Spoils of War in the Arab East

Reconditioning Society and Polity in Conflict

Aziz Al-Azmeh, Harout Akdedian, Haian Dukhan, Aziz Al-Azmeh, Harout Akdedian, Haian Dukhan

• Publisher: I.B. Tauris
• Year: 2024
• Print ISBN:
  9780755649082
• Edition: 1
• eBook ISBN:
  9780755649105
• Topic: Politics & International Relations
• Subtopic: Military & Maritime History
• Index: Politics & International Relations

Post-conflict scenarios are often proposed for Arab countries that have witnessed significant changes and civil wars. Yet the plans for reconciliation, transitional justice, and the return of the displaced often overlook the real conditions that make these recommendations impossible.

This book provides a critical analysis of current post-conflict frameworks for Syria and Iraq. Drawing on empirical research, the book shows that reconciliation and reconstruction scenarios need to be considered alongside the realities on the ground. It argues that Iraq and Syria exist in a condition of 'conflict transformation' rather than of 'conflict termination', because the extreme changes that accompanied these countries into war continue long after the conflicts end. Furthermore, the chapters highlight why experts should not seek solutions in culturalist terms and ancestral enmities, or rely on the wartime status quo. Rather, they should look to the specific military, political, economic and socio-cultural conditions that require different solutions.

A critical analysis of existing post-conflict frameworks, their applicability and their potential outcomes in Iraq and Syria, the book is a vital contribution to post-conflict studies. It highlights the need for new approaches to reconstruction and peacebuilding in Arab countries and points to how they should be found.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half-title Page
• Title Page
• Table of Contents
• List of contributors
• Acknowledgements
• Chapter 1 Introduction: Reconstituting the post-conflict register
• Part I Conceptual and Global Exploration of the ‘Post-Conflict’ Register
• Part II Reconstitution of Power in Syria and Iraq: Military Standoffs and Conflict Fragility
• Part III The Political Economy and Geopolitics of Emergent Orders in Syria and Iraq
• Part IV The Body Politic Reconfigured: Between Social Engineering and Community Resistance
• Index
• Copyright Page