The nations of North Africa differ greatly from the nations of sub-Saharan Africa. How might physical geography play a role in these differences? Culturally, the countries of Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt are more closely tied to the neighboring Middle East. Discuss why this is the case, citing specific examples.

Most of Maghreb (North Africa) resembles Arabian peninsula the most. That is the Physical geography part. Egypt from the earliest times was demographically, ethnically, culturally & socially contiguous with the Levant (Asia's West Coast on the Mediterranean Sea) from where the influence spread west till the Atlantic Ocean. Then (in those times) they weren't aware that theirs was a different continent (as most American school children think now, "if they are from different continents they should be different").