Bøger om Irak

Afdeling Q er en nervepirrende krimiserie af Jussi Adler-Olsen. Det handler om en afdeling på en politigård der arbejder med henlagte sager som genåbes af forskellige årsager. Offer 2117 handler meget om Assad, for ved vi egentlig hvem han er? Hvor er det han kommer fra og hvilke hemmeligheder gemmer han på? Assad er den humoristiske krøltop der arbejder sammen med den anden hovedperson Carl Mørck og deres assistent Rose. Han har en stor viden og kan gennemskue ting i de mest uventede situationer og derudover er han kampdygtig og er guld værd i opkogte situationer. Men spørgsmålet er hvor han har den viden og kampdygtighed fra? I Offer 2117 som er det ottende bind i Afdeling Q får vi svaret. Assad vil komme på en række svære opgaver der skal løses undervejs mens uret tikker! Alle bøgerne fra Afdeling Q har været utrolig spændende og Offer 2117 er en bog, som ikke må misses! De fleste af filmene er filmatiseret men vi kan anbefale at læse bogen i stedet eller som supplement, da de er utrolig spændende og virkelig sætter tankerne i gang. Jussi Adler-Olsen er derudover en fantastisk krimiforfatter og forstår virkelig at gøre Afdeling Q og dets ansatte til noget man forener sig med og holder vældig meget af. Derfor er Offer 2117 som bog også blevet til, så vi kan lære endnu mere om Assad. 

Puk Damsgård har flyttet sit skriveværksted til fronten i Mosul i Irak for at skildre krigen og dens skæbner på tæt hold. Den ni måneder lange offensiv mod terrororganisationen Islamisk Stat var den mest omfattende militæroperation i landet, siden den amerikansk-ledede invasion i 2003 – og foregik i den største by, IS nogensinde har kontrolleret. I Den sorte kat i Mosul fortæller hun en række gribende menneskehistorier fra et land, hvor borgerkrig, militser og terrorgrupper siden den amerikansk ledede invasion i 2003 og senere Irak-krigen har sat dagsordenen for millioner af irakere. De seneste år har de forsøgt at opretholde en form for hverdag under terrororganisationen Islamisk Stats kontrol. Med en nærværende og personlig stemme sætter hun ord på, hvad der sker med et land, hvor alle sjæle er til salg i en konstant overlevelseskamp. Hvor tillid bliver ædt op af korruption og krig. Men hun skildrer også de usynlige hverdagsrevolutioner og de mennesker, der søger lyset snarere end løber efter døden. Over en længere periode har Puk Damsgård opholdt sig med en gruppe irakiske soldater for at komme helt ind bag krigens facade. I bogen portrætterer hun blandt andet en ung mands rejse fra tiden efter invasionen, hvor han mistede sine venner i et selvmordsbombeangreb, til den dag han selv tager hævn over fjenden. Hun beskriver en families skæbne under IS herredømme i Mosul og en kunstners fund af en hemmelig violin mellem pistoler og militæruniformer i IS-basaren. Og så jagter hun en sort huskat i Mosuls murbrokker. Endelig tråder Puk Damsgård sin egen historie med Irak, der går langt tilbage. Hun var kun 24 år gammel, da hun i 2003 besøgte Bagdad for første gang og landede midt i en konflikt, der fik betydning for hendes ønske om at dække Mellemøsten. Den sorte kat i Mosul er en fortælling fuld af overraskelser, modsætninger – og mest af alt et vidnesbyrd om menneskets kraft. Om forfatteren Puk Damsgård (f. 1978) er uddannet journalist fra Syddansk Universitet og har siden 2011 været DR's mellemøstkorrespondent. Hun har skrevet bøgerne De Renes Land (2009), Ulvehjerter (2011), samt bestsellerne Hvor solen græder (2014) og Ser du månen, Daniel (2015). For sidstnævnte modtog hun blandt andet dansk journalistiks fornemmeste hæderspris, Cavlingprisen 2015 samt Dansk Institut mod Torturs Dignity pris 2016. Hun har derudover vundet talrige andre priser for sit arbejde, deriblandt Læsernes Bogpris 2015 og Publicistklubbens Fortællerpris 2015. Ser du månen, Daniel er indtil solgt til 18 lande og er udkommet i blandt andet USA, Sverige, Japan og Holland.

