The History Book Club discussion

This thread is focused on Yemen.

Since we are doing the Middle Eastern challenge; setting up one thread per Middle Eastern country is a good idea.

Yemen: Travels in Dictionary Land

by Tim Mackintosh-Smith

Synopsis:

Englishman Tim Mackintosh-Smith was studying Arabic at Oxford when he visited Yemen, a forgotten country at the heel of the Arabian peninsula, and became obsessed with the place and its language.

He's lived there since 1982, and this book--marketed as travel writing but more a blend of personal memoir and national history--is the result.

There are certainly travel episodes, such as a trip to the remote island of Susqatra where the Gulf of Aden meets the Indian Ocean. Yet Yemen is more the product of a man gone native than a visitor with an itinerary.

Indeed, Mackintosh-Smith offers a forthright defense of the country's lotus-like drug culture, which centers on qat, a leaf that produces a narcotic effect when chewed. "We qat chewers, if we are to believe everything that is said about us, are at best profligates, at worst irretrievable sinners," he writes.

Although international health officials have warned against the drug, Mackintosh-Smith assures us this is all "quasi-scientific poppycock." The leaf, he says, helps its users to "think, work, and study."

Yemen is surely an exotic land, and one of its charms--fully revealed in Mackintosh-Smith's digressive prose--is the way it has remained quaintly Arabic and seemingly immune to the modern forces transforming its neighbors.

Well-received upon its initial publication in the United Kingdom, Yemen may come to be recognized as a small classic. --John J. Miller

Eating the Flowers of Paradise: One Man's Journey Through Ethiopia and Yemen

by Kevin Rushby

Synopsis:

Ethiopia in Eastern Africa and Yemen on the Arabian Peninsula remain two of the most inviting outposts for travelers seeking the exotic. In these two places, Qat is just one name given to a green leafy plant that is cultivated there. When chewed, the leaves of this plant release two substances that produce a hypnotic, reverential "high," distinctive in the thoughtful state it induces. Kevin Rushby discovered that the use of Qat is a way of life since it plays a pivotal role in all facets of the culture influencing everything from architecture to television schedules.

Yemen: Dancing on the Heads of Snakes

by Victoria Clark

Synopsis:

Yemen is the dark horse of the Middle East. Every so often it enters the headlines for one alarming reason or another—links with al-Qaeda, kidnapped Westerners, explosive population growth—then sinks into obscurity again.

But, as Victoria Clark argues in this riveting book, we ignore Yemen at our peril. The poorest state in the Arab world, it is still dominated by its tribal makeup and has become a perfect breeding ground for insurgent and terrorist movements.

Clark returns to the country where she was born to discover a perilously fragile state that deserves more of our understanding and attention.

On a series of visits to Yemen between 2004 and 2009, she meets politicians, influential tribesmen, oil workers and jihadists as well as ordinary Yemenis.

Untangling Yemen’s history before examining the country’s role in both al-Qaeda and the wider jihadist movement today, Clark presents a lively, clear, and up-to-date account of a little-known state whose chronic instability is increasingly engaging the general reader.

Yemen: Land and People

by Sarah Searight

Synopsis:

Yemen, “that opal land” of the Queen of Sheba, has inspired travelers for thousands of years. Historically, culturally, and scientifically, it lies at the crossroads of the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea, its landscape formed by the upheavals of the Rift Valley, refreshed by the monsoon rains of the Indian Ocean. It is a uniquely rugged yet verdant landscape that encouraged the growth of the ancient incense trade route. As a mountain people, Yemenis are fiercely individualistic, passionate devotees of their history, the beauty of their land, and the rich architectural heritage that grew out of this “glittering, wrinkled country of peaks and plains, towers and surprises." Readers can explore this remarkable land in this enlightening, photo-laden volume.

The Last Refuge: Yemen, al-Qaeda, and America's War in Arabia

by Gregory D. Johnsen

Synopsis

Far from the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan, the United States and al-Qaeda are fighting a clandestine war of drones and suicide bombers in an unforgiving corner of Arabia.

The Last Refuge charts the rise, fall, and resurrection of al-Qaeda in Yemen over the last thirty years, detailing how a group that the United States once defeated has now become one of the world s most dangerous threats. An expert on Yemen who has spent years on the ground there, Gregory D. Johnsen uses al-Qaeda s Arabic battle notes to reconstruct their world as they take aim at the United States and its allies. Johnsen brings readers in-side al-Qaeda s training camps and safe houses as the terrorists plot poison attacks and debate how to bring down an airliner on Christmas Day. The Last Refuge is an eye-opening look at the successes and failures of fighting a new type of war in one of the most turbulent countries in the world.

That looks like a good one for me for the challenge. Thank you Jerome.

It was quite good, actually.

