We tend to think of the Middle East as a rural desert setting, but in fact the region is quite urban. Some of this is Hollywood. There is a scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark, where Jones and Sallah are looking over the city and Sallah said, “Cairo, city of the living.” The only problem is anyone who knows the Middle East knew that was not Cairo. Even in the 1930s Cairo was a sprawling metropolis with all the trappings of an urban landscape, including tall apartment buildings. Today 60% of the Middle East live in cities.
Historically Speaking 