Ihan var ti år, da hun kom til Danmark og blev forenet med sin far, som var flygtet fra Irak tre år tidligere. Dengang lå det på ingen måde i kortene, at den lille pige skulle blive en dygtig og eftertragtet trommeslager. Forældrene ville have, at hun læste jura, men fra Ihan fik et sæt trommestikker i hånden første gang, vidste hun, at hun ville noget andet. Hun ville musikken.I denne bog fortæller hun, hvordan hun tog kampen op mod forældrenes mellemøstlige normer og fordomme for at forfølge sine drømme, skabe sig en karriere og et liv sammen med den mand, hun elsker. Men hun giver også et indblik i musikbranchens veje og vildveje, hvor successen kræver både held og hårdt arbejde, og hvor man indimellem må træffe svære beslutninger.Ihans fortælling er en bog om viljestyrke, vedholdenhed og evnen til at finde en udvej, men det er også en bog om stor kærlighed, sammenhold og accept.

Zeinab følger ikke reglerne for, hvordan en god pige der stadig prøver at navigere mellem to kulturer, bør opføre sig. Hun har taget tørklædet af, og hun vil leve et teenage liv som hendes veninders. Som 16-årig bliver hun derfor sendt på en ufrivillig genopdragelsesrejse hos sin familie i Irak. Efter fem måneder i Irak lykkedes det hende at flygte hjem til Danmark. Forholdet til forældrene er ødelagt. Men langsomt får mor og datter kontakt til hinanden igen. Zeinab brænder inde med en masse spørgsmål til sin mor, som hun skal finde svar på. For hun vil forstå sin mors handlinger og hele det dybe sår i relationen til sin mor. Moderen Sohads livshistorie tegner et portræt af en irakisk kvinde og giver et sjældent indblik i det brutale irakiske parallelsamfund i Danmark, hvor fordømmelse og ære er afgørende for en families anseelse.

Three Worlds is a captivating book written by the renowned author, Avi Shlaim. Published in 2023 by Oneworld Publications, this book is a riveting addition to the literary world. The genre of the book is not specified, but knowing Avi Shlaim's previous works, one can expect a gripping narrative filled with insightful perspectives. The book's title, 'Three Worlds,' suggests a story that spans across different environments, perhaps a tale of connection, conflict, or exploration. Readers can look forward to immersing themselves in Shlaim's adept storytelling and compelling prose. Don't miss out on this latest offering from Oneworld Publications.

“Mellemøsten Nu” samler landets mest indsigtsfulde Mellemøsteksperter, der i 16 analyser giver læseren et komplet overblik over de vigtigste udviklinger, konflikter og dilemmaer i regionen. Indholdsfortegnelse: – Rolf Holmboe: Det ulykkelige Arabien – Lars Erslev Andersen: I fremtidens Mellemøsten vil millioner leve i permanente undtagelseszoner – Tore Refslund Hamming: Trods næsten 20 års kamp står den jihadistiske bevægelse stærkere end nogensinde før – Troels Burchall Henningsen: Irak: Kan kalifatet genopstå? – Sune Haugbølle: Kommer retfærdigheden til Syrien? – Deniz Serinci: Kurderne i Syrien: Hellere leve med Assad end kæmpe mod Erdogan – David Vestenskov: Afganistan: Freden er farlig – Maria-Louise Clausen: Yemen: Hvordan kan vi forstå verdens største humanitære katastrofe? – Rasmus Christian Elling: Irans verden – Lars Erslev Andersen og Fannie Agershou Madsen: Derfor bryder Vesten ikke med Saudi-Arabien – Rasmus Boserup: Egypten: Frygter Sisi folket? – Hans Henrik Fafner: Et andet Israel – Torben Toftgaard Engen: Frankrigs krig i Sahel ligner en succes – Morten Valbjørn: Svar på sekterisme – Mikkel Vedby Rasmussen: Magtpolitikken slår igen – Helle Malmvig: Det nye magtspil i Mellemøsten

I 2003 sneg Hjalte Tin og Nina Rasmussen deres røde 2CV "Det flyvende tæppe" over grænsen til Irak for at udforske Kurdistan, det land, som ifølge mange mennesker slet ikke findes, men som kurderne til stadighed slås for. Turen går gennem den syriske ørken, Bagdad, Aleppo, Nemrut-bjerget og mange andre steder, og parret møder mennesker fra alle samfundet og kulturens lag.idden /title /head body center h1 403 Forbidden /h1 /center /body /htmlHjalte Tin har i en lang årrække rejst verden rundt sammen med sin samleverske Nina Rasmussen. Rejsemåderne har været lige så forskellig som destinationerne; motorcykelrejser med børn i Sydamerika, Irak i 2CV og Jorden rundt i elbil for blot at nævne nogle stykker. Gennem tiden har parret dokumenteret rejserne gennem foredrag og bøger.