I will take a look at it.

The Thistle and the Drone: How America's War on Terror Became a Global War on Tribal Islam

Published by the Brookings Institute Press

by Akbar Ahmed

Synopsis:

In the wake of the 9/11 attacks, the United States declared war on terrorism. More than ten years later, the results are decidedly mixed. Here world-renowned author, diplomat, and scholar Akbar Ahmed reveals an important yet largely ignored result of this war: in many nations it has exacerbated the already broken relationship between central governments and the largely rural Muslim tribal societies on the peripheries of both Muslim and non-Muslim nations. The center and the periphery are engaged in a mutually destructive civil war across the globe, a conflict that has been intensified by the war on terror.

Conflicts between governments and tribal societies predate the war on terror in many regions, from South Asia to the Middle East to North Africa, pitting those in the centers of power against those who live in the outlying provinces. Akbar Ahmed's unique study demonstrates that this conflict between the center and the periphery has entered a new and dangerous stage with U.S. involvement after 9/11 and the deployment of drones, in the hunt for al Qaeda, threatening the very existence of many tribal societies.

American firepower and its vast anti-terror network have turned the war on terror into a global war on tribal Islam. And too often the victims are innocent children at school, women in their homes, workers simply trying to earn a living, and worshipers in their mosques. Battered by military attacks or drone strikes one day and suicide bombers the next, the tribes bemoan, "Every day is like 9/11 for us."

In "The Thistle and the Drone," the third volume in Ahmed's groundbreaking trilogy examining relations between America and the Muslim world, the author draws on forty case studies representing the global span of Islam to demonstrate how the U.S. has become involved directly or indirectly in each of these societies. The study provides the social and historical context necessary to understand how both central governments and tribal societies have become embroiled in America's war. Beginning with Waziristan and expanding to societies in Central Asia, the Middle East, North Africa, and elsewhere, Ahmed offers a fresh approach to the conflicts studied and presents an unprecedented paradigm for understanding and winning the war on terror.

C-Span at American University where author is a professor:

American University professor Akbar Ahmed talked about his book, The Thistle and the Drone: How America’s War on Terror Became a Global War on Tribal Islam. He also talked about the debate over the use of drones by the Obama administration. This interview, recorded at American University in Washington, DC, was part of Book TV’s College Series.

http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/31...

Nasser's Gamble: How Intervention in Yemen Caused the Six-Day War and the Decline of Egyptian Power

by Jesse Ferris (no photo)

Synopsis:

Nasser's Gamble draws on declassified documents from six countries and original material in Arabic, German, Hebrew, and Russian to present a new understanding of Egypt's disastrous five-year intervention in Yemen, which Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser later referred to as "my Vietnam." Jesse Ferris argues that Nasser's attempt to export the Egyptian revolution to Yemen played a decisive role in destabilizing Egypt's relations with the Cold War powers, tarnishing its image in the Arab world, ruining its economy, and driving its rulers to instigate the fatal series of missteps that led to war with Israel in 1967.

Viewing the Six Day War as an unintended consequence of the Saudi-Egyptian struggle over Yemen, Ferris demonstrates that the most important Cold War conflict in the Middle East was not the clash between Israel and its neighbors. It was the inter-Arab struggle between monarchies and republics over power and legitimacy. Egypt's defeat in the "Arab Cold War" set the stage for the rise of Saudi Arabia and political Islam.

Bold and provocative, Nasser's Gamble brings to life a critical phase in the modern history of the Middle East. Its compelling analysis of Egypt's fall from power in the 1960s offers new insights into the decline of Arab nationalism, exposing the deep historical roots of the Arab Spring of 2011.

Thank you Bryan

Glad to help :-)

Interesting adds Libby - thank you. Great on format.

Thank you Libby for all of these fine adds in the Middle Eastern folder.

It is very strange that it was reported that this guy has died before (smile) - is he really dead this time or is he just being reported dead to get the scent off of his trail. I think what is significant for some is that this was a former Guantanamo Bay prisoner who somehow got to Yemen and joined up again. What is the back story about this guy. Was he let go?

The above sounds like a hoot - I think I am going to get it (smile). It has great reviews.

High-Value Target: Countering Al Qaeda in Yemen

by Edmund J. Hull (no photo)

Synopsis:

Since its inception, al Qaeda has aspired to create a safe haven in Yemen, where it has operated against U.S. and Yemeni interests. From 2001 to 2004, when Edmund J. Hull was the American ambassador to Yemen, U.S. and Yemeni counterterrorism efforts successfully seized the initiative against al Qaeda, severely degrading its capabilities. During this period, al Qaeda mounted no successful operations against U.S. interests in Yemen and suffered the loss of its top leadership and cadres."High-Value Target" tells the inside story of how al Qaeda s Yemeni safe haven was disrupted during Hull's tenure.

