Table of Contents

Introduction: #WorldWarIII

1  A Life on the Margins

2  A Young Man in the City

3  To Guard a Revolution

4  “A Gift from the Heavens”

5  War Makes Man

6  No Islamism in One Country

7  A Chalice Full of Poison

8  An “Unwritten Pact”

9  We Protect the Shrines

10  Busy in Beirut

11  Islamic Awakening, Sectarian Degeneration

12  Black Flags, White Flags

Epilogue: The Endgame

Timeline

Acknowledgments

A Note on Sources

Bibliography

Notes

Index

Promotional Information

Reveals how Qassem Soleimani became the military mastermind who established Iran as a major power in the Middle East

About the Author

Arash Azizi is a historian at New York University where he researches the transnational links that tied Iran and the Arab world during the Cold War. He has written for numerous publications, including the New York Times, Washington Post, Guardian and Vanity Fair, and several of his book-length translations have appeared in Iran and elsewhere. He lives in New York City. @arash_tehran

Reviews

‘An important book about one of the Middle East’s most charismatic and powerful men in recent years.’
*Middle East Monitor*

‘This energetic account sheds more light on Soleimani’s character and his relationships with [Ayatollah] Ali Khamenei…and [Hezbollah’s] Nasrallah.’

*The Times*

‘A brilliant primer on the politics of the Islamic Republic and an in-depth study on one of its most famous sons.’
*The New Arab*

‘[A] groundbreaking new biography of the late Qassem Soleimani… Azizi is a skillful interpreter of Soleimani’s moves, and an astute analyst of how Iran’s “living martyr” lied, schemed, and abetted the ugly torture and murder of true revolutionaries and Muslims across the Middle East, and wherever else the IRGC’s reach permitted.’
*Tablet*

‘An excellent contribution to our knowledge of Iran and Soleimani.’
*Kim Ghattas, author of Black Wave*

‘Mr. Arash Azizi…provides one of the most fascinating books of 2020 and one of the most insightful – into not just Soleimani, but also Iran’s foreign and security aims in the Middle East. A story that easily could have descended into hagiography is masterfully told by Mr. Azizi, who weaves one of the richest and most complex tapestries about the region I’ve come across in some time, especially in so short of a book. It is not just a biography of Soleimani, but a biography of modern Iran and its role in the Middle East.’
*Diplomatic Courier*

“The strength of Azizi’s book lies in his achievement in presenting the first written work about Soleymani’s life story… the prose is reader-friendly; the author describes events chronologically and in a straightforward format.”
*Ali Alavi, Senior Teaching Fellow at the School of Oriental and African Studies, Middle East Journal*

‘Extensively researched and drawing on a vast range of sources, this is the definitive account of one of the Middle East’s most powerful, ambitious and enigmatic figures. Essential reading.’
*Christopher Davidson, author of Shadow Wars*

‘A fascinating account of the strengths and weaknesses of the most enigmatic warlord in the Middle East. Azizi skilfully portrays Soleimani’s life and death in the wider context of Iran’s recent history and politics.’
*Anshel Pfeffer, author of Bibi: The Turbulent Life and Times of Benjamin Netanyahu*