Udstyret med en æske selvmordspiller og en fotokopi af en sikkerheds-garanti fra Den islamiske Stat rejste den tyske journalist Jürgen Todenhöfer til IS-byer som Raqqa i Syrien og Mosul i Irak – og slap ud med hovedet og dermed livet i behold.Todenhöfers bog er en dramatisk øjenvidne-beretning fra en totalitær “stat.” Og hans samtaler med europæiske og arabiske IS-krigere og deres ”omvendelse” til en morderisk ideologi er chokerende læsning.

**SHORTLISTED FOR THE ORWELL PRIZE 2024**From the Pulitzer Prize winner and bestselling author of Ghost Wars, the inside story of America's long and ruinous relationship with Saddam HusseinThe Achilles Trap masterfully untangles the people, ploys of power and geopolitics that led to America's disastrous war with Iraq and, for the first time, details America's fundamental miscalculations during its ruinous, decades-long relationship with Saddam Hussein.Beginning with Saddam's rise to power in 1979 and the birth of Iraq's secret nuclear weapons programme, Steve Coll traces Saddam's motives through understanding his inner circle. He brings to life the diplomats, scientists, family members and generals who had no choice but to defer to their leader - a leader directly responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis, as well as the torture or imprisonment of many more. This was a man whose reasoning was impossible to reduce to a simple explanation, and the CIA and successive presidential administrations failed to grasp critical nuances in his paranoia, resentments and inconsistencies - even when the stakes were incredibly high.Using unpublished and underreported sources, interviews with surviving participants, and Saddam's own transcripts and audio files, The Achilles Trap is a remarkable picture of a dictator who was convinced the world was out to get him and acted accordingly. A work of great historical significance, it is the definitive account of how corruptions of power, lies of diplomacy and vanity - on both sides - led to avoidable errors of statecraft: ones that would enact immeasurable human suffering and forever change our political landscape.

Leonard Woolley, an archaeologist from Britain, returned to Iraq in 1922, almost 4,000 years after the nuclear ancient catastrophe, to uncover ancient Mesopotamia.An imposing ziggurat standing out in the desert plain drew him to the nearby site of Tell el-Muqayyar, where he began excavating. As old walls, artifacts, and inscriptions were unearthed, he realized he was digging up ancient Ur-Ur of the Chaldees.Twelve years of his work were conducted through a joint expedition between the British Museum in London and the University of Pennsylvania Museum in Philadelphia. For those institutions, Sir Leonard Woolley found some of the most dramatic objects and artifacts in Ur. However, what he discovered may well surpass anything ever exhibited before.In the course of removing layers of soil deposited by desert sands, the elements, and time from the ruins, the ancient city began to take shape-here were the walls, there were the harbors and canals, the residential quarters, the palace, and the Tummal, the elevated sacred area. Woolley's discovery of a cemetery dated thousands of years ago included unique 'royal' tombs discovered by digging at its edge is the find of the century.The excavations in the city's residential sections established that Ur's inhabitants followed the Sumerian custom of burying their dead right under the floors of their dwellings, where families continued to live. It was thus highly unusual to find a cemetery with as many as 1,800 graves in it. From predynastic (before Kingship began) to Seleucid times, they were concentrated mainly within the sacred precinct. The graves were buried on top of each other, burials were interred in another grave, and some graves were apparently re-interred. To date graves more accurately, Woolley's workers dug trenches of up to fifty feet deep to cut through layers.

