Book Review
Understanding of Iraq: the Whole Sweep of Iraqi History, from Genghis Khan's Mongols to the Ottoman Turks to the British Mandate to the American Occupation
Abstract
Iraq
is at the forefront of Middle Eastern countries to be examined for
understanding of regional politics. The civilizational heritage and strategic
location of oil reserves are the key elements that demonstrate the significance
of the country. With its past, Iraq is a country with a long history of
violence. The Iraqis lived under the authority of different powers. And the
struggle for sovereignty continued from the Obeys to the Americans in this
geography. The influence of the civilizations that had previously lived in the
lands where the Iraqis lived on today still continues. Different ethnic,
religious and cultural structures are evidence of this effect. The use of the
titles “Asset King” of the Assyrians, “King of the World” of the Babylonians,
“Single Leader” of Abdulkerim Kasım and “Brave Chief” of Saddam Hussein show
how active geography is in politics. Practices based on oppression and coercion
was implemented in Iraq, led by more authoritarian governments, far from the
representative government. Saddam’s politics for the Kurt and politics for
excluding Turkmen from politics are examples of this. On the other hand, Iraq,
which was exposed to the British occupation after the Ottoman Empire, was later
exposed to the US’ occupation and the influence of groups emerging in response
to these occupations in the internal politics of the country still continues.
Reactions to occupations do not lead to the unification of different groups
within the country, which is a negative reflection of occupations on Iraqi
politics. The radicalization of some groups against the occupation has also
adversely affected the increasing stability in the terrorist region. The
democracy that America wants to place in the post-occupation Iraqi domestic
politics with Jay Graner does not fully cover Iraq. This prevented the
establishment of a “national army” in Iraq where the US could cooperate. The
US, therefore, failed to establish a working state mechanism in Iraq. The 2004
Constitution under US control carries similarities with the 1922 document on
British control. The Sunni / Shiites dissociation in the country has increased
because the content of the constitution is empty. The Bush administration
proved that the region did not really understand the region when accusing the
most secular regime of Iraq of terrorism.
References
- Understanding of Iraq: the Whole Sweep of Iraqi History, from Genghis Khan's Mongols to the Ottoman Turks to the British Mandate to the American Occupation Author: William R. Polk ISBN: 978-0060764692
Understanding of Iraq: the Whole Sweep of Iraqi History, from Genghis Khan's Mongols to the Ottoman Turks to the British Mandate to the American Occupation
Abstract
Iraq
is at the forefront of Middle Eastern countries to be examined for
understanding of regional politics. The civilizational heritage and strategic
location of oil reserves are the key elements that demonstrate the significance
of the country. With its past, Iraq is a country with a long history of
violence. The Iraqis lived under the authority of different powers. And the
struggle for sovereignty continued from the Obeys to the Americans in this
geography. The influence of the civilizations that had previously lived in the
lands where the Iraqis lived on today still continues. Different ethnic,
religious and cultural structures are evidence of this effect. The use of the
titles “Asset King” of the Assyrians, “King of the World” of the Babylonians,
“Single Leader” of Abdulkerim Kasım and “Brave Chief” of Saddam Hussein show
how active geography is in politics. Practices based on oppression and coercion
was implemented in Iraq, led by more authoritarian governments, far from the
representative government. Saddam’s politics for the Kurt and politics for
excluding Turkmen from politics are examples of this. On the other hand, Iraq,
which was exposed to the British occupation after the Ottoman Empire, was later
exposed to the US’ occupation and the influence of groups emerging in response
to these occupations in the internal politics of the country still continues.
Reactions to occupations do not lead to the unification of different groups
within the country, which is a negative reflection of occupations on Iraqi
politics. The radicalization of some groups against the occupation has also
adversely affected the increasing stability in the terrorist region. The
democracy that America wants to place in the post-occupation Iraqi domestic
politics with Jay Graner does not fully cover Iraq. This prevented the
establishment of a “national army” in Iraq where the US could cooperate. The
US, therefore, failed to establish a working state mechanism in Iraq. The 2004
Constitution under US control carries similarities with the 1922 document on
British control. The Sunni / Shiites dissociation in the country has increased
because the content of the constitution is empty. The Bush administration
proved that the region did not really understand the region when accusing the
most secular regime of Iraq of terrorism.
Keywords
References
- Understanding of Iraq: the Whole Sweep of Iraqi History, from Genghis Khan's Mongols to the Ottoman Turks to the British Mandate to the American Occupation Author: William R. Polk ISBN: 978-0060764692
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Details
| Journal Section | Book Review |
|---|---|
| Authors | |
| Publication Date | June 30, 2017 |
| Acceptance Date | June 22, 2017 |
| Published in Issue | Year 2017 Volume: 4 Issue: 1 |
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