Lords of the Desert
Barr, J. (2018). Lords of the desert: the battle between the United States and Great Britain for supremacy in the modern Middle East. New York: Basic Books.
Yes. Another book by James Barr… This time with some graphics for the kids who can’t read if they can’t share.
A historic account of the American-British rivalry in the Middle East during the early to middle 20th century. The book discusses oil pipelines diplomacy, changing geopolitics, and competing dreams for the future of the region. Yet, I see many historic parallels that can be drawn and learned from today’s events in the region.
The first parallel that can be drawn from this book is about British “refoulement” of Jewish refugee ships to Palestine and the European Union’s response in the Mediterranean. Britain even tried to limit the sources of departures and locked refugees into internment camps on Cyprus. Does this ring a bell? (coughs in Frontex)
Second, the book discusses the relationship between the terrorist armed groups Stern Gang (Lehi) and Irgun with the HaGanah during the British mandate. The author highlights how oppressed groups can turn to terrorism after traumatic events such as the holocaust and the humiliation of Operation Agatha which resulted in the King David Hotel bombing and the rejection of the Morrison-Grady Plan of a federal Palestinian state. Excessive force and humiliation only breeds radicalisation, which is something very important to remember today. The future is nothing without understanding the past.
Favourite quote: “as a nation born in revolution against the same brand of Britannic despotism, we know that no matter how hard and bitter the struggle, it is the Hebrew David that will beat the British Goliath.”
