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Assad or We Burn the Country
- How One Family's Lust for Power Destroyed Syria
- Narrated by: Gary Tiedemann
- Length: 19 hrs and 52 mins
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Publisher's summary
From a Pulitzer Prize-nominated journalist specializing in the Middle East, this groundbreaking account of the Syrian Civil War reveals the never-before-published true story of a 21st-century humanitarian disaster.
In spring 2011, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad turned to his friend and army commander, Manaf Tlass, for advice about how to respond to Arab Spring-inspired protests. Tlass pushed for conciliation but Assad decided to crush the uprising - an act which would catapult the country into an eight-year long war, killing almost half a million and fueling terrorism and a global refugee crisis.
Assad or We Burn the Country examines Syria's tragedy through the generational saga of the Assad and Tlass families, once deeply intertwined and now estranged in Bashar's bloody quest to preserve his father's inheritance. By drawing on his own reporting experience in Damascus and exclusive interviews with Tlass, Dagher takes listeners within palace walls to reveal the family behind the destruction of a country and the chaos of an entire region.
Dagher shows how one of the world's most vicious police states came to be and explains how a regional conflict extended globally, engulfing the Middle East and pitting the United States and Russia against one another.
Timely, propulsive, and expertly reported, Assad or We Burn the Country is the definitive account of this global crisis, going far beyond the news story that has dominated headlines for years.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
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Che Guevara was a dashing rebel whose epic dream was to end poverty and injustice in Latin America and the developing world through armed revolution. Jon Lee Anderson traces Che's extraordinary life from his comfortable Argentine upbringing to the battlefields of the Cuban revolution, from the halls of power in Castro's government to his failed campaign in the Congo and his assassination in the Bolivian jungle.
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Encompassing and Fair Look at an Historical Man
- By Matt on 08-10-11
By: Jon Lee Anderson
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The Berlin Wall
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- Narrated by: Daniel Philpott
- Length: 19 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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The appearance of a hastily constructed barbed wire entanglement through the heart of Berlin during the night of 12-13 August 1961 was both dramatic and unexpected. Within days, it had started to metamorphose into a structure that would come to symbolise the brutal insanity of the Cold War: the Berlin Wall. A city of almost four million was cut ruthlessly in two, unleashing a potentially catastrophic East-West crisis and plunging the entire world for the first time into the fear of imminent missile-borne apocalypse.
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TEAR. DOWN. THIS. WALL
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By: Frederick Taylor
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The Bhutto Dynasty
- The Struggle for Power in Pakistan
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- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 13 hrs and 4 mins
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A major new investigation into the Bhutto family, examining their influence in Pakistan from the colonial era to the present day.
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Excellent coverage of the dynasty
- By Junaid Qurashi on 04-26-21
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Anatomy of Terror
- From the Death of bin Laden to the Rise of the Islamic State
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- Narrated by: Aaron Abano
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In Anatomy of Terror, former FBI special agent and New York Times best-selling author Ali Soufan dissects bin Laden's brand of jihadi terrorism and its major offshoots, revealing how these organizations were formed, how they operate, their strengths, and - crucially - their weaknesses.
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What every human on the planet needs to know!
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The Nine Lives of Pakistan
- Dispatches from a Precarious State
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- Narrated by: Roger Clark
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- Unabridged
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Declan Walsh is one of the New York Times's most distinguished international correspondents. His electrifying portrait of Pakistan over a tumultuous decade captures the sweep of this strange, wondrous, and benighted country through the dramatic lives of nine fascinating individuals. On assignment as the country careened between crises, Walsh traveled from the raucous port of Karachi to the salons of Lahore, and from Baluchistan to the mountains of Waziristan. He met a diverse cast of extraordinary Pakistanis....
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A Fascinating Look at a Troubled Country
- By Dipam on 07-11-21
By: Declan Walsh
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MBS
- The Rise to Power of Mohammed bin Salman
- By: Ben Hubbard
- Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
- Length: 11 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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MBS is the untold story of how a mysterious young prince emerged from Saudi Arabia’s sprawling royal family to overhaul the economy and society of the richest country in the Middle East - and gather as much power as possible into his own hands. Since his father, King Salman, ascended to the throne in 2015, Mohammed bin Salman has leveraged his influence to restructure the kingdom’s economy, loosen its strict Islamic social codes, and confront its enemies around the region, especially Iran.
