The Unraveling of Syria and America's Race to Destroy the Most Dangerous Arsenal in the World
Joby Warrick (former Pulitzer Proze Winner with Black Flags)
In August 2012, Syrian president Bashar al-Assad was clinging to power in a vicious civil war. Concerned that Assad might resort to chemical weapons, President Obama warned that any such use would cross "a red line," warranting an American military response. When a year later Assad bombed the Damascus suburb of Ghouta with sarin gas, killing hundreds, Obama was torn between living up to America's word and becoming mired in another unpopular Middle Eastern war. So when Russia offered to store Syria's chemical weapons, Obama leapt at the out.
So begins a race to find, remove, and destroy 1,300 tons of chemical weapons in the middle of Syria's civil war. Told in harrowing detail, the effort is a tactical triumph for the Americans, but soon Russia's long game becomes clear- it has UN cover to assist a close ally, Assad.
432 pages, 160 x 235mm, hardcover, Knopf, 2021
Product Code: 9780385544467
