Introduction : the Middle Eastern mosaic: States and nations; Minorities in the Middle East; The debate about minorities; Principles and means of conflic resolution -- Muslim minorities: Kurds : a legacy of struggle and suffering; Berbers : between rebellion and submission; Baluch : from obscurity to geostrategic importance -- Heterodox Muslim minorities: Druzes : freedom without independence; ?Alawites : to power and the unknown -- Christian minorities: Copts : from majority people to minority religion; Armenians : talent, tragedy, and territorial loss; Assyrians : an ancient people, a perennial struggle; Maronites : sophistication and missed opportunities; Sudanese Christians : tribulations and war in Black Africa -- Jews, Israel, and other Middle Eastern minorities: Jews : Zionist achievement, lingering questions; Jews, Israel and the minorities; Conclusions.