The majority of the world's Muslim population follows the Sunni branch of Islam, and approximately 10%-15% of all Muslims follow the Shiite (Shi'ite, Shi'a, Shia) branch. Shiite populations constitute a majority in Iran, Iraq, Bahrain, and Azerbaijan. Sunnis and Shiites share most basic religious tenets. However, their differences sometimes have been the basis for religious intolerance, political infighting, and sectarian violence. This report includes a historical background of the Sunni-Shiite split and discusses the differences in religious beliefs and practices between and within each Islamic sect as well as their similarities. The report also relates Sunni and Shiite religious beliefs to discussions of terrorism and sectarian violence that may be of interest to Congress.

Letter from Alex Bradford to the Fire Protection Engineering Department of the Standard Oil Company of California discussing Mr. Bradford's foreign experiences as a Fire Officer.

This report discusses the current state of Bahrain, which has undergone substantial political reforms since the late 1990s, but which still suffers from tension between the Shiite majority and the Sunni-led government. This report focuses particularly on Bahrain's relationship with Iran and with the United States.

This report is about a free trade agreement between the United States and Bahrain.

This report discusses the current state of Bahrain, which has undergone substantial political reforms since the late 1990s, but which still suffers from tension between the Shiite majority and the Sunni-led government. This report focuses particularly on Bahrain's relationship with the United States and with regional issues.

Interview with Harold Lewis, an executive at Caltex Petroleum Corporation. He discusses his educational background, his employment with Standard Oil of California, his early experiences in refinery construction, his transfer to Caltex, his assignment to Bahrain, refinery construction in Australia (Boral, Ampol), refinery construction in Japan, and the relationship between Caltex and Nippon Oil. He also talks about military fuel oil contracts, postwar refinery expansion, Caltex East, Caltex in Korea and the Philippines, executive transfers, the decision of Texaco and Socal to re-enter the European market in 1967, crude purchases, and OPEC.