Hercule Poirot er på rejse i Irak, da han bliver tilkaldt til at hjælpe i en besynderlig mordsag ved en arkæologisk udgravning. Louise Leidner, som er gift med den svenske arkæolog dr. Erich Leidner, er blevet slået ned med et stumpt objekt og er død af sine kvæstelser. Der hersker ingen tvivl om, at mordet er udført af en i Louises omgangskreds, og Poirot giver sig nu til at undersøge menneskene i Louises liv for at finde ud af, hvem der kan have haft et motiv.Hercule Poirot er Agatha Christies belgiske privatdetektiv, der er lige så genial, som han er sær. De mindste detaljer kan føre til, at Poirot kan opklare en sag, som politiet er kørt fast i, og med sin mindre begavede partner, kaptajn Hastings, bliver han hyret til at opklare de mest fantastiske og bizarre mysterier.Agatha Christie (1890-1976) er Englands ukronede krimidronning og skaberen af kendte og elskede figurer som mesterdetektiven Hercule Poirot og den lettere påtrængende, men ikke desto mindre geniale Miss Marple. Agatha Christie er den bedst sælgende krimiforfatter i verden, og hendes bøger er oversat til flere sprog end William Shakespeares. Mange af romanerne er tilmed blevet lavet til både film, TV og sat op på hæderkronede teatre.

"Det er tydeligt, at en ny epoke i verdenspolitikken står for døren. Men det er mindre tydeligt, hvordan vestlige regeringer bedst spiller deres kort i en tid, hvor internationale institutioner udfordres af udemokratiske kræfter" - fra Mikkel Vedby Rasmussens kapitel Danmark står overfor helt nye udenrigspolitiske dilemmaer. En ny bog fra RÆSON samler analyser fra 5 forskere – Mikkel Vedby Rasmussen, Henrik Breitenbauch, Peter Viggo Jakobsen, Jan Øberg og Vibeke Schou Tjalve – fra kontreadmiral Nils Wang – samt fra to forhenværende udenrigsministre: Per Stig Møller og Martin Lidegaard.

"Irak. Historie-Religion-Samfund" belyser i fremstilling og kildetekster Iraks omtumlede historie og kultur fra oldtid til nutid. Læs om: Babelstårn og syndflod, hængende haver og "skriften på væggen". Overvær undertrykkelse og flugt under Saddam Hussein. Følg begivenhederne under de to Golfkrige og Danmarks engagement i Irak. Tag stilling i den brændende aktuelle debat om vold, demokrati og islam i lyset af Islamisk Stats hærgen.

Azad Sadon Fadil Habib fra Holstebro blev onsdag 3. april 2024 idømt syv dages betinget fængsel i Retten i Holstebro for at overtræde straffelovens §266b – bedre kendt som racismeparagraffen. Azad Habib nægtede sig skyldig, og han ankede byrettens dom med krav om frifindelse på stedet."Jeg accepterer det absolut ikke (dommen, red.). Jeg kæmper til det sidste, for det har ikke noget med racisme at gøre. Det er to forskellige ting," sagde Azad Habib til TV MIDTVEST efter dommen.Azad Habib blev dømt for at have ejet, drevet og administreret to hjemmesider, hvor han fremsatte udsagn i form af vittigheder, der var hånende eller nedværdigende over for visse befolkningsgrupper baseret på race, hudfarve, etnisk oprindelse eller tro.I de 129 eksempler, der indgår i anklageskriftet, er det særligt jøder og folk med afrikansk oprindelse, udsagnene er rettet mod.Du kan læse de 129 vittigheder i denne bog, så du ved, hvad, der er forbudt at lave sjov med, så du ikke uforvarende risikerer at blive dømt for racisme som Azad Habib.

Terrorgruppen Islamisk Stat (IS) forfulgte yazidi-mindretallet i Irak i 2014. Det er en forfølgelse, som FN, Tyskland, Holland og andre har kaldt for et folkemord. Danmarks mest eftersøgte terrorist, Basil Hassan, har frihedsberøvet to yazidi-kvinder dernede.Forfatter Deniz Serinci har fået helt unik adgang til femten yazidi-kvinder, der har været sexslaver hos IS. Han har også fået unik adgang til danske Syrienskrigere i fængsler i Syrien, der fortæller om andre danskeres involvering i sexslaveri og forfølgelserne af yazidierne.Emnet er vigtigt, fordi det var IS’ forfølgelse af yazidierne, der fik Vesten – inklusive Danmark – til at gribe ind og bombe terrorgruppen.

