Focusing on the 1990 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, Hamdi Hassan offers a balanced examination of the motivation of the Iraqi polity and the conditions that accelerated and facilitated the decision to invade. Hassan examines how Saddam Hussein assessed and responded to American and Israeli intentions after the invasion, the reaction of other Arab states, and the unprecedented grassroots support of the Iraqi leadership. In this context, the author examines the social structure of Iraqi society - families, clans and regional alliances - and the importance of Ba'athism. Hassan also examines the political structure of the country, relating the identity of Arabism - the religion and language that is associated closely with the Pan Arabist ideals - to Iraqi foreign policy.Controversial and critical of the traditional approach of most Middle East studies, this book broadens the ongoing debates on the future of Islamic societies.
