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Why Arabs Lose Wars :: Middle East Quarterly

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U.S. General Norman Schwarzkopf (left) and Iraqi Lt-General Sultan Hashim Ahmed salute each other following the formal surrender of Iraq to U.S.-led coalition forces in 1991. Arabic-speaking armies have been generally ineffective in the modern era. Egyptian regular forces did poorly against Yemeni irregulars in the 1960s.1 Syrians could only impose their will in Lebanon during the mid-1970s by the use of overwhelming weaponry and numbers.2 Iraqis showed ineptness against an Iranian military ripped apart by revolutionary turmoil in the 1980s and could not win a three-decades-long war against the Kurds.3 The Arab military performance on both sides of the 1990 Kuwait war was mediocre.4 And the Arabs have done poorly in nearly all the military confrontations with Israel. Why this unimpressive record? There are many factors—economic, ideological, technical—but perhaps the most important has to do with culture and certain societal attributes which inhibit Arabs from producing an effective mi

Why Arabs Lose Wars - Middle East Forum Menu Search Query Submit Search Show Search Middle East Forum Middle East Quarterly Middle East Quarterly Winter 1999 Volume 6: Number 1 Why Arabs Lose Wars By: Norvell B. De Atkine Twitter Telegram LinkedIn Email Copy Link copied Print Translations of this item: Hungarian U.S. General Norman Schwarzkopf (left) and Iraqi Lt-General Sultan Hashim Ahmed salute each other following the formal surrender of Iraq to U.S.-led coalition forces in 1991. Arabic-speaking armies have been generally ineffective in the modern era. Egyptian regular forces did poorly ag

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