A top counterterrorism official in both the Clinton and Bush administrations, Hull provides a detailed account of a team effort to build a strategic basis for U.S.-Yemeni counterterrorism and to execute a broad strategy aimed at improving not only the security of Yemen but also its economic development.That strategy included launching successful strikes against al Qaeda s leadership; engaging in sustained, personal involvement in Yemen s remote tribal areas; and fostering Yemen s nascent democracy and civil society. Plagued by profound distrust, scarce resources, and constant threats, the U.S. diplomatic team encountered numerous obstacles but ultimately positioned Yemen on a path toward enhanced security and modest political progress.

That's what I am reading now. Cool for Qat: A Yemeni Journey by Peter Mortimer

Libby wrote: "


Yemeni prime minister survives assassination attempt

Yemeni PM Mohammed Salem Basindwa (R) at a mass wedding ceremony in Sanaa on March 14, 2013.

Sanaa, Yemen (CNN) -- Yemeni Prime Minister M..."
oh dear

Thank you Libby

Mad Mitch's Tribal Law: Aden and the End of Empire

by Aaron Edwards

Synopsis:

Aden, 20 June 1967: two army Land Rovers burn ferociously in the midday sun. The bodies of British soldiers litter the road. Thick black smoke bellows above Crater town, home to insurgents who are fighting the British-backed Federation government. Crater had come to symbolise Arab nationalist defiance in the face of the world's most powerful empire.

Hovering 2,000 ft. above the smouldering destruction, a tiny Scout helicopter surveys the scene. Its passenger is the recently arrived Commanding Officer of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, Lieutenant-Colonel Colin Mitchell. Soon the world's media would christen him 'Mad Mitch', in recognition of his controversial reoccupation of Crater two weeks later.

Mad Mitch was truly a man out of his time. Supremely self-confident and debonair, he was an empire builder, not dismantler, and railed against the national malaise he felt had gripped Britain's political establishment. Drawing on a wide array of never-before-seen archival sources and eyewitness testimonies, Mad Mitch's Tribal Law tells the remarkable story of inspiring leadership, loyalty and betrayal in the final days of British Empire. It is, above all, a shocking account of Britain's forgotten war on terror.

Thanks Libby and Jerome

Good progress Libby on all of the Middle Eastern threads - thank you

Thank you Teri

Aden Insurgency: The Savage War in South Arabia 1962-67

by Jonathan Walker (no photo)

Synopsis:

Featuring vivid eyewitness accounts from combatants, civilians and terrorists alike, a new, riveting and important account of Britain's last End of Empire conflict. As Cold War tensions escalated, a brutal fight was contested with the rebel tribes of the wild interior as well as terrorist assassins in the back streets of Aden.

Revealing the truth behind the 'Mad Mitch' legend and his clash with the high command and the successes and disasters of early SAS operation, this is one of the very few modern studies to examine Britain's clandestine war in neighboring Yemen alongside her conflict in South America.

Thank you Jerome

A History of Modern Yemen

by Paul Dresch (no photo)

Synopsis:

Yemen's modern history is unique and deserves to be better understood. While the borders of most Middle East states were defined by colonial powers after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, a single Yemeni state was not formed until 1990. In fact, much of Yemen's twentieth-century history was taken up constructing such a state, forged after years of civil war. The book is augmented by illustrations, maps and a detailed chronology.

Teri wrote: "The African Rulers Of Medieval Yemen

by Gert Muller (no photo)

Synopsis:

In the 9th and 10th centuries enslaved East Af..."

Looks like an interesting read. I've only ever studied it through the lens of Ethiopian expansion into the area. It will be nice to read about it in its own right. Thanks for the post!

Teri wrote: "I hope it's a good read for you. Would love for your feedback here once you read it.



I just finished it. Unfortunately I can't recommend it. It was a really short read, which isn't bad in itself, but the author tried to cover a broad range of individuals and the result was very little information and context for the individuals discussed and an incoherent timeline with no background on the various settings discussed or the wider context in which they existed. The author relied mostly on a single source in their analysis, so I was left thinking that I should just read the single source instead of this book. It wasn't really a book that did the title justice, it was more so like reading part of a conversation without having been privy to the rest of it. There were a couple of interesting facts, but overall, I didn't get the sense that even the author had a good grasp of the overarching subject matter as they concentrated mostly on how Arabs viewed black Africans and on very minor details of individual's lives without any of the larger details that would make knowing who these people are meaningful. Having read independent histories of both Yemen and Ethiopia, I can't say that this text really added much to the foundation in the region that I have been trying to build. Oh well, I'll try the next book!

