Blood Year: Islamic State And The Failures Of The War On Terror (2016) By David Kilcullen
 
'Blood year: Islamic State and the failures of the war on terror' by David Kilcullen is a self-critical analysis of the collapse of Western counterterrorism strategy and the subsequent rise of Islamic State. 
 
Kilcullen, one of the architects of America's strategy in the late phases of the second Gulf War, doesn't shy away from naming and blaming the factors, actions and people directly and indirectly responsible for the rise of two global terrorist organisations, al-Qaeda and Islamic State. He does so regardless of political affiliations. 'After 14 years, thousands of lives and hundreds of billions of dollars, we're worse off today than before 9/11, with a stronger, more motivated, more dangerous enemy than ever. So much is happening, simultaneously, in so many places, that leaders are struggling to decide what to do and in what order,' the author points out. Put simply, Kilcullen argues that Western leaders should never have gone into Iraq, with the job still unfinished in Afghanistan after 9/11. But, according to the author, the US and its allies were morally and legally obliged afterwards to try to 'halt the carnage and restore some normality'.
 
The book, published in 2016, is a first-hand account of the military and strategic failures the Western leaders either did not see or did not want to see in the past, as well as an in-depth and well-researched analysis of what could and what couldn't be done to eradicate Islamic terrorism worldwide. 'If we're already in a fight, whether we want one or not, then we need leaders with the moral force and clarity of will to see the thing as it truly is: to look at it without flinching, and to actually fight it. No amount of high-tech weaponry will help, because the problem isn't one of technology or intellect, but of character and will, and the harsh reality is that you can't fight without fighting,' Kilcullen writes. 
 
The book also investigates the importance of Russian involvement in the Middle East, the Iranian nuclear deal, the European refugee crisis and the terrorist attacks in Europe linked to ISIS. 
The author argues that the US needs to re-engage in the region, whether it wants to or not, because it is largely responsible for the situation that is now unfolding. The book makes for an interesting and extremely valuable read for both scholars and policy-makers, as well as anyone interested in understanding not only why the Middle East has collapsed into 'utter chaos', but also what can be done to alleviate the situation. This is all the more crucial in the light of the latest developments in Syria, Iran and Israel.  
 
David Kilcullen is a former Australian Army officer, diplomat and scholar. He was chief strategist in the Office of the Coordinator for Counterterrorism at the US State Department in 2005-2006; a senior counter-insurgency advisor to General David Petraeus in 2007-2008, and a special advisor for counter-insurgency to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. He served in several counter-insurgency and peacekeeping operations in East Timor, Bougainville, and the Middle East. He holds a PhD in politics from the Australian Defence Force Academy at the University of New South Wales.
 
Book signed By Author
 
Soft Cover
288 pages
In Good Condition