Syria: From the Great War to Civil War. Caabu book launch with author John McHugo

Please join Caabu on Wednesday 17 September at 6pm for a book launch with John McHugo, author of Syria: From the Great War to Civil War. John will be talking about his book to Caabu's Joseph Willits. 

 If you would like to attend this event, please RSVP to Joseph Willits (willitsj@caabu.org). It is ESSENTIAL that you RSVP otherwise you may be unable to attend the event.

When: Wednesday, 17 September, 6pm

Where: London Middle East Institute, SOAS, University of London, MBI Al Jaber Building, 21 Russell Square, London WC1B 5EA 

About the book:

Syria's descent into civil war has already claimed an estimated 190,000 lives while over nine million people have fled their homes. This is now the greatest humanitarian and political crisis of the twenty-first century. In this hard-hitting book, John McHugo considers why Syria's foundations as a nation have proved so fragile.

Tracing the history of Syria from the First World War to the present, McHugo lays bare the causes of the current tragedy. He takes in the country's thwarted attempts at independence, the legacies of the Anglo-French partition that fragmented it, and the failures of divisive French policies. He then turns to recent events: religious and sectarian tensions that have pulled Syria apart, the pressures of the Cold War and the Arab-Israeli dispute, and two generations of rule by the Assads.

Did Syria ever have a chance? The conclusions drawn in this timely account are uncomfortable for both Westerners and Arabs alike.

If you wish to purchase the book, you can do so here.

Reviews:

'Enlightening' Robert Fisk, 

The Independent

'[Provides] a real insight into the political fragility that underpins much of what caused the current civil war ... Remarkably prescient ... At the very start of this enlightening read, McHugo makes the point that to the English-speaking world, Syria is a far off country which relatively few people have made a serious effort to understand. In writing this insightful and timely book, he has gone some considerable way to rectifying this neglect.'

Sunday Herald

About the speaker:

John McHugo is is an international lawyer and Arabic linguist, with over forty years' experience of the region. He earned a BA in Oriental Studies from Oxford University, an MA in Arabic Studies from the American University in Cairo and an MLitt in medieval Sufi thought from Oxford University. He has worked as a lawyer in several Arab countries, notably Egypt, Bahrain and Oman. 

A board member of Caabu and a director of the British Egyptian Society, McHugo is also chair of the Liberal Democrat Friends of Palestine. His previous publications include A Concise History of the Arabs. He has written for the BBC website, Chatham House's The World Today, History Today and specialist international law journals.

You can read more abouy John here.

About the chair:

Joseph Willits is Caabu's Parliamentary and Events Officer. 

Before arriving at Caabu, Joseph was a deputy editor at the political website, ConservativeHome. In 2010, Joseph spent a significant time teaching in Homs, Syria. He has written about his experiences in Syria for the Guardian: 'The cult of Bashar al-Assad'.

He has also written for Left Foot Forward about chemical attacks in Syria: It is tragic that only reports of chemical attacks return international attention to Syria and for the Runnymede Trust's Race Card blog on Arab stereotypes: Hooked on Arab Stereotypes, and more recently about ISIS advances in Iraq. He tweets @josephwillits.

You will be able to follow the event on Twitter, either by following @Caabu or using  #CaabuSyria. 

You can also keep up to date with our work by liking our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/caabu67

If you would like to come along to this book launch, please RSVP to Joseph Willits (willitsj@caabu.org).