Libya, Land of Myths & Demons
David Winter visits a land beset for millennia by the fantasies of outsiders.
Middle East
Islam’s First Terrorists
Clive Foss introduces the Kharijites, a radical sect from the first century of Islam based in southern Iraq and Iran, who adopted an extreme interpretation of the Koran, ruthless tactics and opposed hereditary political leadership. After causing centuries of problems to the caliphate, they survive in a quietist form in East Africa and Oman.
Christians in Iraq
Penny Young investigates the situation of one of the country’s less-commonly mentioned communities.
America, Israel and the Six Day War
The Six Day War spawned the special relationship between Israel and the United States of America. Elizabeth Stephens explores the cultural backdrop to this momentous development which resonates in the Middle East to this day.
Ends of British Imperialism
A.J. Stockwell reviews a new collection of writings by Wm. Roger Louis.
A Failed Coup in Jordan
Richard Cavendish explains how plans for a coup against King Hussein ibn Talal of Jordan eventually melted away on April 13th, 1957.
The End of the Anglo-Persian War
Richard Cavendish remembers the events of March 4th, 1857
Friends or Foes? The Islamic East and the West
Christopher J. Walker asks whether the two religions that frequently appear locked in an inevitable clash of civilizations in fact share more than has often been thought.
Coming as Liberators
Kristian Ulrichsen believes that the politicians and planners behind the 2003 invasion ignored the lessons of the first British occupation of Iraq, which began with the capture of Baghdad from the Ottomans in 1917.