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Cold War in the Islamic World Paperback – December 5, 2018

by Dilip Hiro (Author)

4.3 24 ratings

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Publisher ‏ : ‎ HARPER COLLINS (December 5, 2018)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 482 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9353024749
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-9353024741
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 10.4 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.99 x 10 x 1.85 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #8,430,696 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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4.3 out of 5

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anoop seth

Great read

Reviewed in India on June 12, 2019

Verified Purchase

Very well researched and written book

Debjit Sengupta

Powerful narratives

Reviewed in India on October 11, 2019

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After end of World War-II, the world heaved a sigh of relief. However, the events there after polarized the world into two halves- United States and Soviet Union blocs. These were two superpowers who fought the cold war for forty years. They never declared war on each other but clashed in proxy war. They aligned with dictators and rebel group. They intervened in civil wars to contain others. During the last decade of the cold war between these superpowers, two more countries were engaged in similar kind of war. This was not for world dominance but for a very complex but strategic region nevertheless. Welcome to the Middle East where failed states, insurgencies, uprisings, civil war and tangled alliances have become a norm. The wobblier region has been witnessing conflicts after conflicts from latter half of 20th century. Countless armed militias and terrorist’s groups are spreading violence across borders. Amid the complexities, there are two common actors. It needs no guessing. It’s Sunni majority Saudi Arabia and Shia majority Iran. They have never fought a war with each other but indirectly devising stratagem and supporting conflicting sides in other countries and thereby triggering conflicts. This proxy warfare has a catastrophic and devastating effect on the region. The whole region has become a battlefield. Both see these civil wars as a horrifying threat and potential opportunities. In middle east, these two adversaries are at loggerhead and locked in cold war for secreterian and geopolitical influence for the last 40 years. No curative solution seems to be in place for the chronic issue. Their feud is key to understanding the conflicts in the middle east. This book examines rivalry between this two leading nations of the Gulf region and trace its root and analyse its evolution.

To understand the Saudi Arabia-Iran rivalry, we require understanding of their origin. Till early 1900’s, the Ottoman Empire controlled Arabian Peninsula, which was a patchwork of many tribes. After World War-I, the Ottoman empire collapsed and the tribes started fighting among themselves. One tribe- Al Saud emerged on the top and conquered most of the peninsula. In 1932, it was recognized as kingdom of Saudi Arabia. After 6 years, massive oil reserves were discovered and in an instant, the Saudi monarch became rich. During the same time, another country- Iran emerged on the eastern side of the peninsula. Iran too had a massive oil reserve and ever bigger Muslim population. In 1953, US staged a coup removing popular prime minister Mohammed Mosaddegh with monarch Rezal Shah. He was trying to reform his country but he terrorized Iranian population with his secret police- Savak. By 1970’s both Saudi Arabia and Iran had oil based economies, solidly backed by the USA. The population of Saudi Arabia had affection and respect for monarch. However Iranian population lacked the same feelings. Ultimately the population, under the leadership of Ayatollah Khomeini overthrew the Shah. We better know the event as Islamic Revolution. It was this revolution that the real tension between Saudi Arabia and Iran begin. Ayatollah Khomeini preached against western based secular monarchy. He advocated for a popular and Islamic government and believed that dynastic rule was un-Islamic. He was critical of Gulf monarch’s policy of depleting oil resources to satisfy the ever growing demand of America. His arguments attracted many in Arabian Peninsula, irrespective of their sectarian affliction. This terrified Saudi monarch who feared that his viewpoint may instigate their own people to rise against them. Add to it, there was religious threat too. Saudis have always claimed to be leader of the Muslim world because Islam’s two holiest sites- Mecca and Medina are in Saudi Arabia. After the Islamic revolution, Iran is staking their claim as legitimate Muslim state. As per CIA report, Iran had started exporting their revolution. Iran started helping groups mostly Shias to overthrow government in Iraq, Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia. This prompted Saudi Arabia to redouble their effort to fight against Iran.

Apart from Saudi Arabia, other countries in the region too felt threatened by the emergence of Iran. In 1980, Iraq ruled by Saddam Hussain invaded Iran. He feared that Iraq Shia majority would be influenced by the revolution. He also hoped to gain power and annex some of the Iran’s oil reserve. Neither of the countries could gain an upper hand in the war. Saudis provided money and weapons to Iraq and helped them to fight Iran till 1988. Iran blamed Saudi Arabia for the prolonged war and the feud escalated. Let’s fast forward to 15 years. US invaded Iraq and overthrew Saddam Hussain. Neither Saudi Arabia nor Iran wanted this to happen as Iraq acted as a buffer between them. The real problem however arose when USA struggled to replace Saddam Hussain. What was the outcome? It created an anarchism and the resulted security vacuum drove Iraq into civil war. Without a proper government in place, armed militias saw an opportunity amidst the chaos and took control of Iraq. Shia and Sunni militias sprang up all across the country. Iraq became a dystopia. These militias were readymade proxies for Saudi Arabia and Iran and they provided money and weapons to Sunni and Shia groups respectively. A Shia-led government was formed, which was threatened by diabolic ISIS. Iran backed Shiite militants were instrumental in defeating ISIS. The development in Iraq was keeping both USA and Saudi Arabia worried. The USA is concerned that Iran has taken advantage of gains against ISIS in Iraq to expand its influence, meanwhile Saudi Arabia is trying to forge warmer ties with the Iraqi government. However, Iran has powerful allies in Iraqi politics who could undermine those efforts.

