Kurdish Politics in the Middle East

Kurdish Politics in the Middle East analyzes political and social dimensions of Kurdish integration into the mainstream socio-political life in Iran, Iraq, and Turkey. Its central thesis is that ethnic conflict constitutes a major challenge to the contemporary nation-state system in the Middle East. Long vanquished is the illusion of the "melting pot," or the concept that assimilation is an inexorable process produced by "modernization" and the emergence of a relatively strong and centralized nation-state system in the region. Perhaps no single phenomenon highlights this thesis more than the historical Kurdish struggle for self-determination. This book's focus is on Kurdish politics and its relationship with broader regional and global developments that affect the Kurds. It does not claim to cover everything Kurdish, and it does not promote the political agenda of any group, movement, or country.

Nader Entessar is an internationally recognized analyst of Middle East politics and a trailblazer in establishing Kurdish studies as an integral part of Middle East studies, especially the development of Kurdish nationalism during the twentieth century. He sustains this reputation in this revised and greatly expanded edition of Kurdish Ethnonationalism, adding important new analyses of the significant impact of the Kurdish nationalist movements on Middle East politics since the 1999 Gulf War and, especially, since the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq in March 2003. Entessar's analytical acumen and insights are important for scholars, area specialists, think-tank analysts, diplomats, military and intelligent experts and decision makers—a must read., Nader Entessar's 1992 book, Kurdish Ethnonationalism, was one of less than half a dozen English language books on the Kurdish issue at that time. I found it extremely useful for my own doctoral work in the late 1990s. Kurdish Politics in the Middle East is a significantly revised and completely updated version of his earlier book. Entessar again provides a clear, compelling and honest examination of the Kurds in Iran, Iraq and Turkey. Readers unfamiliar with Kurdistan and its people will very much appreciate Entessar's ability to eloquently describe and explain the forest—the overall, most important issues—without getting lost in the trees of a very complex subject. I look forward to having my own undergraduate students read this work, as it provides an authoritative general overview and plenty of interesting historical details, all the while remaining very accessible to the average intelligent reader., Entessar again provides a clear, compelling, and honest examination of the Kurds in Iran, Iraq, and Turkey. Readers unfamiliar with Kurdistan and its people will very much appreciate Entessar's ability to describe eloquently and explain the most important issues without getting lost in the details of a subject of such enormous complexity., Nader Entessar's broadly based and balanced scholarly treatment enriches our understanding of the Kurdish problem by analyzing it within the context of the continuing ethnic conflicts challenging the contemporary state system in the Middle East. The author, however, also points to evolving solutions by ably illustrating varying degrees of recent Kurdish political and social integration into the various states they inhabit.

Nader Entessar is professor and chair of the department of political science and criminal justice at the University of South Alabama. He is co-editor of Iran and the Modern World and Reconstruction and Regional Diplomacy in the Persian Gulf.