Customer Reviews

Inheriting Syria: Bashar's Trial by Fire

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I will give this book five stars because it is perhaps the only book available in English that offers this kind of information on Syria, even though such information is widely available in Arabic texts. Leveret t provides a highly accurate description of the power circle in Syria despite the few minor mistakes.
The author then cites a number of Bashar's statements and encounters to support the book's main point: that Bashar Assad has genuine intentions for change and positive overture toward the United States except that the US is not currently willing to reciprocate this kind of behavior.
Leverett then examines the possibilities facing America when dealing with rogue states like Syria. According to Leverett, there are four options: sanctions, military campaigns or alternatively, Leverett suggests that the United States employs what he terms as "conditional engagement."
The author dismisses sanctions saying that they proved to be inadequate if applied unilaterally without Europe's involvement. He argues that military campaigns exposed America's limited human and financial resources as the United States maintains considerable missions in Iraq, Afghanistan and other regions of the world.
Therefore, Leverett suggests that the US start building trust with Syria and provide Bashar and his young team leverage over the old guard in his presumed bid to change and modernize Syria. American-Syrian trust building can start from the successful exchange of intelligence information on Al-Qaeda and be expanded to include exchange of other favors. According to Leverett, these incentives would be the carrots as opposed to the many sticks with which America will threaten Syria in case the latter fails to comply.
Consequently, and over the medium and long terms, such a policy will benefit both nations even though the author does not suggest that it will lead to the democratization of Syria. He stated, however, that trying to unseat Bashar would only bring instability and Muslim fundamentalists to power and that Bashar remains America's best bid in Syria.
The hypothesis of the book is interesting, even though it has nothing new to it. This kind of containment-of-dictators policy has dominated America's foreign policy prior to 9/11 and has not proven any particular success. Furthermore, a main prophecy in the book failed the test of time since according to Leverett, a Syrian withdrawal from Lebanon would lead to a Lebanese civil war. By the time this review was written, Syrian troops had been outside of Lebanon for over a month and nothing like civil strife yet appears to be coming in the Lebanese horizons.
As for Israel, Leverett makes it known that Bashar's attitude to the US is independent of the procession of any Syrian-Israeli peace. Leverett quoted Bashar as saying that he was ready to "bracket" the peace process for the time being while he improves Damascus's bilateral relations with Washington. This can only be a proof that Arab dictators like Bashar are never as genuinely concerned about re-gaining any disputed land inasmuch as they are interested in keeping the Arab-Israeli conflict going so that they can use it as a pretext to justify their leadership and divert their people's hate against foreign enemies and away from their tyranny and corruption.

This book promises much, particularly in dealinhg with this little-known(in the U.S., at least), but ultimately very important lynchpin in the Middle East. There is interesting material on the Assad family as well as the Syrian political environment and dynamic, BUT too many of the annotated sources are highly questionable, e.g., Leverett quotes frquently from publications by the washington Center on Near East Policy, aan American Likudnik organization closely tied to AIPAC, the principal Israeli lobby ijn this country. Additionally, he quotes from Daniel Pipes, the highly controversial creator of the McCarthyite CAMPUS WATCH, to 'monitor and censure' College Professors not teaching Middle Eastern Affairs from an Israeli-centric view. Pipes, widely regarded as an Arabophobe and Islamophobe throughout academic circles, is a highly biased source. Although this book is valuable since there are so few others on the subject available in English, it should be used and studied with great caution. Too bad, an excellent opportunity by the author has been missed.

Mr Leverett gave the best analysis for the state of Syria past and present that I have read in one book. This is definitely the book to read for a balanced account of Syrian history and the future of Syria based on the history. I study Syria extensively and this book is the best and most unbiased single book to read on the subject plain and simple. Great job

Despite somewhat dry writing and rapidly evolving events on the ground, this is a compelling book for anyone interested in the Middle East. Former U.S. State Department and C.I.A. Syria-expert Flynt Leverett covers the history, personalities and strategies of the late dictator, Hafiz Al-Asad, and his son, Bashar, Syria's current ruler. The author explains U.S. diplomatic options and traces the evolution of Syria, an impoverished rogue dictatorship long under U.S. sanctions as a state that supports terrorism. He devotes about 30% of his well-researched book to a chronology, appendix and footnotes. He provides extensive support materials to demonstrate why a country with so many internal needs has become such a devoted patron of terrorism, imbued with the purpose of destabilizing Western Democracies' policies and spoiling any regional peace efforts. Leverett also addresses the U.S. State Department's near tolerance of much of Syria's international troublemaking. While he presents clear descriptions, he offers no clear-cut answers - as if there are any - but offers possible scenarios, mostly stalemates, in this drawn-out international chess game. We recommend this book as important reading on U.S. foreign policy.

