Enemies and Allies: An Unforgettable Journey inside the Fast-Moving & Immensely Turbulent Modern Middle East

by Joel C. Rosenberg

Overview

USA Today bestseller!

Do recent changes in the Middle East signal peace? One Arab country after another is signing historic, game-changing peace, trade, investment, and tourism deals with Israel. At the same time, Russia, Iran, and Turkey are forming a highly dangerous alliance that could threaten the Western powers. Meanwhile, the U.S. is drawing down its military forces in the Mideast and focusing on matters closer to home. Where’s it all heading?

New York Times bestselling author Joel C. Rosenberg, based in Jerusalem, skillfully and clearly explains the sometimes-encouraging, sometimes-violent, yet rapidly shifting landscape in Israel and the Arab/Muslim world. Enemies and Allies will take readers behind closed doors in the Middle East and introduce them to the very kings and crown princes, presidents and prime ministers who are leading the change.

Includes exclusive, never-before-published quotes, insights, and analysis from the author’s conversations with some of the most complex and controversial leaders in the world:

• Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS)
• Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi
• Jordan’s King Abdullah II
• United Arab Emirates’ Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed (MBZ)
• Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu
• Israeli president Reuven Rivlin

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781496453815
Publisher:	Tyndale House Publishers
Publication date:	09/07/2021
Pages:	400
Sales rank:	294,383
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.50(d)

Table of Contents

Preface xiii

Part 1 The Threats 1

1 What Are the Most Serious Threats We Face Today in the Middle East? 3

My conversations with Mike Pompeo, former CIA director and secretary of state

2 Why Is Iran a Threat like No Other? 13

My conversation with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu

3 The Rise of a Russian-Iranian Axis 22

My conversations with senior U.S., Israeli, and Arab intelligence officials

4 Why the Addition of Turkey to the Russian-Iranian Axis Is So Dangerous 33

Further conversations with senior U.S., Israeli, and Arab intelligence officials

Part 2 The Opportunities 43

5 I Had Never Met a King Before 45

My first meeting with Jordan's King Abdullah II

6 Who Is King Abdullah II? 56

Understanding the vision of the longest-reigning Arab leader in the region

7 "Let My People Come" 67

My first encounter with Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi

8 Who Is Abdel Fattah el-Sisi? 78

First impressions of Egypt and taking our first delegation to Cairo

9 Sitting with Sisi 90

On the record with the leader of the world's most populous Arab country

10 The Media's War against the Moderates 103

Why our visit to Cairo became front-page news

11 Crossing the Jordan 112

Assessing the future of the eastern half of the Holy Land

12 "I Am Ready to Make Peace" 123

Our stunning meeting with UAE Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed

13 Who Is Mohammed bin Zayed? 134

Why is he leading the way toward a new Middle East?

14 The Road to Riyadh 143

The rise of a new king, a new crown prince, and a new president

15 An Invitation to the Forbidden Kingdom 153

Our decision to go to Saudi Arabia and the firestorm that followed

16 Meeting MBS 163

Two hours on the record with the most controversial leader in the Arab world

17 Reading MBS 178

Processing and explaining our visit to the new Saudi Arabia

18 Lunch at the White House 188

Briefing the president and vice president on my observations in the Middle East

19 9/11 in Saudi Arabia 197

Why I brought a second delegation to the kingdom

20 Sitting with Sheikh Mohammad Al-Issa 210

Are the Saudi reforms real or merely cosmetic?

21 The Abraham Accords 228

Witnessing the historic signing of the first Arab-Israeli peace deals in nearly twenty-six years

22 Nobel Prize or No Big Deal? 239

The titanic battle to define the significance of the Abraham Accords

Part 3 The Future 255

23 What Is the Future of Faith in the Middle East? 257

My remarks at the State Department's conference on religious freedom

24 What Is the Future Role of Evangelical Christianity in the Middle East? 272

After two decades of genocide and terror, what Christians see coming next

25 What Is the Future of Security and Prosperity in the Middle East? 287

The Biden administration and the road ahead

26 What Is the Future of Peace in the Middle East? 305

My conversation with Israeli president Reuven Rivlin, the ninth-generation Jerusalemite who loves the Arabs

Acknowledgments 325

About the Author 335

Notes 337

What People are Saying About This

David Shedd

I can think of few intelligence operatives, much less New York Times bestselling authors, who have a keener sense of what is happening, what it means, or why it matters than Joel C. Rosenberg. Enemies and Allies is proof of that.

Mike Huckabee

If there’s one book you read about the Middle East this year, this should be it. Few people understand the scope and scale of change in the region better than Joel C. Rosenberg. This guy gets it!

Former Vice President Mike Pence

Everyone who cares about the future of Israel and the Middle East should read this book.

Victoria Coates

Enemies and Allies is a highly engaging journey through the pitfalls and possibilities of the modern Middle East. . . . A must-read for anyone who wants to understand the genesis of the Abraham Accords and their aftermath.

J. Kenneth Blackwell

Enemies and Allies is the most important book about Israel, Iran, and the Arab world in years, and I can’t recommend it highly enough.

Editorial Reviews

07/26/2021

Novelist and former political strategist Rosenberg (Damascus Countdown) attempts to explain the modern Middle East in this underwhelming collection of interviews with key political players. A dual citizen of the U.S. and Israel, Rosenberg is well-connected in the region, and his access to interview subjects such as Jordan’s King Abdullah II and Egyptian president Abdel Fattah El-Sisi creates a unique opportunity for English-speaking audiences to hear directly from these leaders. Rosenberg’s accompanying commentary, however, is blatantly politically biased, making this ultimately a work of advocacy rather than scholarship; his religious worldview shapes his interpretations, to the point that the book’s chapter on the future of faith in the region focuses solely on the presence of evangelical Christianity, and he never misses an opportunity to denigrate Barack Obama and praise Donald Trump. The book also spends as much time on the author as on his interview subjects, frequently belaboring what personal connections led to any given interview or emphasizing Rosenberg’s humble responses to his interviewee’s graciousness. Readers already in agreement with Rosenberg’s worldview may appreciate the extra facts and detail provided, but others seeking new insights or nuance should steer clear. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly