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Islamic State: Rewriting History
The world is watching Islamic State’s lightning advance through Syria to the gates of Baghdad. For the third time in fifteen years, the US risks being drawn into another war in the Middle East despite its experiences in Afghanistan and Iraq. IS are creating catastrophic waves across the region, but it is still unclear what lies behind its success.
Islamic State: Rewriting History takes the long-view by analysing IS’s beginnings in Iraq to their involvement in the Arab Spring and through to the present day. It discusses the myriad of regional players engaged in a seemingly endless power game: Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and Iraq have all contributed to the success of IS by supplying arms and funds.
Using a fast-paced, narrative-driven style, Michael Griffin foregrounds the story of the uprising against President Assad of Syria and describes his regime’s varied responses; the human cost; the role played by the Free Syrian Army, Islamist groups, Iran, Hezbollah and Russia; the chemical weapons attacks in 2013; and the House of Commons vote not to impose a no-fly zone over the country.
Islamic State: Rewriting History takes the long-view by analysing IS’s beginnings in Iraq to their involvement in the Arab Spring and through to the present day. It discusses the myriad of regional players engaged in a seemingly endless power game: Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and Iraq have all contributed to the success of IS by supplying arms and funds.
Using a fast-paced, narrative-driven style, Michael Griffin foregrounds the story of the uprising against President Assad of Syria and describes his regime’s varied responses; the human cost; the role played by the Free Syrian Army, Islamist groups, Iran, Hezbollah and Russia; the chemical weapons attacks in 2013; and the House of Commons vote not to impose a no-fly zone over the country.
136 pages, Paperback
First published October 15, 2015
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Michael Griffin
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There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
This profile may contain books from multiple authors of this name.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
August 31, 2020
Buku yang realatif tipis untuk menyorot kumpulan yang masih menimbulkan enigma bukan sahaja kepada Barat, malah sebahagian umat Islam yang mudah dikelabui dengan slogan-slogan jihad kesan daripada kekosongan jiwa daripada makna Islam sebenar.
Daripada aliran yang turut diklasifikasikan sebagai Salafi-Jihadi, kumpulan IS, ISIS atau lebih digelar Daesh dalam lingo umat Islam, ironinya tumbuh kesan daripada cara Amerika Syarikat bertindak bukan sahaja terhadap golongan yang menentang pencerobohannya di Iraq, bahkan orang awam yang ‘kesalahannya’ hanya menjadi bystander tetapi dikirimkan ke penjara yang terkenal dengan penyeksaan. Namun, penjara Kem Bucca juga menjadi institut kaderisasi kepada golongan ekstremis termasuk Abu Bakar al-Baghdadi yang kelak mengisyitiharkan sebagai khalifah dan bakinya adalah sejarah.
Buku ini menyorot bagaimana ISIS terbentuk daripada cabang al-Qaeda yang kemudiannya menjadi anak derhaka kepada bapa yang sudah sedia ganas, mendapat sumber daripada geopolitik negara jiran terutama blok Arab Saudi dan UAE yang cuba membentuk hemogoni di Asia Barat dan mencatur politik serantau, selain tentunya pemain seperti Iran, Turki, AS dan Russia.
Malangnya, IS menunggang-terbalikkan Syria dan Iraq yang sudah sedia kacau yang turut menggoda umat Islam dari luar Asia Barat terutama Barat yang generasi muda diaspora Muslim di Eropah ibarat bunga teratai yang akarnya tidak berjejak di tanah dan terapung-apung antara Islamofobia dan rasisme masyarakat kulit putih.
Buku ini memudahkan pembaca untuk mengikuti perkembangan IS secara kronologi dan menempatkannya dalam konteks sejarah serta geopolitik.
Daripada aliran yang turut diklasifikasikan sebagai Salafi-Jihadi, kumpulan IS, ISIS atau lebih digelar Daesh dalam lingo umat Islam, ironinya tumbuh kesan daripada cara Amerika Syarikat bertindak bukan sahaja terhadap golongan yang menentang pencerobohannya di Iraq, bahkan orang awam yang ‘kesalahannya’ hanya menjadi bystander tetapi dikirimkan ke penjara yang terkenal dengan penyeksaan. Namun, penjara Kem Bucca juga menjadi institut kaderisasi kepada golongan ekstremis termasuk Abu Bakar al-Baghdadi yang kelak mengisyitiharkan sebagai khalifah dan bakinya adalah sejarah.
Buku ini menyorot bagaimana ISIS terbentuk daripada cabang al-Qaeda yang kemudiannya menjadi anak derhaka kepada bapa yang sudah sedia ganas, mendapat sumber daripada geopolitik negara jiran terutama blok Arab Saudi dan UAE yang cuba membentuk hemogoni di Asia Barat dan mencatur politik serantau, selain tentunya pemain seperti Iran, Turki, AS dan Russia.
Malangnya, IS menunggang-terbalikkan Syria dan Iraq yang sudah sedia kacau yang turut menggoda umat Islam dari luar Asia Barat terutama Barat yang generasi muda diaspora Muslim di Eropah ibarat bunga teratai yang akarnya tidak berjejak di tanah dan terapung-apung antara Islamofobia dan rasisme masyarakat kulit putih.
Buku ini memudahkan pembaca untuk mengikuti perkembangan IS secara kronologi dan menempatkannya dalam konteks sejarah serta geopolitik.
April 19, 2016
Short, but eye-opening introduction behind the quagmire that is Iraq and what has formed from neoliberal capitalistic interference. From half-starts to stalls, from lacking a program or conviction other than "let's get whatever money we can out of this" and Hillary Clinton's infamous "let's think of Iraq as a business venture,"ISIS formed from the ashes and with strength (and some CIA backing) tore through large swathes of the countryside. The horror we see is borne from our own schizophrenic programs that claim morality in theory but reveal avarice in practice. Is it any wonder that what ends up being rewarded is something like ISIS?
We create our own monsters, we destabilized Assad by funding radical networks like ISIS (through Secretary Clinton's hawkish State program). And nothing will change so long as we continue on with leaders whose thoughts solely rest on "how can we make money off of this incident?"
We create our own monsters, we destabilized Assad by funding radical networks like ISIS (through Secretary Clinton's hawkish State program). And nothing will change so long as we continue on with leaders whose thoughts solely rest on "how can we make money off of this incident?"
March 26, 2016
Good slim introduction to the history of ISIS. Despite its brief length it is quite dense with a high level of detail about the inner machinations and dynamics of the different political Islamic tendencies in the region. The strength of this book is how clearly he presents the picture of the rise of ISIS as being a product of U.S. imperialism and war, that to maintain the occupation of Iraq deliberately fostered sectarianism, that was developed and organized itself not in mosques but in prisons established by the occupying Americans.
Griffins book also situated the rise of ISIS to the counterrevolution of the Arab Spring and the the inter-imperial rivalries not just between the Western powers but between different sub-imperial camps of different Arab States.
Griffins book also situated the rise of ISIS to the counterrevolution of the Arab Spring and the the inter-imperial rivalries not just between the Western powers but between different sub-imperial camps of different Arab States.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews