As the Cold War faded into history, it appeared to have been replaced by a new conflict - between Islam and the West. Or so we are told. After the events of 9/11 and the advent of the 'war on terror', this narrative seemed prophetic. But, as Peter Oborne reveals in this masterful new analysis, the concept of an existential clash between the two is a dangerous and destructive fantasy.Based on rigorous historical research and forensic contemporary journalism that lea...

In 2013 it is possible that Israel, backed by the United States, will launch an attack on Iran. This would be a catastrophic event, risking war, bloodshed and global economic collapse. In this passionate, but rationally argued essay, the authors attempt to avert a potential global catastrophe by showing that the grounds for war do not exist, that there is no evidence of an ongoing Iranian nuclear weapons programme, and that Iran would happily come to a table and strike a deal. They argue t...

*CHARTING THE RISE AND FALL OF FIRST-CLASS CRICKET: WHAT COMES NEXT?'A remarkable account of cricket's fascinating journey from its origins ... to the present day.' Ehsan Mani, former President of the ICCIn its early forms in the 18th century, cricket was a commercial entertainment, a vehicle for gambling alongside cock-fighting or wrestling. In the Victorian era, the sport was recreated as a means of keeping order...

*** THE SUNDAY TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLER *When Peter Oborne wrote The Rise of Political Lying, looking at the growth of political falsehood under John Major and Tony Blair, he believed things had got as bad as they could be. With the arrival of Boris Johnson at No 10 in 2019 began a new and unprecedented epidemic of deceit.**In The Assault on Truth, a short and powerful new polemic, Oborne shows how Boris Johnson lied

The most unusual feature of Donald Trump's nationalist and populist campaign for the presidency of the USA was his obsessive use of Twitter. Like other social media, this form of communication has often been assumed to encourage the dissemination of liberal values and the circulation of facts. Trump's tweets, by contrast, formed a constant stream of provocations, insults, conspiracy theories, 'alternative facts' and outright lies. And they helped h...

The defining calamity of the post-cold war era', in Peter Oborne's words, took place in 2003. The invasion of Iraq led to the collapse of the state system in the Middle East. Iraq is shattered, Syria will never be put back together again, and Lebanon hasn't functioned as a unified state for a long time. And the great wave of refugees unleashed by this breakdown is threatening what is left of democracy in Turkey and the very existence of the European Union.Oborne provides a forensic...

If you are morally sensitive, aesthetically inclined, and look for poetry peppered with old metrical rhythm and an Edwardian air, then this edition might just be the ideal donum for you. It offers you the range of what B. J. Sadiq can do with a pen fidgeting in his fingers. The range is startling--containing a set of cricket poems, both masterful and delightfully eccentric, capable of stirring an audience wherever the sport is played and immortalized. And it's not just cricket. There's som...

In 2011 the Arab revolts changed the Middle East forever. The toppling of a generation of dictators left the region in turmoil. Has the promise of the Arab Spring been lost? What does the rise of religious extremism on Europe's doorstep mean for the West and its allies? Is America giving up on the region and, if so, who will lead the new Middle East?Drawing on compelling first-hand reporting, a deep knowledge of the region's history and access to many of the key players, BBC Bureau...

A year that shook a region and the world: how it happened and what it means.Spontaneous, unforeseen and contagious, the uprisings of the Arab Spring took everyone - participants included - by surprise. Like revolutions in other times and places, they seemed impossible beforehand and inevitable afterwards.In mid-December 2010 the desperate act of a young Tunisian barely featured on the global news agenda. But it set off a chain reaction of extraordinary events that would unseat dictators, resh...

In SADDAM HUSSEIN: THE POLITICS OF REVENGE, the author draws on his own knowledge of and extensive contacts within the Arab world to produce both a thorough biography and a penetrating psychological profile of the most powerful and unpredictable man in the world today. He explains why Saddam behaves as he does by suggesting that his life has been marked by a series of personal quests: for recognition after being orphaned and brought up by a destitute uncle; for control of his country; for ...

On 18th March 2011 the United Nations passed Resolution 1973 allowing the establishment of a No Fly Zone above the towns and cities of Libya to defend civilians from the oppressive regime of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi. With NATO planes now patrolling the skies over Libya's main cities, the country faces an uncertain future: Revolution? Civil War? Partition? Only one man holds the answer, and he is not going to give up power easily. Seeking Gaddafi is a fascinating portrait of one of the most ...

"It's all here-Islam, the family tree, a sea of oil and money to match, palace intrigue...This is high drama and an epic tale."-Tom BrokawThough Saudi Arabia sits on one of the richest oil deposits in the world, it also produced fifteen of the nineteen 9/11 hijackers. In this immensely important book, journalist Robert Lacey draws on years of access to every circle of Saudi society giving readers the fullest portrait yet of a land straddling the worlds of me...