The U.S. Marine Corps' four-year campaign against al Qaeda in Anbar is a fight certain to take its place next to such legendary clashes as Belleau Wood, Guadalcanal, Peleliu, Iwo Jima, Okinawa, Chosin, and Khe Sanh. Its success, the author contends, constituted a major turning point in the Iraq War and helped alter the course of events and set the stage for the Surge in Baghdad a year later. This book brings to light all the decisive details of how the Marines, between 2004 and 2008, adapted and improvised as they applied the hard lessons of past mistakes. In March 2004, when part of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF) was deployed to Anbar Province in the heart of the Sunni triangle, the Marines quickly found themselves locked in a bloody test of wills with al Qaeda, and a burgeoning violent insurgency. By the spring of 2006, according to all accounts, enemy violence was skyrocketing, while predictions for any U.S. success were plummeting. But at that same time new counterinsurgency initiatives were put in place when I MEF returned for its second tour in Anbar, and the Marines began to gain control. By September 2008 the fight was over. Richard Shultz, a well-known author and international security studies expert, has thoroughly researched this subject. His book effectively argues the case for the Marines changing the course of the war at Anbar, which is contrary to the conventional wisdom that the Surge was the turning point.

The Iraq War has been the costliest U.S. conflict since the Vietnam War. To date, few official studies have been conducted to review what happened, why it happened, and what lessons should be drawn. The U.S. Army in the Iraq War is the Army's initial operational level analysis of this conflict, written in narrative format, with assessments and lessons embedded throughout the work. This study reviews the conflict from a Landpower perspective and includes the contributions of coalition allies, the U.S. Marine Corps, and special operations forces. Presented principally from the point of view of the commanders in Baghdad, the narrative examines the interaction of the operational and strategic levels, as well as the creation of theater level strategy and its implementation at the tactical level. Volume 1 begins in the truce tent at Safwan Airfield in southern Iraq at the end of Operation DESERT STORM and briefly examines actions by U.S. and Iraqi forces during the interwar years. The narrative continues by examining the road to war, the initially successful invasion, and the rise of Iraqi insurgent groups before exploring the country's slide toward civil war. This volume concludes with a review of the decision by the George W. Bush administration to "surge" additional forces to Iraq, placing the conduct of the "surge" and its aftermath in the second volume.This study was constructed over a span of 4 years and relied on nearly 30,000 pages of hand-picked declassified documents, hundreds of hours of original interviews, and thousands of hours of previously unavailable interviews. Original interviews conducted by the team included President George W. Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Secretaries of Defense Leon Panetta and Robert Gates, Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and every theater commander for the war, among many others. With its release, this publication, The U.S. Army in the Iraq War, represents the U.S. Government's longest and most detailed study of the Iraq conflict thus far.

The Iraq War has been the costliest U.S. conflict since the Vietnam War. To date, few official studies have been conducted to review what happened, why it happened, and what lessons should be drawn. The U.S. Army in the Iraq War is the Army's initial operational level analysis of this conflict, written in narrative format, with assessments and lessons embedded throughout the work. This study reviews the conflict from a Landpower perspective and includes the contributions of coalition allies, the U.S. Marine Corps, and special operations forces. Presented principally from the point of view of the commanders in Baghdad, the narrative examines the interaction of the operational and strategic levels, as well as the creation of theater level strategy and its implementation at the tactical level. Volume 1 begins in the truce tent at Safwan Airfield in southern Iraq at the end of Operation DESERT STORM and briefly examines actions by U.S. and Iraqi forces during the interwar years. The narrative continues by examining the road to war, the initially successful invasion, and the rise of Iraqi insurgent groups before exploring the country's slide toward civil war. This volume concludes with a review of the decision by the George W. Bush administration to "surge" additional forces to Iraq, placing the conduct of the "surge" and its aftermath in the second volume.This study was constructed over a span of 4 years and relied on nearly 30,000 pages of hand-picked declassified documents, hundreds of hours of original interviews, and thousands of hours of previously unavailable interviews. Original interviews conducted by the team included President George W. Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Secretaries of Defense Leon Panetta and Robert Gates, Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and every theater commander for the war, among many others. With its release, this publication, The U.S. Army in the Iraq War, represents the U.S. Government's longest and most detailed study of the Iraq conflict thus far.

