Islamism
The conflict in the Mideast today is largely fueled by a widespread interpretation of Islam not just as a personal ritualistic religion, but as a global encompassing political ideology that affects every facet of life and affects all the laws governing civilian life. This interpretation has a basis in the verses of the Koran and in the legal theological treatises of Islam. As preached and practiced by the Islamisist, the ideology is a revolutionary ideology to liberate the Muslim from being a slave to legal and political systems that are regarded either as non-Islamic or if the political systems are Islamic, then they are regarded as not fully endorsing the Islam global ideology.
The political ideology of the Islamisist does not think of Islam as religion in the Western civilization sense. Rather the Islamisist considers Islam as a divine comprehensive political ideology superior to any other "ism" such as Facism, Marxism, Leninism, Socialism, Communism, or Capitalism. This divine political ideology has an authoritarian hierarchical structure with concomitant notions of political and economic institutions all derived from interpretations of Sharia law. And because it is thought of as divine, there is no possibility of compromise. This puts Islam in a conflict with any other political ideology. For the Islamisist living in Western society, the laws of Western society are not legitimate and must be made to change to conform to Sharia law.
From this perspective we can understand the struggle of the Islamisist for power. Nothing will satisfy the Islamisist except to be the ultimate and highest political authority in the land. And for this, they are willing to rob, kill, torture, maim, and violently overthrow governments from the inside and/or engage in international terrorism in order to be noticed, heard, and to set in motion a process of gradual appeasement by the international community to the goals of making all people submit to Islam under Sharia law.
As a consequence, Islam is in continual conflict with Western Society and there is nothing that can happen and no possible long term diplomacy to change that.