In the absence of clear independent historian scholar studies of that part of the world, this book present limited view of the political culture in Syria, It has clear illustration of the events occured during the elder Assad, and his son Bashar, tinted with the CIA view, what is missing is the view of the intellectual opposition of these events in Syria and surrounding arbic countries. While most of the facts detailed in the book are well detailed but the interpertation of such events was clearly clouded with the western view of the dynamics of the middle east and without any critical evalution what the beheviors of Israeli occupation had influanced such dynamics.

Overall, I found the book a great trial to understand the comlexity of Syria political arena. And I would like to see the response of the intellectual scholar supporting or oppsing such ineheritence.

This is a well written, up to date interesting book. However it is written from an amercian analysts view. The analysis is good, but in my opinion it has to many references to US policies. Everett presents three different perspectives of Bashar; as a reformer, as a status-quo president and as a lame-duck president and measures these views with his actual recent policy. It clearly demonstrates that Syrian policymaking is quite complex. Furthermore, it is as an authoritative account on Syrian contemporary politics. The concluding thoughts are however, in my opinion, perhaps a bit optimistic.

Recommended reading for everyone interested in Levant- and authoritarian politics!

Considering what has been happening with Israel and Lebanon recently, I thought that reading a book on one of the main players in the crisis, Syria, would be a good idea. I had a feeling that this was going to be a good book, but Leverett really stunned me with his knowledge and his writing.

From an organizational perspective, this book is wonderfully straighforward, and it has a very clear focus. Its five chapters include one devoted to Syria's history and its place in the Middle East, the next covers the elder Asad's time in office, the following chapters deal with the younger Asad's domestic & then foreign policy aspects, with a final chapter devoted to how the U.S. should handle a country like Syria.

Throughout the entire book, Leverett's approach is dispassionate and balanced. Many people take subject matter involving the Middle East and proceed to start with their conclusions and work backwards. This type of behavior is unhelpful at best, incredibly harmful at worst. Leverett on the other hand, does not appear to have any sort of axe to grind. He comes across as wanting to first provide an honest account of what makes Sryia tick as a country, and then second, how the U.S. can behave in such a way that will foster engagement between the two countries that will lead to a more productive relationship that will benefit both sides.

I was largely unfamiliar with the specifics of Syria. The only prior experience I've had has been brief accounts in more general history books, and also quite a bit of recent exposure from print and broadcast sources in the past several weeks. The limited experience notwithstanding, I found this book to be very easy to follow. I feel as though I am much more prepared to discuss issues pertaining to Syria after having read this book. I was particularly impressed at the way in which Leverett really seemed to balance all the different and sometimes conflicting aspects of this case study. Handling a country like Syria is no easy task, but in the end Leverett paints an optimistic, and ultimately realistic picture. I can only hope that Leverett will write as many books on the topic as he can because the field of Middle Eastern studies needs more of this kind of work.

Excellent printing and binding - the text looks to be the professional work of a team - the reader is well drawn in - a great effort, but very artfully obscured are the facts that Syria was an independent nation just after WW1 - with internationally recognised and undisputed boundaries and a King enthroned - then France rapidly obtained a league of nations mandate - attacked Syrian troops and the King fled to the UK, in exile.

Subsequently, pieces of Syria were hacked off to form Palestine (in readiness for the later Israel), Trans-Jordan and Lebanon. Pieces were also give to Iraq and Turkey. Very un-Christian behaviour considering that Syrians fought shoulder-to-shoulder with us in WW1 to help defeat our enemies.

The author lays the Hindawi case firmly at Syria's door with a 'probable' authorisation by Assad. Victor Ostrovsky (former Mossad) says in his books that it was an Israeli false flag operation run by Mossad to break relations between the UK and Syria - and it worked.

Israel is treated in the text with a careful, almost fearful reverence, while Syria gets the usual just short of `evil people led by a wicked dictator' treatment. That is boringly predictable, not to mention academically emasculated - and demonstrates bad manners.

The book fails to reveal that Syria is absolutely controlled by twelve men from different families, and Assad is not one of those men. It is inconceivable that an author with such credentials could be unaware of this.