In a harrowing story of lost innocence and shattered identities, two young lives are swept up in a storm of calamity and betrayal. An Iraqi child, ripped from the warm embrace of his family, finds himself in the clutches of strangers in a foreign country. While the boy's desperate family searches tirelessly for their beloved son, the kidnappers weave a web of lies to erase his past, forging a cruel destiny that will test the bonds of fraternity and love.Against a backdrop of global unrest, the stolen child and his unexpected natural brother try to forge their own paths, tied by a deep friendship, in a world torn apart by violence and deceit. From the uncontrollable violence in Afghanistan to the turbulent waters of the Euphrates, the destiny breaks the sky with a story of love between two who would never imagine loving each other. Among the rubble, death and destruction, the deepest, most real and sincere love story is born. A love rooted in the soul and deep in the heart. Love that glorifies life and means death; the threads of family, love and loyalty will be stretched to the breaking point.Tears on the Euphrates delves into the profound impact of family and identity amid the harsh realities of a world at war, intertwining the fates of two boys with the turbulent geopolitics that define the divide between East and West. Through their eyes, we explore the moving and unyielding search for truth, belonging, and redemption in a world yearning for hope.

The first transportation wheel, the first writing, the first law codes, and the first empires-the innovative ancient Iraqis transformed our world!The "Cradle of Civilization" brought us the sixty-second minute, the sixty-minute hour, and the twelve-hour day and night. Their brilliant sages predicted solar and lunar eclipses and developed quadratic equations.Ancient Iraq was undeniably a powerhouse of creativity and stunning achievements. Come explore how the Akkadian, Babylonian, Assyrian, Persian, and Greek empires surged to the top, only to crash and burn. This engaging book will guide you through an incredible journey from the earliest civilizations to the fall of the Sassanian Empire in 651 CE.This book will unpack the following questions and more!What was the world's oldest city?How similar was Hammurabi's Law Code to the Law of Moses?How many times was the god Marduk stolen from Babylon?What massive coalition crushed Assyria once and for all?How do today's historians and astronomers use the ancient Chaldean eclipse records?What three Iranian dynasties ruled Iraq, beginning with Cyrus the Great?What were Alexander the Great's plans for Babylon?How did the Antonine Plague interrupt Rome's invasion of Iraq?What Sassanid emperor called on China for help against the Muslim Arabs?

"Given the length of time the United States spent in Iraq, there is a perception that there was no consideration before the war of what should be done after coalition forces arrived in Baghdad and removed Saddam Hussein. However as this unofficial history reveals, there was a great deal of planning to address how to achieve the policy objectives for Iraq set by the Bush administration. Kevin Benson -- director of plans for the United States Third Army, the ground forces command headquarters for GEN Franks' Central Command, at the start of the war -- details the development of the invasion plan and its subsequent execution from D-Day in March 2003 until the change of command of operations in Iraq and the departure of Third Army in June 2003. He addresses the persistent trope that 'the Army did no planning' for 'Phase IV, ' revealing that extensive plans were proposed, and were met with very little interest in Washington. The book covers the difficulties encountered in dealing with Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, from getting his approval on the number of forces requested to conducting the campaign to find the 'smoking gun' of WMD; the instructions given to Army, Marine and coalition forces; and the daily secure video teleconferences with Central Command and the Pentagon, and the rather remarkable conversations and guidance that came from these meetings."--

How Forward Air Controllers and Close Air Support fundamentally changed the American war machine in the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq.

This invaluable resource offers a comprehensive overview of the Iraq War, with more than 100 in-depth articles by leading scholars on an array of topics and themes and more than a dozen key primary source documents.This book provides everything the reader needs to know about the Iraq War, from the Bush administration's decision to invade Iraq, through the U.S. troop surge in 2007, to the rise of the Islamic State. It offers insight into the war through the events, organizations, and people who have had a major impact on the conflict. It also explains the inadvertent consequences of the conflict including worsening regional sectarian divisions, the Arab Spring, the increase in Iranian influence in the Middle East, and the expansion of international terrorism.The book begins with a sweeping overview of the Iraq War that provides context for each of the reference entries that follow. The introductory material also includes detailed essays on the causes and consequences of the war. The bulk of the book consists of more than 120 reference entries on such topics as Saddam Hussein, the battles of Fallujah, and private military contractors such as Blackwater and Halliburton. In addition, the book includes more than a dozen curated and contextualized primary source documents along with a comprehensive chronology and extensive bibliography.

