Analysis and commentary on the Middle East and Saddam Hussein's former empire from The Independent's internationally acclaimed foreign correspondent.

As a consequence of the war in Iraq and the toppling of Saddam Hussein, the diplomatic map of the world has been redrawn. Inquiry after inquiry has studied the legality of the conflict. Political reputations have been made and lost. But what of Iraq itself and the rest of the Middle East? What has been the impact of the West on Iraq and the region as a whole? Who have been the winners? Who have been the losers? In what direction is the region headed?

A remarkable feature of the wider Middle East over the past two decades has been that the most radical instruments of change have been the US and its allies, such as Saudi Arabia and the Gulf monarchies, which should have had the greatest interest in maintaining the status quo. 

Compiled in this book is the best analysis and commentary from Patrick Cockburn—the 2015 British Foreign Affairs Journalist of the Year—providing first-hand insight into what is really happening in this critical region of our world.