Synopses & Reviews
Afghanistan's history is a sad one: Soviet invasion in 1979; Pakistan-backed internal conflict in the 1980s; the Taliban regime and then the US invasion after the catastrophe of September 11th. Why does Afghanistan remain so vulnerable to domestic instability, foreign intervention and ideological extremism? Amin Saikal provides us with a sweeping new understanding of this troubled country that grounds Afghanistan's problems in rivalries stemming from a series of dynastic alliances within the successive royal families from the end of the eighteenth century to the pro-Communist coup of 1978. This is the definitive study of Afghanistan.
Review
"Saikal's contribution to our understanding and analysis of modern Afghanistan post 9/11 is a very important one." -International Affairs
"Fascinating... if you want an insider's interpretation of modern Afghanistan (and one that is remarkably free from one-sided ideology), this is an excellent primer." - Sydney Morning Herald
"Authoritative." - The Middle East Magazine
"Successfully sustains a new approach to Afghan history… excellent and lucid: a much needed account." - Peter Avery, King's College, Cambridge
About the Author
Amin Saikal is Director of the Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies and Professor of Political Science at the Australian National University. He has been a visiting fellow at the Universities of Princeton and Cambridge, as well as at Sussex University's Institute of Development Studies. He is the author of numerous works on the Middle East,Central Asia, and Russia, including The Rise and Fall of the Shah and Islam and theWest: Conflict or Cooperation?.
Table of Contents
Preface * Introduction * From Tribal Confederacy to National Coalescence * National Awakening and Nationalism * Independence and Radical Modernisation * The Nadiri Dynasty: Politics of National Gradualism and 'Royal Dualism' * The Cold War and the Rise of a Rentier State * Experiment with Democracy, 1963-1973 * Daoud's Republicanism * Communist Rule, the Soviet Invasion and Resistance * Mujahideen Islamic Rule and Taliban Extremism * US Intervention and the Karzai era * Conclusion