Land Grabs
	n The empire had been weakened by the defection of frontier Arabs and persecuted Christian sects, and by long wars with the Sassanids. n The Arabs quickly seized western Iraq, Syria, Palestine, and Egypt. n From the 640’s Arabs had gained naval supremacy in the eastern Mediterranean and extended conquests westward into North Africa and southern Europe. n The weakened Byzantines held off attacks in their core Asia Minor and Balkan territories.