Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #235654 in Books
• Published on: 2008-07-25
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 304 pages

Synopsis
Syria has long presented a serious problem for the Middle East region and U.S. policy. With its mix of competing religious and ethnic groups, radical ideologies, and political repression, it is a 72,000-square-mile time bomb waiting to go off. Yet surprisingly, very little is known about this country and the role it has played in shaping the destiny of the Middle East. In "The Truth about Syria", Middle East expert Barry Rubin looks at the critical issues that have made the country the powderkeg of the Middle East and offers an insightful analysis of the effects of recent developments.

Customer Reviews

An Unjust Attack on Syria
Barry Rubin should have called his book 'An Unjust Attack on Syria'. It is so ironic that he calls a book that reflects a clear attack, and one that is written in a so matter-of-factedly manner but at the the same time full of inaccuracies and accusations 'the Truth about Syria'!!

Goodbye to Damascus?
The Truth About Syria reveals how the Assad regime backs terrorism in Iraq, Israel and Lebanon, murders Lebanese journalists and politicians and oppresses its own citizens whilst effectively continuing to deceive Western diplomats.

The author looks at the 20th century history of Syria to explain how the Assads came to power. The country is a patchwork of religions with a Sunni majority, ruled like a mafia by the Assad family of the Alawite minority via the Baath Party.

The Alawites first gained dominion after World War I under the French mandate and established complete hegemony in 1970s with Hafez al-Assad's coup d'etat. The Assads then became a hereditary dynasty. The regime's crimes are many, including the slaughter of more than ten thousand people in the city of Homs in 1982.

Since the end of WW II Syia has given refuge to Nazis, produced TV series promoting anti-Semitic libels, supported a multitude of terrorist formations, occupied Lebanon and indulged in counterfeiting, smuggling and drug trading. It is astonishing that the West could ever have considered this thugocracy as a negotiating partner.

Rubin makes it clear that Syria has no interest in peace as that would be the undoing of the Assad dynasty. Prosperity would undermine their hold on power. Bashar Assad is clearly preparing for war with Israel by purchasing Russian arms, continuing to interfere in Lebanon and increasing support for Hamas and Hezbollah.

The secular regime has now made an alliance with the Iranian ayatollocracy and is clearly up to no good. There are signs that Bashar Assad will try to initiate a proxy war with Israel about the Golan heights. The very real danger is that this might spin out of control and that in a panic, the dictator might launch missiles with non-conventional warheads at Israel. That will mean the end of the Assads and quite possibly the end of Syria as well.

This informative book is an urgent warning to the West and a valuable antidote to the flawed work of authors like Patrick Seale and Flynt Leverett, like Asad: The Struggle for the Middle East and Inheriting Syria: Bashar's Trial by Fire.

It is clear from Rubin's book that Syria cannot be trusted or negotiated with. He suggests tough diplomacy and containing the regime by supporting Israel, the Lebanese government and "moderate" Arab states opposed to Syria. I am not sure I agree with the concept of moderate Arab states - except perhaps Morocco and Tunisia - but time will tell.

Very Poor
As a recent student of the Middle East I was delighted to find a book devoted to Syria. While hundreds of books relate every nuance of the Israel/Palestine conflict, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia etc, books on Syria seem to be rare.

Unfortunately, I was very disappointed with this book. The reader learns very little about Syria itself. The whole focus is on father and son Hafiz and Bashir Assad and how they have managed to sustain their regime. The quality of the writing is very amateur and as to the 'truth', the content is almost devoid of facts. Although there are plenty of footnotes, the majority appear to be quotes from newspapers (hardly unimpeachable sources) or MEMRI (which is generally considered to be pro-Israeli biased institute).

Mr. Rubin sets out his thesis very early on and then bangs the reader over the head with it several times in each of the ten chapters.
The basic thrust is that:
1.The Assad regime is not legitimate and ruthlessly suppresses opponents
2.Syria needs the Israel/Palestine conflict to deflect from the regime's own shortcomings and so is not interested in peace
3.Syria can appear to be the main player in the Arab world without actually getting its hands dirty by use of proxies such as Hezbollah
4.Syria is never punished by the USA or the EU for its misdeeds and is thus encouraged to continue with its course of action

While I agree with some of these points, Mr.Rubin clearly sees Syria as the bad guys and as such makes no attempt to delve deeper into the country or its relations with its neighbours. It would surprise me to learn that Mr. Rubin has actually been to Syria. The content is spread thin and repeated constantly. The book leaves me with no sense of the country as you would expect from a knowledgeable author.

Regardless of one's position on the Middle East conflict, this is a dull, superficial book. It should have been a 30 page dissertation rather than a 262 page book. As such I cannot recommend it and must look to other authors for information on Syria.