The Longest War: The Iran-Iraq Military Conflict [Paperback]

Dilip Hiro (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0415904072 | ISBN-13: 978-0586090381 | Publication Date: December 21, 1990 | Edition: Reprint

In The Longest War, Dilip Hiro describes the causes and courses of the Iran-Iraq military conflict and its effect on the two antagonists, as well as the rest of the world. He reveals the intricate twists and turns of international diplomacy and the realpolitik behind the rhetoric, providing a comprehensive and admirably balanced account of the political and military aspects of the "longest war."

Editorial Reviews

Review

From the reviews of the British edition:
Hiro's work, clearly written and balanced, illustrated with photographs that portray the war in all its horror, is the best book on the subject so far. -- Patrick Seale, The Observer
Outstandingly objective . . . an object lesson in how an acocmplished journalist can and should reconstruct events of world-wide importance. -- Justin Wintle, The Independent
Authoritative . . . Hiro's exacting, analytical approach is especially appropriate for a war which has never been quite what it seems. -- Amanda Mitchison, New Statesman and Society
Pakistani journalist Dilip Hiro takes us well beyond images of Khomeini dart boards and Saddam voodoo dolls to reveal calculating interest groups whom the West might have manipulated more skillfully . . . . captures the human motivations behind the war. -- Los Angeles Times
. . . with his maps and photographs, his chronology and documentary appendixes, he succeeds in chronicling with powerful detail what, to contemporary eyes, is that conflict's cruel and utter futility. -- Lisa Anderson, New York Times Book Review
. . . masterfully analyzes the war and its political consequences . . . . Foresighted throughout, this is one of the best books on the longest war of the 20th century. -- Joseph Kechichian, Library Journal
A balanced analysis that fills a gap on most shelves. -- Gil Taylor, Booklist
This outstanding book, must reading for anyone wishing to understand the background of Saddam Hussein's ill-fated seizure of Kuwait, helps to clarify the often bewildering and contradictory political signals coming out of Iran over the last decade. -- Choice

About the Author

Dilip Hiro is a writer and journalist living in London. He is the author of Holy Wars: The Rise of Islamic Fundamentalism (Routledge, 1989) and Iran Under the Ayatollahs (Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1987) among others.

Product Details

• Paperback: 323 pages
• Publisher: Routledge; Reprint edition (December 21, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0415904072
• ISBN-13: 978-0586090381
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #434,546 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good synopsis of the Iran-Iraq conflict, November 22, 2004

By 

Jeremy H. Burton (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Longest War: The Iran-Iraq Military Conflict (Paperback)

"The Longest War" by Dilip Hiro provides a thorough political history of the Iran-Iraq conflict. Those with little to moderate exposure to the war will probably find it interesting, while more knowledgeable students of the era will most likely gain little insight, as it is largely based on press clippings.

Readers of other military histories will be disappointed to find a lack of primary evidence into motives; however, it is important remember that such evidence was not available at the time of publication, as it is with, for example, a history of World War II.

One interesting factor about this book is that it was (apparently) written prior to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1991. This has positive and negative effects. For instance:

(1) Hiro does not have the benefit of being able to use future events to improve his analysis. For example, given the later invasion of Kuwait, Sadaam Hussein's invasion of Iran seems much more like a megalomaniac stab at natural resources (and their commensurate power) than the establishment of a bulwark against Shi'ite Islamism.

(2) Hiro's analysis does not suffer from bias created by later events. For example, American support of the Iraqi regime in the latter stages of the war is presented in the context of (a) Cold War competition with the Soviet Union, (b) protecting American interests in the gulf states from Iranian interference and (c) the political climate in America following the Iran-Contra affair. Today, it is common to see such support described as misguided or even hypocritical, given what happened in 1990-1 and in 2003. Hiro lays out reasons for American support to Iraq that were indeed very rational given what was known to American policymakers at the time.

23 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent history., July 21, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: The Longest War: The Iran-Iraq Military Conflict (Paperback)

Lasting eight years, and at a cost of over a trillion dollars and a million casualties, this savage conflict (which featured chemical weapons and genocide against the Kurds), largely unknown to most Westerners, is far from over.
Hiro, an expert on Middle Eastern affairs, traces the ancient animosities and territorial aspirations which animated the slaughter, describes in detail the actual fighting, and connects the war to the Great Powers which covertly aided the belligerents.
Finally, in his Epilogue, he notes the "no war, no peace" status of the region and warns of an arms-race between Iran and Iraq, which bodes ill for the stability of an area which contains most of the world's crude oil reserves.
(The numerical rating above is a default setting within Amazon's format. This reviewer does not employ numerical ratings.)

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Political not Military History, December 20, 2000

By 

Gerry Fahrenthold (Westfield, NJ) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The longest war: The Iran-Iraq military conflict (Paperback)

A thorough review of the religious and geopolitical, but not militry, history of the Iran Iraq war. The author provides little critical analysis in what is an almost textbook like format. There is extensive coverage of the political issues and of the internal battles fought by both of the combatants, especially Iraq, to maintain internal public support. When one reads how well Hussien managed the internal political challenges of the Iran Iraq war, his survival of the Gulf War seems less of a surprise. The economic issues of waging the war, an issue often left out of military history, is well documented. There is good analysis of the involvement of the superpowers and the legal and illegal sale of arms to both sides. There is only very minimal coverage of military strategy, tactics, and weapons and only a cursory description of the campaigns.