The opinions and conclusions expressed in this book are solely my own. They were made possible both through numerous meetings and the support and help of people without which this book would never have seen the light of day. My thanks go first to Jamal Daniel for sharing his expertise in questions about energy and the Middle East, as well as his analysis of the future of an integrated Levant where he believes all Levantines are inextricably linked by a shared cultural identity. My colleagues Bernard Rougier, Fabrice Balanche, Luluwa al-Rachid, Franck Debié, and Alexandre Kazerouni reviewed all or part of the manuscript at different stages and imparted to me comments, questions, and convictions informed by their familiarity with the subject matter. I also benefited in a most valuable way from the material and moral support by the Mediterranean and Middle East Program at the École Normale Supérieure in Paris, especially from Hugo Micheron and Damien Saverot, who spared neither their availability nor their enthusiasm. The monthly seminar ”Violence and Dogma,” held since the fall of 2015 at ENS with the participation of many academics, both French and foreign, served as the benchmark for several of the hypotheses I formulated in this book. My gratitude goes also to Mohamad-Ali Amir-Moezzi and to Héla Ouardi for our fruitful exchanges. I had the opportunity of testing in real time the progress of individual chapters while teaching in 2017–2018 the course “Middle East Crises” as part of the Middle East Freethinking Platform that I head at Università della Svizzera Italiana in Lugano (Switzerland). I am most grateful to its rector, Professor Boas Erez, for having offered me this teaching post, to Mme Maria-Cristina Reinhart, the platform’s administrator, and my colleague Dr. Federica Frediani for organizing and supporting the seminar.
To the authorities of the countries I visited to gather the material for this work’s last part—Palestine, Israel, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Turkey, and Russia—I herewith express my thanks for facilitating my travels. In Jerusalem, Munib al-Masri and Sari Nusseibeh, as usual, illuminated for me the situation in the Holy Land. In Tel Aviv, Itamar Rabinovitch helped me understand the challenges for Israeli policies. In Tunis, Brigitte Curmi, Badr Uali, and Khayam Turki shared their knowledge of Libya and Tunisia with me. In Saudi Arabia, François Gouyette, Christian Robin, and the teams of the Misk Foundation helped me understand the important changes happening there. In Iraq, under difficult circumstances, I had the great pleasure of conversing with Mr. Yassir Abdulhussein at the Institute of Foreign Affairs, at the Al-Nahrain Center around Mr. Safa al-Sheikh, and at the University of Mosul under the auspices of my colleague Professor Mohammed Zuhair Zaidan. In Erbil and in Nineveh, my friend Fr. Najeeb Mikhail miraculously found ways for me to get around, and Msgr Butros Mucheh extended his precious hospitality to me at the Karakosh Seminary. Without Luluwa al-Rachid, I would have been blind and deaf in this country whose complexities she masters like no one else. In Istanbul and Ankara, M. Ahmet Davutoğlu was kind enough to talk at length with me about his years in government. I also benefited from analyses shared with me by officials in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as by experts in the major think tanks with links to the Ministry. Finally, in Moscow, Mr. Igor Delanoe and my colleague, Professor Vitaly Naumkin, director of the Institute of Oriental Studies, both favored me with their knowledge—in continuity with the interview the late Yevgeny Primakov had granted me in 2014.
I also benefited from interviews with several incumbent political leaders, whom I thank for making time for me.
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Finally, I am pleased to express my gratitude to the cultural and diplomatic services of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. At all times, they very graciously facilitated my contacts and my movements whenever the need arose. Privilege or fact of life in the drama of the age—a number of individuals posted in the Middle East region and the Mediterranean, or who follow their current events, were my classmates—the most senior levels—or my former students. As this book traces the past with ink on paper, finding living testimonials from it in the present and for the future gives me profound joy.