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Suffers from 'Objective Journalism' Syndrome
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By: Ben Hubbard
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The Compatriots
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The history of Russian espionage is soaked in blood, from a spontaneous pistol shot that killed a secret policeman in Romania in 1924 to the attempt to poison an exiled KGB colonel in Salisbury, England, in 2017. Russian émigrés have found themselves continually at the center of the mayhem. Russians began leaving the country in big numbers in the late 19th century, fleeing pogroms, tsarist secret police persecution, and the Revolution, then Stalin and the KGB - and creating the third-largest diaspora in the world.
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Great book. Extremely detailed history of the USSR
- By M. Gordon on 03-03-20
By: Andrei Soldatov, and others
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The Assassins' Gate
- America in Iraq
- By: George Packer
- Narrated by: Richard Poe
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The Assassins' Gate, so dubbed by American soldiers, is the entrance to the American zone in the city of Baghdad. In 2003, the United States blazed into Iraq to depose dictator Saddam Hussein. But after three years and unknown thousands killed, that country faces an escalating civil war and an uncertain fate. How did it get to this point?
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Highly Recommended
- By Drapeau on 02-01-07
By: George Packer
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The Jakarta Method
- Washington's Anticommunist Crusade and the Mass Murder Program That Shaped Our World
- By: Vincent Bevins
- Narrated by: Tim Paige
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In 1965, the US government helped the Indonesian military kill approximately one million innocent civilians. This was one of the most important turning points of the 20th century, eliminating the largest communist party outside China and the Soviet Union and inspiring copycat terror programs in faraway countries like Brazil and Chile. But these events remain widely overlooked, precisely because the CIA's secret interventions were so successful.
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Great book, but the narration has serious flaws
- By Prof. Neil Larsen on 08-03-20
By: Vincent Bevins
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The Hidden History of Burma
- Race, Capitalism, and the Crisis of Democracy in the 21st Century
- By: Thant Myint-U
- Narrated by: Assaf Cohen
- Length: 9 hrs and 36 mins
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Precariously positioned between China and India, Burma's population has suffered dictatorship, natural disaster, and the dark legacies of colonial rule. But when decades of military dictatorship finally ended and internationally beloved Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi emerged from long years of house arrest, hopes soared. As historian, former diplomat, and presidential advisor, Thant Myint-U saw the cracks forming. In this insider's diagnosis of a country at a breaking point, he dissects all of the elements that came together to challenge the incipient democracy.
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Comprehensive Account on Burma’s recent problems
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By: Thant Myint-U
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From Warsaw with Love
- Polish Spies, the CIA, and the Forging of an Unlikely Alliance
- By: John Pomfret
- Narrated by: Donald Corren
- Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins
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From the award-winning and acclaimed author of The Beautiful Country and the Middle Kingdom, From Warsaw with Love tells the epic story of how Polish intelligence officers forged an alliance with the CIA in the twilight of the Cold War. In 1990, soon after the Polish people voted in their first democratic election since the 1930s, the young Polish government sent a veteran spy, who’d battled the West for decades, to rescue six American officers trapped in Baghdad.
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Fascinating and well researched
- By wacek szymkowiak on 07-23-24
By: John Pomfret
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The Burning Shores
- Inside the Battle for the New Libya
- By: Frederic Wehrey
- Narrated by: Paul Boehmer
- Length: 10 hrs and 56 mins
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The death of Colonel Muammar Qadhafi freed Libya from 42 years of despotic rule, raising hopes for a new era. But in the aftermath, the country descended into bitter rivalries and civil war, paving the way for the Islamic State and a catastrophic migrant crisis. In a fast-paced narrative that blends frontline reporting, analysis, and history, Frederic Wehrey tells the story of what went wrong.
