as people took to the streets wielding anti government propaganda demanding equal treatment. Protester numbers ran into the thousands as tensions rose. In late October 1973 after a brutal government crackdown in Dhahran angry civilians finally rose up against the government. Violent clashes between federal soldiers and rebels broke out in major cities across the country, a average of 14 confrontations a day. By 1974 Riyadh and Dhahran had fallen into rebel hands leaving little resistance in other parts of the nation, Sheikh Rashid was overthrown and executed in Riyadh on May 21, 1974. The civil war ended on June 3, 1974 with the First Treaty of Al Maysah, an estimated 250,000 people had been killed in the fighting.

2nd Civil War
The 2nd Riyadh Civil War began with the assassination of President Husain Amjad on 3 October 1976. The government immediately collasped which resulted in the Emirate of Riyadh

Geography
The Riyadh Islamic Federation is situated in Southwest Asia, bordering the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf, between Oman and Saudi Arabia; it is in a strategic location along southern approaches to the Strait of Hormuz, a vital transit point for world crude oil.The RIF lies between 22°30' and 26°10' north latitude and between 51° and 56°25′ east longitude. It shares a 530-kilometer border with Saudi Arabia on the west, south, and southeast, and a 450-kilometer border with Oman on the southeast and northeast. The land border with Qatar in the Khawr al Udayd area is about nineteen kilometers in the northwest; however, it is a source of ongoing dispute. Following Britain's military departure from RIF in 1971, and its establishment as a new state, the RIF laid claim to islands resulting in disputes with Iran which remain unresolved. RIF also disputes claim on other islands against the neighboring state of Qatar. The largest emirate, Abu Dhabi, accounts for 84% of the RIF's total area (67,340 square kilometers). The smallest emirate, Ajman, encompasses only 259 square kilometers. The RIF coast stretches for more than 650 kilometers along the southern shore of the Persian Gulf. Most of the coast consists of salt pans that extend far inland. The largest natural harbor is at Dubai, although other ports have been dredged at Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, and elsewhere. Numerous islands are found in the Persian Gulf, and the ownership of some of them has been the subject of international disputes with both Iran and Qatar. The smaller islands, as well as many coral reefs and shifting sandbars, are a menace to navigation. Strong tides and occasional windstorms further complicate ship movements near the shore. The RIF also has a stretch of the Al Bāţinah coast of the Gulf of Oman, although the Musandam Peninsula, the very tip of Arabia by the Strait of Hormuz is an enclave of Oman within the RIF. South and west of Abu Dhabi, vast, rolling sand dunes merge into the Rub al-Khali (Empty Quarter) of Saudi Arabia. The desert area of Abu Dhabi includes two important oases with adequate underground water for permanent settlements and cultivation. The extensive Liwa Oasis is in the south near the undefined border with Saudi Arabia. About 100 kilometers to the northeast of Liwa is the Al-Buraimi oasis, which extends on both sides of the Abu Dhabi-Oman border. Prior to withdrawing from the area in 1971, Britain delineated the internal borders among the seven emirates in order to preempt territorial disputes that might hamper formation of the federation.