by Ali A. Allawi
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Product Description
Involved for over thirty years in the politics of Iraq, Ali A. Allawi was a long-time opposition leader against the Baathist regime. In the post-Saddam years he has held important government positions and participated in crucial national decisions and events. In this book, the former Minister of Defense and Finance draws on his unique personal experience, extensive relationships with members of the main political groups and parties in Iraq, and deep understanding of the history and society of his country to answer the baffling questions that persist about its current crises. What really led the United States to invade Iraq, and why have events failed to unfold as planned?
The Occupation of Iraq examines what the United States did and didn’t know at the time of the invasion, the reasons for the confused and contradictory policies that were enacted, and the emergence of the Iraqi political class during the difficult transition process. The book tracks the growth of the insurgency and illuminates the complex relationships among Sunnis, Shias, and Kurds. Bringing the discussion forward to the reconfiguration of political forces in 2006, Allawi provides in these pages the clearest view to date of the modern history of Iraq and the invasion that changed its course in unpredicted ways.
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Average Customer Review:
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
 Excellent history of the Iraq war , 2008-07-03
Title The Occupation of Iraq: Winning the War, Losing the Peace
Author: Ali A. Allawi
Rating *****
Tags iraq, occupation, war, george w bush, dick cheney, middle east, politics, government, achmed chalabi, ali allawi
Excellent book, indispensible for any Westerner seeking to understand Iraq. Ali Allawi is an Iraqi who spent much of his life in exile from the Ba'ath regime, and was well-connected to the opposition who were influential once Saddam was overthrown, being a nephew of Ahmed Chalabi and a cousin of Ayed Allawi. He held various positions in post-Saddam Iraq.
All of which prepares one for a biased telling of the story of Iraq, from the viewpoint of a partisan with a particular view. What one gets instead is a stunningly broad and deep look at all the strands that go into creating the Iraq of today. Allawi discusses the politics, religion, and economy of Iraq, showing the major players and their complex viewpoints, the interaction of all the persons, events, and influences in a remarkably dispassionate and balanced way. Yet he writes with an insider's knowledge and access to people in positions of influence.
Moreover Allawi is competent in discussing the influences that drove the American invasion, and provides an excellent analysis of a theorist the Americans SHOULD have paid attention to , Robert Merton, and his theories of the law of unintended consequences. By the end of the book one is well aware of how difficult and multi-faceted a job is nation building, not something that should be attempted lightly or in ignorance.
Allawi includes brief but important analyses of the views of the other regional powers, including Iran and Saudi Arabia. Their views are complex and multi-layered.
One item was particularly interesting to me. I just read the book _Century of War, Century of Media_ which was particularly horrifying in describing the use of phosphorus by US troops in Fallujah. Allawi's book confirms that account on p. 339, "The MNF [multinational force] was accused of using banned chemical weapons such as white phosphorus and incendiary bombs, a charge denied by the State Department but subsequently indirectly confirmed by the Department of Defense."
The book does not end on a hopeful note. The situation in Iraq is dire, with few good solutions. But after reading this book one has a much better idea of how the situation became what it is, which is a necessary condition to finding solution
Publication Yale University Press (2007), Edition: 1, Hardcover, 544 pages
Publication date 2007
ISBN 0300110154 / 9780300110159
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
best book there is on Iraq, 2008-05-20
If you read just one book about Iraq you need it to be this one. This book is the most comprehensive book out there. It provides a very in depth explanation of Iraq. The book focuses on the political angle of Iraq. He has a lot of inside information that the American press just misses. He has some good insight on American policy that is interesting. The author is Iraqi so he has such an insight that is amazing. You can't find this anywhere else.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
An Iraqi Account of the War, 2008-05-07
I just finished reading this book. It is the sixth book I have read on the war in Iraq, and the first by an Iraqi. It is not an easy read, but it is worth the effort. The only reason that I didn't give it 5 stars is that it is kind of a chore to grind through the whole thing, but I am glad I made the effort.
Compared to the other books on Iraq which I have read, this painted a much more complex picture of Iraq. It helped me to understand the complexities of Iraq, and how hard it is to govern it. The identification of Iraqis with Iraq seems pretty thin compared to identification with their religion, their ethnicity, their tribe, clan, family, etc.