An upcoming book:
Release date: June 30, 2016

Tribes and Politics in Yemen: A History of the Houthi Conflict

by Marieke Brandt (no photo)

Synopsis:

Tribes and Politics in Yemen tells the story of the Houthi conflict in Sa'dah Province, Yemen, as seen through the eyes of the local tribes. In the West the Houthi conflict, which erupted in 2004, is often defined through the lenses of either the Iranian-Saudi proxy war or the Sunni Shia divide. Yet, as experienced by locals, the Houthi conflict is much more deeply rooted in the recent history of Sa'dah Province. Its origins must be sought in the political, economic, social and sectarian transformations since the 1960s civil war and their repercussions on the local society, which is dominated by tribal norms. From the civil war to the Houthi conflict these transformations involve the same individuals, families and groups, and are driven by the same struggles over resources, prerogatives, and power.

This book is based on years of anthropological fieldwork expertise both on the ground and through digital anthropological approaches. It offers a detailed account of the local complexities of the Houthi conflict and its historical background and underscores the absolute imperative of understanding the highly local, personal, and non-ideological nature of internal conflict in Yemen.

An upcoming book:
Release date: May 30, 2016

Building the New Yemen: Power, Politics and Society in the Twenty-First Century

by Marie-Christine Heinze (no photo)

Synopsis:

Yemen in the twenty-first century is a country which is enormously unstable. With the former president Ali Abdullah Salih signing over power in the aftermath of eleven months of protest in November 2011, there were hopes that this would signal the beginning of a new period of transition. But with the resurgence of Huthi rebel groups in early 2015, it is apparent that instability will continue to plague the country. Building the New Yemen focuses on how a variety of political, social and cultural actors (such as Muslim Brothers, Salafis, Huthis, secessionists, women, youth and Islamic minorities) are finding a way to make their demands heard amidst the cacophony of multiple demands on the Yemeni state. By examining a variety of issues within political, social and cultural spheres, this book offers in-depth analysis of the current turmoil, as well the prospects for stability, in the 'new Yemen'.

An upcoming book:
Release date: March 2, 2017

Yemen Endures: Civil War, Saudi Ascendancy and the Future of Arabia

by Ginny Hill (no photo)

Synopsis:

Why is Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter, involved in a costly and merciless war against its mountainous southern neighbour Yemen, the poorest country in the Middle East? When the Saudis attacked the hitherto obscure Houthi militia, which they believed had Iranian backing, to oust Yemen's government in 2015, they expected an easy victory. They appealed for Western help and bought weapons worth billions of dollars from Britain and America; yet two years later the Houthis, a unique Shia sect, have the upper hand.

In her revealing portrait of modern Yemen, Ginny Hill delves into its recent history, dominated by the enduring and pernicious influence of career dictator Ali Abdullah Saleh, who ruled for three decades before being forced out by street protests in 2011. Saleh masterminded patronage networks that kept the state weak, allowing conflict, social inequality and terrorism to flourish. In the chaos that follows his departure, civil war and regional interference plague the country while separatist groups, Al-Qaeda and ISIS compete to exploit the broken state. And yet, Yemen endures.

March 2017 ? What if the war is over by then ?

Wow, Dimitri. I feel terrible for laughing :)

The Fox Hunt: A Refugee’s Memoir of Coming to America

by Mohammed Al Samawi (no photo)

Synopsis:

A young man’s moving story of war, friendship, and hope in which he recounts his harrowing escape from a brutal civil war in Yemen with the help of a daring plan engineered on social media by a small group of interfaith activists in the West.

Born in the Old City of Sana’a, Yemen, to a pair of middle-class doctors, Mohammed Al Samawi was a devout Muslim raised to think of Christians and Jews as his enemy. But when Mohammed was twenty-three, he secretly received a copy of the Bible, and what he read cast doubt on everything he’d previously believed. After connecting with Jews and Christians on social media, and at various international interfaith conferences, Mohammed became an activist, making it his mission to promote dialogue and cooperation in Yemen.

Then came the death threats: first on Facebook, then through terrifying anonymous phone calls. To protect himself and his family, Mohammed fled to the southern port city of Aden. He had no way of knowing that Aden was about to become the heart of a north-south civil war, and the battleground for a well-funded proxy war between Iran and Saudi Arabia. As gunfire and grenades exploded throughout the city, Mohammed hid in the bathroom of his apartment and desperately appealed to his contacts on Facebook.

Miraculously, a handful of people he barely knew responded. Over thirteen days, four ordinary young people with zero experience in diplomacy or military exfiltration worked across six technology platforms and ten time zones to save this innocent young man trapped between deadly forces— rebel fighters from the north and Al Qaeda operatives from the south.

The story of an improbable escape as riveting as the best page-turning thrillers, The Fox Hunt reminds us that goodness and decency can triumph in the darkest circumstances.