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amazing yet painful book
- By Ghassan Tranesh on 09-20-18
By: Frederic Wehrey
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The Quiet Americans
- Four CIA Spies at the Dawn of the Cold War - a Tragedy in Three Acts
- By: Scott Anderson
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean, Scott Anderson
- Length: 22 hrs and 1 min
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At the end of World War II, the United States was considered the victor over tyranny and a champion of freedom. But it was clear—to some—that the Soviet Union was already seeking to expand and foment revolution around the world, and the American government’s strategy in response relied on the secret efforts of a newly formed CIA. Chronicling their fascinating lives, Scott Anderson follows the exploits of four spies. Despite their ambitions, time and again their efforts went awry, thwarted by ham-fisted politicking and ideological rigidity at the highest levels of the government.
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A Tragedy for One
- By Amazon Customer on 09-23-20
By: Scott Anderson
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The Talmud says: “If someone comes to kill you, rise up and kill him first.” This instinct to take every measure, even the most aggressive, to defend the Jewish people is hardwired into Israel’s DNA. From the very beginning of its statehood in 1948, protecting the nation from harm has been the responsibility of its intelligence community and armed services, and there is one weapon in their vast arsenal that they have relied upon to thwart the most serious threats: Targeted assassinations have been used countless times, on enemies large and small....
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When the USSR collapsed in 1991, the world was certain that Communism was dead. Today, three decades later, it is clear that it was not. While Russia may no longer be Communist, Communism and sympathy for Communist ideas have proliferated across the globe. In To Overthrow the World, Sean McMeekin investigates the evolution of Communism from a seductive ideal of a classless society into the ruling doctrine of tyrannical regimes.
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What listeners say about Assad or We Burn the Country
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- Malek
- 09-04-20
Excellent book
This is an excellent recount of what has been happening in Syria in the past 50 years. The book is fair and based on facts and kept me intrigued.
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- Amazon Customer
- 05-19-21
The Gangsters of Russia, Iran & Syria
Any person with a sliver of compassion will be sickened with this work, which exposes an axis of evil, that Adolph Hitler would be proud of. There is a special place in hell for the men who organized these crimes against humanity.
I highly recommend this work….
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- michael churchill
- 11-13-20
Good primer on Syria today (2020)
This is a great overview of the Syrian revolution from an anti-Assad perspective. Detailed in just the right parts to give an understanding of the situation in Syria post Arab Spring, without bogging itself down with an expanded explanation of the conflicts in South Western Asia. Pro-Assad listeners will find support for claims limited to mostly western sources.
Personally I would’ve preferred more about the involvement of the people of Kurdistan and Rojava, but that’s not what the book claims to be so it’s not something I can fault it for. Overall good book, and I recommend it before you have any sort of conversation of Syria, Assad, or civil strife.
Be safe, take care of yourself.
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5 people found this helpful
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- Brazilona
- 03-08-22
Excellent review of the worst 21st genocide
Sam performed a thorough dissection study for the factors that led to the quagmire called the Syrian crisis.
For anyone who is interested to know what happened there, this book is the Bible that you should look for.
Thank you Sam!
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- Mitchell
- 09-20-19
"Assad or Nobody. Assad or We Burn the Country."
Great Narration. Hafez-era to Bashar-era. Necessary Reading on Syria. Highly Recommended. Excellent work by Sam.
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- Kindle Customer
- 07-17-20
the telling of Syrian story as truly happened
one of the few honest objective description of what happened in Syria and why it happened and how it happened
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- Jeffrey
- 07-28-23
Magnificent story of the Assad family’s rise to power
Latter parts of the book dive into the war and lots of resemblance and history for how putin’s relationship with Assad play into current war in Ukraine.
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- GH
- 08-01-21
Eye opening insight
A little long winded and winding at times, but truly an eye opening look into one of the worlds most interesting regions and modern dictatorships
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- Miasma
- 05-07-21
insider account of Syrian civil war
This is the best journalist account of the Syrian civil war, although very dependent on the perspective of defector Manaf Tlas.
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- Amazon Customer
- 01-19-20
Good listen
Although I had to cringe when the author attributed the motivation for the Benghazi attack on the infamous YouTube video.
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5 people found this helpful