The New Arab Wars outlines the regional conflicts in the Middle East and the political and ideological factors involved. This book is effectively a political science book that can get the casual reader much more versed into the differences between the countries and the interest of regional powers in any given country. To get an understanding of what is going on in Syria, Libya with ISIS, Yemen, Egypt, etc... this book is a must read and can give a deeper insight into what various interests and why are driving the conflicts rather than the good and evil narratives that come through with too great abundance through the 24 hour news service.
The New Arab Wars discusses recent events in the middle east focusing on Syria, Libya, Egypt, Yemen, Bahrain and Tunisia. Despite most headlines trumpeting ideological reasons for who should be in charge the author discusses which regional powers have direct interests and spheres of influence concerns in the various countries. In particular in the Middle East there are those fearful of the rise of Iran and its sphere of influence, Saudi Arabia with the UAE and Qatar as an opposing interest in favor of the Muslim brotherhood. Due to the competing interests both political and ideological there is an abundance of spin that comes out of the news trying to gather support. Furthermore the willingness to finance groups who would further certain groups political goals has led to a massive proxy war in the region as arms have been fed into tribal and ideologically driven groups for often quite shallow reasons. The US has been far less willing to fund and expand their war effort so much of the conflict is due to the escalating proxy war of regional powers with deep pockets. It is tragic as the human side of the equation is what is suffering the most by far.
The New Arab Wars gives a window into the political science of the conflicts in the Middle East. The author discusses how the promotion of democracy as an ideal that is pushed by the US cannot be taken at face value as Bahrain had the support of the US in using force to suppress civil unrest but elsewhere did not due to the closer relationship of the US with Bahrain. Furthermore the fall of the Muslim brotherhood in Egypt whose election was a manifestation of a move toward democracy was a tragic step back for the country that should have been stabilized by the US. There is an inherent conflict of interest in the power struggle in the Middle East. The allies of the US are not democratic so the idea that for current events the US will put ideology above regional relationships is flawed. The balance of power is the center of concern in the region and sectarian conflict the norm. Democracy leads to majoritarian outcomes which are destabilizing and the regional conflicts are real between Saudi, Iraq, Iran and Qatar. The conflict and proxy war that is being fought in Syria was inevitable given the intrinsic interests known ex-ante and though there are very obvious moral dimensions to the conflict there are many issues under the hood if one looks at the regions history and associated parties. Very informative and timely.
- Amazon Business : For business-only pricing, quantity discounts and FREE Shipping. Register a free business account