The Israel-Syria conflict (the US has no conflict - we have placed Syria on the state-sponsors of terrorism list, but our oil companies continue their decades-long activities in Syria. We take Al Qaeda prisoners to Syria from Iraq for interrogation -extraordinary renditions) is over the major waterways underneath the Golan heights - Israel doesn't wish to return them to their lawful owners. You won't find much about these subjects in the book.

Overall: This book is not the whole truth and in places it is downright misleading.

Occasionally the text shows rather a self-important attitude in places, as if US interests reign supreme in all minds, which they do not - 190 other nations who share the planet generally don't give a hoot, except when our wallet opens or we wheel out the missiles.

Such an attitude and fooling around in the middle east for the benefit of a few hundred Israeli settlers, trying to play impartial peace broker, when we are so close to Tel Aviv it is a farce to pretend such, has sadly led to the EU sailing clearly ahead - and they now have a larger army than ours, over 50% of world trade, 40% of the world's wealth, and the dollar is being widely ditched in favour of the Euro.

Yes, American supremacy is coming to end, not because of enemies without, but because of this stupidity and attitude within - and its attendant lack of vision. It is also going some way to helping China become the richest nation by 2015 while we expend $ 5 billion credit (plus interest) a month in Iraq.

One reviewer found it was overly critical of Israel and Jews and that the religious attacks upon Muslims and Christians asserted by Assad were the opposite of reality.

These are extraordinary authoritative but misleading remarks from someone who plainly has never lived in Israel and Syria.

It was very widely reported in the media a few months that one religious student spat on the cross in a procession, and ripped the cross from an Archbishop's neck in Jerusalem. The Archbishop said that such spitting occurs about once a month. Is this the `opposite of reality'...?

The acid test for those unsure of the truth in a hail of propaganda surrounding the middle east conflict, is to visit both Syria and Israel - you will rapidly see what is fact and what is fiction.

But as you make travel arrangements do not be surprised (as I was before a sojourn of several years in both countries), if you are advised not to visit one of the two countries - we are not to known what is really going on - you may pay taxes but button your lip as to how they're spent.

A look at the smashed and painstakingly looted church in Kuneitra (even the tabernacle and mouldings with icons were chiselled off and taken away for selling on the black market), the graves blown open and robbed, is quite an eye opener, although some will surely attribute this to an evil conspiracy to blame Israeli soldiers. You would have to ask the European forensic team about that, and Ambassador Aitkin.

I found Flynt's book to be on target and fascinating material. Do yourself a favor and read this book and keep it in your library to refer back to for history in the making.

This book contains many problems, not the least of which is that Bashar has had little time to govern, which makes the book more a psychological study of the regime then a true benchmark of what is happining or will happen. The middle east is unpredictable and beggining there we might question why it is important to write a tentative biography of someone who hasnt done much. First of it should be said it is important to have a new book on Syria as Patrick Seales are outdated. Asad is dead(the elder), Syria is out of Lebanon. These are major changes for the Alewite 'secular' government in Demscus. Russia is out of the picture militarily, the Americans are on the border, the nation is isolated. Kurds demand rights. Where to house the x-lebanese Syrian settlers who have returned(300,000 by some estimates).

However the book does repeat some idiotic storias about Israel.

There is a theory presented that Israelis dont want 'peace'. But peace is a misleading term. What the author means is Israel apparnetly doesnt want the Syrian version of peace and 'justice'. The authors suspect comment that Israel is 'racist' is also interesting in light of his non-mentioning of the horrors visited upon Muslim fundamentalists in Homs in the 1980s when Asad the elder killed tens of thousands of them. Presumably the message is clear, when dictatorships repress people, including Christian minorities, thats no big deal, any human rights abuses are acceptable if dictatorships commit, and of course a Muslim cannot be 'racist' since that term is only reserved for liberal democracies such as Israel. Highly controversial statements such as these should have been left out of what is otherwise a dry, but honest and updated text.

Bashar Asad is interesting. Syria is a fascinating nation with many minorities including the Alewites who govern, the Kurds, Druze, SYriac CHristians and Armenains as well as a few Turks and Circassians no one will tell anyone about. Syria is also in dnager today, no longer the military behomoth it was in the 1970s. For the expert or the area specialist(or middle east enthusiast) this is a good read, for others, perhaps not.

Seth J. Frantzman