Customer Reviews

Asad: The Struggle for the Middle East

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Until I got this book I had never read anything about Hafiz al-Asad, the man who ruled Syria with a metal fist for so long it seems for ever. This is basically the sole source of information about this man who liked to stay in the dim light until the day he died. To say that the book is not biased and pro-Assad would be inaccurate. In many parts the author has done his best to "walk the rope" as the Arabian saying implies, that is not to annoy Assad while trying to appear objective and neutral. This is a must read for anyone genuinely interested in learning about the complexities of power struggles in the Middle East. The book stays away from the gory details, and I agree with one of the reviewers that it does not unmask the ugly side(s) of modern Syria under the role of Assad. This gets three stars for being a good reseach piece and for being able to document many interesting details kept hidden for years about the life of Assad and his rule. After reading this book many of the truth that were kept masked about Syria are still not unmasked, and leaves more questions to be asked, of which will it ever be revealed. Two stars off for this disappoinment. I would have put at least one star back if this was noted by the author.

This is probably the only available biography of late Syrian President Hafez Assad. Keep in mind that Seale was given all that he had asked for - like many other Western scholars who were treated to the court and became apologetic to the regime - to write this book which makes him, so to speak, the spokesperson of the presidential court. Even though Seale reports about the many murders that happened during the career of Assad, he does so from an apologetic perspective. Assad is always depicted as having to kill before his adversaries kill him. While this could be true in the context of tribal Arab politics, it relieves Assad of all of the responsibilities of the killings that happened during his reign.
Additionally, the book lacks proper investigative methodology.
Things are narrated from the eyes of Assad, with some minimal background. When Seale talks about Assad's brother Rifaat who tried to replace his brother through a coups d'etats in the early 80s, for example, Seale gives an account about Rifaat that could have only been written after Rifaat had fallen out with his brother and was sent to exile. Rifaat is described as a hot tempered gangster kid since his early childhood who used to carry a stick and bully his peers. While reports about Rifaat's atrocities during his rule under his brother should not be undermined, stories about Rifaat's innate hot temper should be taken with a grain of salt. If this book was written during the days of Rifaat while still in favor with his brother, then a different account would have probably been produced about the president's brother. Additionally, the sources are limited and often not thoroughly cross examined to establish their credibility when writing the history of Syria's dictator.

Although this book purports to be a biography of Asad, it is really a whirlwind tour of 20th-century Syrian history. The book's main focus is on its foreign relations with the Middle East, the Soviet Union, and the United States. With clarity and insight, Seale details such seminal events as the Arab-Israeli wars of 1967 and 1973, the Middle East peace process, and the Gulf Wars. Seale provides the perfect balance of explanation and analysis while never getting bogged down in useless detail. Useful analyses of such key figures as Sadat, Begin, and Sharon are just as relevant today as they were when this book was written. His detailing of Asad's relationship with Kissinger is enough to make the reader cringe for, unfortunately, Kissinger's duplicity and manipulations were not limited to such places as Chile,Kurdistan,etc. This book is invaluable for its enumeration on the political situation in the Middle East. Valuable to the reader struggling to gain an overall understanding of the Middle East, this book also shrewdly portrays Asad's rise to power both in his own country and in the Middle East.

This book is already nearing 20 years in age, so much has already been said about its portrayal of modern Near East geopolitics. Anyone interested in this subject matter should read this book, as it is provides valuable insight into events within Syria, throughout the region, and across the world that shaped the relationships between Arab states themselves and with Israel as witnessed in the late 20th century. Much has occured since and it is interesting to speculate how Seale would have woven into the narrative, among other major events, Jordan's 1994 treaty with Israel, as Assad long prided himself on thwarting such an agreement. (Granted, Seale's ongoing journalistic activities offer plenty of insight into his perspectives on most any regional developments.)

Seale's research is exhaustive and paints a fascinating picture of a man who seized and retained power in a complex, volatile country and who thrust himself into one of the most divisive and enigmatic conflicts facing the world today. Unfortunately, this book must be regarded as the romantic (harsher critics may say sycophantic) chronicling of Syrian and Arab nationalism that it is. There can be no doubt that Seale is vehemently opposed to Israeli values and worldview, and to a lesser degree those of the United states and other Western powers. Seale characterizes Israel as continually exercising an almost Svengali influence on the West, able to unilaterally bend the wills of its more powerful allies and impose nefarious designs upon the entire Arab world. His attitude toward terrorism is forgiving to say the least, not to mention his argument that the West's fear of terrorism is a function of Israeli "psychological warfare" rather than a true international reality and utmost national security priority. Seale is also reluctant to hold Assad accountable for his diplomatic failures and military defeats, but is rather wont to characterize the venerable pan-Arab leader as simply a victim of external circumstance.

So long as one is able to distill much of these biases (or at least acknowledge their influence on the reporting), Seale's book constitutes a uniquely detailed survey of modern Syrian history in the vital context of regional conflicts that have defined it.

You can't understand the Arab-Israeli Conflict without understanding Syria, the most unjustly maligned state in the Middle East.

