"Illusions of Victory" — The Title of the New Publication from Al-Rafidain Center for Dialogue (RCD)
02 April، 2026
Al-Rafidain Center for Dialogue (RCD) is set to release a new book entitled Illusions of Victory: The Anbar Awakening and the Rise of the Islamic State. The work is authored by the American military historian Carter Malkasian, who spent five years embedded with American forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. During his time in Iraq, he witnessed firsthand the battles fought by U.S. forces in the Anbar province and the formation of the Awakening Councils that confronted Al-Qaeda in those regions.
The book is organized into seven chapters. The first and second chapters are dedicated to the initial years of the war in Anbar (2003-2005), while the third chapter focuses specifically on the battles that transpired within the city of Ramadi. In the fourth chapter, the author highlights the American military engagements that preceded the 2007 troop surge. The fifth chapter provides a detailed account of the formation of the Awakening Councils.
The final two chapters, the sixth and seventh, articulate the lessons derived from these extensive military campaigns and analyze the fierce resistance that the forces encountered.
The book has been translated into Arabic by Dr. Qasim Shuaib.
