Customer Reviews

The Continuing Storm: Iraq, Poisonous Weapons, and Deterrence

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"[This book] is an essential companion to whatever other reading one does on the Gulf War. The Continuing Storm is a highly readable and extremely valuable book for understanding not only the American decision to end the war and the continuation in power of Saddam's regime, but also the impact of weapons of mass destruction in the hands of ruthless regimes and the psychology of 'terrorist deterrence.' Its insights are keen and its scholarship is thorough, as evidenced by more than 900 footnotes, many of them containing multiple citations and informative content. This is not a book just for scholars and experts, however; it is written also for the interested layman."˙

"This is an impressive and well written book about the part played by biological and chemical weapons in the Gulf War, their impact on in-war deterrence and their continuing relevance as the war drew to a close and thereafter. There are lessons to be learned from the Iraq experience that must be applied in the future not only in Iraq itself but further afield. quiescent alongside the Kosovo turmoil, we should stay aware of savagely unfinished business of vital interest." part played by biological and chemical weapons in the Gulf War, their impact on in-war deterrence and their continuing relevance as the war drew to a close and thereafter. There are lessons to be learned from the Iraq experience that must be applied in the future not only in Iraq itself but further afield. quiescent alongside the Kosovo turmoil, we should stay aware of savagely unfinished business of vital interest." Rear Admiral Richard Cobbold, Director Royal United Services Institute for Defence Studies (RUSI, RUSI Journal, London, August 1999

The Continuing Storm is one of the most significant and intriguing books I have read. It sheds light on why the Gulf War really ended when it did, and comes to some startling conclusions on how biological and chemical weapons will impact global security in the future. The balance of power is changing before our eyes, as this books so clearly reveals. It changed my whole perspective on U.S. foreign policy in the Gulf, as well as helped me understand the "game" Saddam is playing. Very timely and interesting overall. I recommend this book to people who are concerned about international affairs, military strategy, and world stability.

Excellent book!!! Haselkorn brings a new dimension to our understanding of the Gulf War. In a nutshell Haselkorn argues that the reason the Coalition did not go "all the way" to Bagdad was due to the Chemical/Biological threat posed by Saddam. This is a fascinating thesis, though Haselkorn, in my opinion places to much weight on some flimsy evidence. Haselkorn argues that when the Iraqis fired a Scud missile at Israel with a concrete block attached instead of a warhead it was intended to warn Israel and the coalition that Saddam was prepared to fire missiles with biological warheads. Haselkorn further argues that the concrete block was intended to be seen as some kind of biological delivery vehicle. Is it not far more likely that in the heat of battle the Iraqis fired a missile with a dummy training round or that due to the pressure of the coalition bombing explosive warheads were not available? There are any number of reason why the Iraqis could have fired a missile with a concrete warhead, I think its a stretch to say that because the Iraqis fired a concrete warhead they were signaling their intenion to escalate to Chemical and Biological weapons. Nonetheless, this is an informative, well researched and well written book; moreover, it forces the reader to take a new look at the more conventional histories of the Gulf War. Good read, worth the money!!!!

"[The Continuing Storm] is the mother of all books on the gulf war written by one of today's most brilliant political-military analysts, Avigdor Haselkorn...The author's extraordinary documentation--the encyclopedic footnotes alone are a sort of volume two--and reasoning must be attended two."

"'As long as we accept the arguments of Bush and his colleagues as they struggle to explain their stated reasons for ending the war,' writes Mr. Haselkorn,'it will be impossible not to conclude that the president was either dangerously out of touch with the events at the close of the war or was simply acting irrationally. It is far better to believe that he and his cohorts are simply less than truthful.'"

Arnold Beichman in WASHINGTON TIMES, April 18, 1999

In this remarkable book, Avigdor Haselkorn shows readers how to think about future wars. More precisely, Haselkorn uses the Gulf War to illustrate his point that the very nature of war has shifted, not merely because of weapons of mass destruction, but because these weapons now are in the hands of "undeterrable" governments. Simply put, while the Soviets were vicious they weren't vicious and crazy. Today, however, we have vicious and crazy leaders in countries such as Iraq, Libya and North Korea. Dealing with threats from governments like these will require a wholly new approach to strategy. It must be a combination of strategic defense AND -- here comes the tricky part -- pre-emption. Because we may not be able to deter governments like these, we may need to physically separate them from their mass destruction weapons before they can use them.

Haselkorn's detailed analysis of the Gulf War, and of the various strategic analyses undertaken by the US, by Iraq -- and by Israel, which had the option to launch its nuclear weapons at Baghdad but did not -- is analysis of the highest geostrategic order. Just reading through "The Continuing Storm" will change the way you think about warfare.

This is truly the first post-Gulf War strategic essays on war in the next century to be published. It should be widely read by military officers, war planners and defense professionals throughout the world.

Avigdor Haselkorn provides a very serious examination of the weapons of mass destruction available to Iraq during the Gulf War and presents a sobering insight into the dangers that the possession of these weapons by the Iraqi regime presents to it's neighbours and the West today.

A very well-timed book in view of current events.

The book also examines the circumstances surrounding the reasons why the Gulf War was so abruptly terminated. Some arguing that the coalition might have collapsed if any further advances had been made into Iraq, others of the opinion that such allied actions would have forced the use of Iraq weapons of mass destruction. Other opinions leave the matter open to some debate.

Although a military defeat for Iraq, it was a conflict that did not remove the Iraqi dictator's regime from power. We now face the inevitable consequences and the world is in a turmoil as to how to approach the present situation.

The contents of this book are disturbing. The weapons of mass destruction available are examined in some detail together with the effects that the delivery of these weapons could have on the military or the civilian populace. One cannot but remain convinced that this matter is as dangerous and significant now as it was at the time of the Gulf War. Recommended read.