One gains a great appreciation for the achievements of Hafez Asad and Syria.Of all of the Arab states, Syria has remained the most faithful to the vision of the modern Arab nation,despite being under constant harassment and attack from Israel, Islamic terrorists, the United States and even other Arab governments.In fact, it is Syria's faithfulness to secular Arab nationalism which makes it anathema to Israel, the oil interests and the Islamists.

Although I am in no position to judge the truthfulness of Seale's Syrian interviewees they certainly ring true in many cases, and his published sources are impeccable.The "revelations" concerning Israel's arms trade to Iran which some find objectionable are corroborated by Iranian, Israeli, Syrian and Western sources.If not for the activism of Ayatollah Montazeri and Syrian intelligence, Reagan's "arms for hostages" deals and the North network would have never come to light.Syrian claims were fully vindicated.

Seale's account of Kissinger's manipulations and the behavior of other US officials is consistent with what is known from Iranian, Egyptian and Jordanian diplomats.Asad's version of the 1973 War is certainly less contradictory than the self-serving accounts provided by Egyptian, US and Israeli officials.Admirers of Sadat will be enlightened but disillusioned by his betrayal of the Arab cause in 1973 and in the years of negotiation which ensued.

Asad's shrewdness in his handling of the Lebanese Civil War is justly highlighted by Seale, and one comes to appreciate the skill and intelligence behind the Syrian alliance with Iran.The account of the attempted union of Syria and Iraq, which precipitated Saddam Hussein's ultimate power grab in 1979 is also invaluable to an understanding of Middle East politics which is totally at odds with what powerful Western media interests would have us believe.

Incidentally, Seale asserts that the number of people killed in 1982 when the Muslim Brotherhood stronghold in Hama was destroyed was 7000, not 20,000.He clearly states that the figure of 20,000 which was promoted in the West by Syria's enemies was innaccurate and inflated.

Patrick Seale wrote this book based on a request from the Syrian president, Hafez al-Asad. He tried all of his best to show al-Asad as a hero but since he showed many secrets in his book such as the revolution of Hama (1982), this book became prohibited in Syria.

Patrick Seale did not try to make his own conclusions or to quote from the CIA's reports. Instead, he wrote this book based on personal interviews with many Syrian officers including the president himself. This book was translated to French, Arabic, and many other languages. It has many secrets that it is hard to find in any other book.

This book is important for anyone trying to learn about the Middle East, but I agree with other reviewers that the book is flawed. It is very biased and paints Asad in a much more positive light than he deserves. Asad and his regime were responsible for many atrocities and has contributed to the instability of the region, but Mr. Seale simply glosses over many of these crimes.

Mr. Seale's description of Asad's attack against the Syrian city of Hama is cursory at best. By all accounts I have read Hama was devastated, and thousands of people were killed, maimed or displaced, but the account given here doesn't say anything about the human suffering. Not only that but Seale seems to justify and even approve of the action because of the attacks that emanated from this city.

Asad was not a humanitarian and his regime was extremely oppressive. As with any authoritarian regime Asad enriched cronies to the detriment of the Syrian people. He killed and tortured his own people. These facts seemed to be omitted from this book. I have no idea why this was left out, but it skews the book and leaves the reader an irrevocably flawed book. This book also casts Israel as the main instigator in all the areas troubles. This book will leave the uninformed reader with the impression that had the region simply followed Asad then all would have been well. The fact is that Israel does in fact shoulder some blame for the current situation, but they certainly do not deserve all the blame.

With that said the book is still important, and deserves the 4 star rating I gave it. Syria is a very important nation and the more we know about it the better informed we will be of the entire situation. This book contributes to the readers greater understanding of this region as long as they understand that the book is biased. The nature of the Asad regime means there will be little information available to readers, so any information is important.

This book is well written and the author has obviously done a lot of research and got to know Asad very well. There is a lot of important information in here, but all readers should come into this book understanding its flaws right from the beginning.

must say, it changes my prospective about many historical events in the area! Its a good book to start your own debate about the period during Asad's life. It gives you a insight about the man's human side and struggles to control his destiny...I loved the book...

Reader's may be struck by Seale's strongly partisan (and sometimes implausible) point-of-view. Asad - and the Arab world in general - are trusting innocents. Their naive good faith is betrayed by the devious, lying Henry Kissinger, and the vicious, land-hungry Israel. It helps to bear in mind that Seale was able to get extensive interviews with Asad and other in his circle for this book - people with no experience or interest in less-than-reverent treatment by the media, and people who would never have given such access to someone they didn't know was firmly on their side.

This is such a superb work, that the title of this review warranted alliteration. Still pretty much one of the best works on modern Syria: simultaneously a biography, a history, and an analysis of inter-state machinations in the Middle East. Nice narrative flow, much of it based on interviews with the persons involved, including Asad himself. I really can't recommend this enough. Anyone with even a remotely passing interest in the Middle East should read this book. A pity Seale didn't produce more works as this and his other work "The Struggle for Syria", which covers an earlier period, are so freakin' amazing! I also recommend, as a companion piece "The Lion of Damascus" by David Lesch, a biography of Asad's son, the current Syrian president, Bashar al-'Asad.