More heavier, longer and horrendous battle between Saudi Arabia and Iran was in the offing in Syria. Sunni forms 70% of Syrian population. It’s ruled by Basher-al-Asaad, who is from minority Shia sect. During the Arab Spring, an uprising grew out of discontent with Assad. Syrian security forces responded with violence and rebellions took up arms, turning it into a civil war. Assad government existence was in serious doubt. Iran provided Syria with technical support and advised on methods to monitor crowd control and supplied it with batons and riot police helmets. Iranian military was fighting side by side with militias, some of them extremist groups like Hezbollah in support of Assad. Iran desperately want to keep Syrian regime in power at all cost since 2011. Saudi Arabia resorted to supplying weapons and equipment to anti-Assad groups like rebels and military defectors. The Saudi kingdom wanted Assad to be removed from power. Saudi Arabia’s attempt to curb Iranian influence has failed so far. Assad looks to stay in power.

The third country where Saudi Arabia and Iran are at opposing camp is Yemen. Yemen for years had been under Saudi’s sphere of influence. Saudi Arabia entered into full fledge war with Houthis after they had captured Yemen’s capital Sanaa. For your information, Houthi is a Shia linked militant group. You must have guessed correctly. Houthi is supported by Iran. Saudi Arabia military had launched air strikes, ground offensives and restricted access by sea. Saudis has been accusing Iran of supplying missiles to the Houthis but Iran is denying. Despite Saudi Arabia firepower, there is no clear sign of resolution. The war with Houthis has not been restricted on Yemen ground only but it has spilled over to Saudi Arabia as well. I’m recalling a news caption which was flashed on newspaper, which is not even one month old. The caption reads “Two major Saudi oil refineries were set ablaze after a drone strike that was reportedly orchestrated by Yemen Houthi rebel group”. Still the world sees no end to the crisis. The prospects look unpropitious.

Apart from aforementioned countries, there were other countries where Saudi Arabia and Iran had differences. One such country was Afghanistan. Iran supported Hizb-e-Wahdat who allied with Tajak-dominated Northern Alliance. They were pitted against the Taliban who were backed by Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. Taliban captured capital Kabul, followed by province after province, often by bribing local warlords with funds received from Pakistani ISI and Saudi intelligence agency. They were inexorable at certain period of time. They also had a tacit support of the USA. Then Al-Qaeda chief Osama-bin-Laden entered the scene. His relationship with Taliban were becoming closer and closer. To unnerve Taliban supporters, Osama-bin-Laden was wanted by USA for various terrorist attacks. Taliban refused to be part with Osama-bin-Laden. This infuriate USA who decided to attack Taliban administered Afghanistan. This also led to Taliban downfall.

The Arab Spring in 2011 had changed the geopolitical dynamics. In stark contrast to Saudi Kingdom’s fervent opposition to the Arab spring, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khomeini hailed it as a reprise of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, calling it the Islamic Awakening. Saudi Arabia and Iran were also involved in Tunisia, Bahrain, Libya, Lebanon and Morocco. The feud had gone a step forward, with both countries also deploying their militaries. The more civil war breaks out in the Middle East, the more Saudi Arabia and Iran are getting involved. Saudi government is threatening Qatar, whose ties with Iran has been improving. The cold war is becoming increasingly unpredictable. Middle East continues to destabilize. Saudi Arabia and Iran have been waging proxy war for regional dominance for decades. It has made the region chaotic and fomented Shia-Sunni conflict across the region.

The Wikileaks related to Saudi cables for the period 2010-15 confirms that Saudi kingdom had spent billions of dollars to implement its two-track religious agenda. One is to disseminate its brand of Sunni Islam and the second is to undermine Shia Islam and Iran. Saudi ministry had also instructed its foreign office in Africa to send reports about Iran’s activities in the continent. There have been reports from Uganda and Mali about Iran and Shia’s expansion.

In 2003, Iran revealed that it has unearthed uranium deposits and were going to develop nuclear fuel cycle. This set alarm bells ringing in Saudi Arabia. This also worried US too. There is also a prospect of Iran managing to fabricate an atom bomb, which the Saudi’s royal dreaded the most. Saudi Arabia is contemplating a very perilous situation. They also have been urging US to get tough with Iran and prevent it from becoming a nuclear state. Israel is another country which is an interested spectator to the long-running contentious issue of Iran’s nuclear program. Saudi Arabia is building up a credible case to show that if Iran acquired its own nuclear weapon then Saudi Arabia would follow suit with the active assistance of its traditional ally, Pakistan. Saudi Arabia is realizing that Iran is more dangerous to them then Israel. So they have no option but to align with Israel in counteracting their common foe Iran. They now find itself into a very predicament position.
The long running cold war between Saudi Arabia and Iran has replicated the pattern of US-Soviet Cold war. The current level of hostility between the two Islamic heavyweights is unlikely to be moderated in the near future. The caveats suggest that after few years, we may still hear about the conflict, may be in new geographic area. The revolution, wealth, diplomacy, insurgencies, weapons, brilliance, sports, beauty, architecture, food and polarization defines Middle East. It’s the most eventful and intriguing region on the planet. It’s however going through ominous times, with least chance of détente. No wonder, I keep picking up something or the other to read, on the region after periodic interval. We might be aware of the various events taking place in Middle East for the last few decades but how many of us had noticed similarity between each events. I have had come across various articles on the cold war but it was restricted to proxy wars in Iraq, Syria and Libya. The book has gone beyond that and how Western world is getting entangled due to alliance and for strategic reason. Their decision too has been impetuous. The book gives a crystal clear view of the prevalent, which is a tumultuous situation in the Middle East. It has been deftly and brilliantly summarized. The author has been scrupulous with his narration. This review is just touch and go. Read the book to gather the detail. I’m surprised that response to this outstanding book has been so feeble.

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