During the 2003 Iraq War invasion called Operation Iraqi Freedom, the 3D Infantry Division led the effort starting March 19, 2003. They pushed three days straight into the fight to take Baghdad with major combat operations lasting several months. 3D Infantry Division's 1st Brigade, the main effort, was supported by the 126th Forward Surgical Team known as "Phantom FaST". This is a story about a newly married bride and her husband, a young officer in "Phantom FaST", trying to make sense of war and separation. During the initial combat phase, there were no methods of communication other than good old letter writing like veterans of past wars. This book is a compilation of those letters and is a story about LOVE shared, the effects of WAR, and the FAITH to survive.

"In a punchy collection of poetry packed with humor and grit, The Explosion Takes Both Legs, former U.S. Army infantry officer turned crime-fiction writer J.B. Stevens delivers both action and insight into how Americans go to war in the 21st century. Stevens is a two-time past finalist in the Col. Darron L. Wright Memorial Writing Awards, with one award each in prose (2022) and poetry (2021) categories. The annual awards are administered by the Chicago-based literary journal Line of Advance. A graduate of The Citadel, a military college in Charleston, South Carolina, Stevens now lives in the Southeastern United States with his wife and daughter"--

My Men Are My Heroes introduces its readers to a living standard of Marine Corps esprit de corps and military decorum. Sergeant Major Bradley Kasal, the pride of Iowa, is a small town boy who wanted to be a United States Marine even before a poster perfect Marine recruiter marched into his high school gym and offered him a challenge Kasal couldn't resist. Two decades later Kasal stood stiffly at attention, one leg literally shot in half, while the Navy Cross was pinned to his chest. Kasal is currently the Sergeant Major of the Infantry School at Camp Pendleton, CA until he retires in May, 2012. After a brief visit to his childhood Kasal's story quickly gathers steam, introducing the reader to his early Marine career; adventure filled years that earned him the name "Robo-Grunt" from men who don't offer accolades easily. Kasal uses his experience climbing the ranks to illustrate how Marines grow, and how they are shaped by the uncompromising attitudes of the officers and non-coms charged with turning young Marines into tigers. Kasal's adventures culminate in Iraq. By now he is 1st Sergeant Kasal, ramrodding Kilo Company, 3/1, a rifle company in 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines, the mighty "Thunder Third" that would cover itself with glory in 2004.Two days into Operation Iraqi Freedom in March 2003 Kilo is ordered to hold open a critical road between two bridges that Saddam's fierce Fedayeen Saddam were just as determined to take away. Kasal makes in his stand on that road, literally standing tall amidst fierce gunfire, demonstrating the kind of leadership Kilo Company needed to get the job done. Kilo's fight was part of the first big test of Marine Corps combat capabilities in the second Iraqi War and the only major engagement the Marine Corps fought during the heady days of the "Drive Up" to Baghdad. When it was over the so-called "Ninjas" of the Fedayeen Saddam were smashed. A week later Kasal was in Baghdad, welcomed with open arms by the exuberant population. A year later 3/1 was back to Iraq, in Anbar Province, the epicenter of the brutal war now raging in the former tribal stronghold of Saddam and his henchmen. The smiling faces that had greeted 3/1 the year before were gone. Kasal is the 1st Sergeant of Weapons Company, 3/1, the armored fist of a light infantry battalion.After four months of ambushes, IEDs, and deadly skirmishes 3/1 is ordered into Fallujah, to take the ancient city back from Al Qaeda and the foreign fighters who had turned the ancient "City of Mosques" into a fortress. It is there, in November, 2004 that the "Thundering Third" entered into Marine Corps legend and Kasal into the Pantheon of Heroes for his actions during the most savage battle the Marines fought in the Iraq War. At a non-descript house in a walled neighborhood in Fallujah Kasal, at the time accompanying a squad of Kilo's riflemen into a contested house, becomes involved in a close-quarter duel with fanatical Chechen fighters. The fight rages throughout the house, at times Marines and the foreign fighters were exchanging rifle fire and grenades at ranges of less than 10 feet. For almost two hours the squad is trapped inside the house. During the brawl Kasal is shot seven times, almost loses his leg when it is nearly severed from his body, and sustains 47 shrapnel wounds when he used his body to shield a wounded Marine laying next to him from an enemy grenade. In the skirmish, forever known as the "Hell House" fight, Kasal was awarded the Navy Cross, the nation's second highest award for heroism."