Description
An in-depth examination of the United States' indirect intervention into the Syrian war on two fronts: the covert CIA-led campaign against the Bashar al-Assad regime and the overt, Pentagon-led military operation against the so-called Islamic State in Iraq & Syria (ISIS).
Matthew Ayton offers new insights into a dimension of US policy in Syria that has so far been given little analytical attention; the employment of what American strategists called the 'by, with & through approach' to ground warfare. This saw the US provide weaponry and training to non-state militias in an attempt to achieve strategic objectives without deploying large numbers of troops, in order to reduce blood-and-treasure costs, following the costly post-9/11 wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Drawing on a wealth of original interviews with American national security officials and the Syrians who worked with them on the ground, this book shows that despite being presented as a cost-saving panacea to intervention, this strategy came with significant - costly - and even deadly - consequences.
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Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introducing the 'By, With & Through Approach' (BWTA)
Chapter 2: US Foreign Policy and the Middle East Under Obama and Trump
Chapter 3: The Early Syrian Uprising and The American Response (2011-2012)
Chapter 4: Fighting Bashar al-Assad 'By, With & Through' The Free Syrian Army
Chapter 5: Fighting ISIS 'By, With & Through': The Train & Equip Programme
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index
Product details
| Published | 05 Feb 2026 |
|---|---|
| Format | Ebook (Epub & Mobi) |
| Edition | 1st |
| Pages | 296 |
| ISBN | 9781350503236 |
| Imprint | Bloomsbury Academic |
| Series | Studies in Contemporary Warfare |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
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