Allawi complements some and reproves others. The failure of the occupation is due to mistakes both by the U.S. and by the Iraqis. And he lays it all out quite well. One comment on the U.S. administration really stood out: He cited cheery quotes by both President Bush and General Petraeus in the midst of explaining the then current situation, which was anything but cheery. So I am even less inclined to believe anything said in the future by these two men. I had an idea there was corruption, but the scale of it is mind-boggling. Where other books, by Americans, detail the corruption on the American side, Allawi explains it on the Iraqi side.
If you want to be informed, read this book. If you don't want to be depressed, pass it up.
Dennis Veith
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
An Iraqi perspective, 2008-04-07
Books about the Iraq war are plentiful to say the least and unfortunately, many of them add little to the debate. Even so, there are many books that do and it can be a bit intimidating to dive into the subject. There isn't a single definitive book on the subject and if you really want to understand the war and its aftermath, you'll need to devote quite a bit of time to that end. Ali Allawi's book is definitely worth the read, but it's hard to tell exactly where this book fits into the overall picture from the title alone. What you'll find in The Occupation of Iraq is primarily a narrative (from an Iraqi perspective) of the political process in Iraq after the U.S. invasion. Although Allawi is at times critical of the U.S., what you won't find in this book is a rant against the Bush administration or the U.S. in general, even though many people reviewing books like this like to say that it's somehow incontrovertible proof that Bush is a lying criminal etc.
As an Iraqi, Allawi provides a number of important insights that normally get left out of the discussion by American writers. One important piece of conventional wisdom is that Saddam Hussein's regime was secular and that the rise of Islamic extremism in Iraq is somehow America's fault, but Allawi correctly points out that in 1994, Hussein launched a faith campaign in order to enhance its authority and credibility. This more than anything the U.S. did planted the seeds of Sunni extremism. Another important, but often overlooked point involves the looting of the country that happened after the invasion. Allawi draws attention to the fact that the systematic looting of government buildings was not the work of random criminals, but rather by regime elements determined to dismantle as much of the state's infrastructure as possible, making in more difficult for the Americans and successive Iraqi governments and also to destroy as much incriminating evidence as possible. This never really gets discussed in other books on the subject, but it's an important point that makes a lot of sense when you think about it. As far as the criticism goes that Allawi was an exile, and therefore unqualified to really write about Iraq, the vast majority of the book is concerned with the post-invasion period, when he was part of the government. There is very little about Iraq before the war. These types of criticisms against Allawi carry little, if any weight.
Some things that stood out to me as odd though. One was that the preface was obviously written by someone whose first language isn't English, but the rest of the book doesn't come across this way at all. Maybe it was that the rest of the book was subject to careful editing while the preface was left alone. In any case, it seems like one person wrote the preface while a different person wrote the rest of the book. Also, there are severl times in the book where Allawi refers to himself, but it's in the third person. This adds to the impression that someone else wrote the bulk of the book. In most narrative accounts like this, a person involved in the story itself uses 1st person, not 3rd. Another odd thing about this book is that Allawi never capitalizes the words West or Western. Normally when writing about "the" West or "the" East, the words are capitalized. A subtle jab at the West by Allawi perhaps? Hard to tell, but odd nonetheless.
At 460 pages, The Occupation of Iraq is a lengthy and sometimes difficult read, but ultimately rewarding. To my knowledge, this is the only work of such depth written by an Iraqi involved in the work of rebuilding Iraq at the governmental level. Fiasco and Cobra II cover the story from the American military perspective, The Assassins' Gate and the Foreigner's Gift are more of an investigative journalism/extensive travel diary, and State of Denial is the ultimate insider's look at the Bush administration. These are all important angles and necessary ones to fully understand what's happened in Iraq. Allawi's contribution provides a much needed Iraqi government perspective and in many ways, he's just as critical of the Iraqi government's failures as most are of the Bush administration. This probably shouldn't be the first book about Iraq that someone reads, because I think it requires at least some prior knowledge about the country. Someone with no background will likely have a difficult time here, but the book is certainly rewarding for those well-versed in the subject.
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
book:The Occupation Of Iraq: Winning the War, Losing the Peace, 2008-03-29
Recommended by my son who is in the U.S. Dept of State. Found it interesting and well written. Thought it might be somewhat biased as the author was part of the post occupation phase in Iraq.Arrived in good time, in very good condition.
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