If we say the Iraq war was a mistake, we must consider the alternatives. What would Iraq be like with Saddam or his son still in power? We now discuss the rule of Hafez al-Assad and Saddam Hussayn. We compare their strategies and ask whether Machiavelli would have approved of them.

We talk about the Iraq war, its immediate consequences, and its effect on Syria.

This is the story of the Arab Spring in Syria and Iraq, and how it turned to another Long Winter.

In our third series, we set out to discover Syria and Iraq. We tavel by podcast so it's perfectly safe. And free. Enjoy.

Sources for the series (others may be added to later episodes):

The Oxford history of IslamThe New Cambridge History of Islam

HEIRMAN MARK, Oosterse dagen, Arabische nachten.

LEWIS B. Het Midden-Oosten: 2000 jaar culturele en politieke geschiedenis.

HOLLAND T. Het vierde beest: God, de strijd om de wereldmacht en het einde van de oudheid.

PAUWELS L. Geschiedenis van de Koerden: de strijd van een volk voor een eigen staat

CORNILIE B. In de schaduw van Saddam: het Koerdische experiment in Irak.

SCHUTTEN H. De val van Saddam

GALBRAITH P. Het einde van Irak: hoe Amerikaanse incompetentie een oorlog zonder einde teweeggebracht

LESCH D. The new lion of Damascus: Bashar a-Asad and modern Syria

NAKASH Y. The Shi'is of Iraq

DUMAS V. Syrië en de hyena's van Damascus

In this last episode on Iran, we talk about one of the most important peoples you probably never heard of: the Elamites.

"Power doesn't come from a badge or a gun. Power comes from lying... lying big and getting the whole ×××× world to play along with you." (Quote from sin city)How does that work? Check out this episode and find out...

The Persians, and especially the Achaemenids, have for centuries been presented as the ultimate "other". Corrupt, decadent, freedom-hating...

In this episode, we look how accurate these stereotypes fit the real thing. The episode owes a large debt to professor Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones' excellent work (and several others), which takes many new findings and weaves them into a fascinating new narrative. I advise you all to buy it, of course. Other sources are on my Facebook page.

We talk about Alexander the Great, and how he (may have) conquered the Achaemenid Persian empire.

In the next episode, we'll talk about how Alexander the Great managed to conquer the Persian empire.

In this one, we'll see why we will probably never know that.