Secrets and Lies

Dilip Hiro
January 2004     ISBN: 1560255560

The Anglo-American invasion of Iraq is a turning point in history. Just as the end of the cold war ushered in a new era of world politics, so the war in Iraq is set to unleash assorted centrifugal forces in the Middle East and elsewhere.

Celebrated Middle East historian and journalist Dilip Hiro explores in masterful detail the causes and courses of the invasion, providing a gripping military and political history that presents the conflict in a refreshingly new light. It illuminates the role of neoconservative intellectuals around the Bush White House and dissects the leadership style of George W. Bush, showing how his own "personal relationship with God" was a driving force behind the war.

Secrets and Lies also strips bare the deliberate misinterpretations, spins, fabrications, and bullying that the Bush-Blair camp used to justify the invasion. It also examines the dynamics of the postwar Iraq where--much to the chagrin of the occupying forces--the deeply religious Shia majority has emerged as the pre-eminent force likely to ally with Iran, a member of Bush's "axis of evil."

"Dilip Hiro has added another formidable chapter to the invaluable record he has been compiling of developments in the critically important Middle East region. His review of the invasion of Iraq, its background, conduct, and aftermath, is once again deeply informed, meticulously documented, and perceptively analyzed, a major contribution to the understanding of what is sure to remain a primary focus of international affairs."

--Noam Chomsky

"Extraordinary account.... Drawing heavily on mainstream...news-reporting and his own knowledge...Hiro has fashioned a well-rounded, thought-provoking story."

--Los Angeles Times

Dilip Hiro writes regularly for the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, Observer, Sunday Telegraph, Guardian, and The Nation. His 28 books include The Iranian Labyrinth, Secrets and Lies: Operation "Iraqi Freedom" and After, and The Essential Middle East: A Comprehensive Guide.