Occupational Hazards

Rory Stewart, then a young British diplomat, was appointed as the Coalition Provisional Authority's deputy governor of a province of 850,000 people in the southern marshland region. There, he and his colleagues confronted gangsters, Iranian-linked politicians, tribal vendettas and a full Islamist insurgency. Occupational Hazards is Rory Stewart's inside account of the attempt to rebuild a nation, the errors made, the misunderstandings and insurmountable difficulties encountered. It reveals an Iraq hidden from most foreign journalists and soldiers, offering a rare and compelling insight that remains just as important today. A fascinating look into the complexity, history and unpredictability of Iraq, from the bestselling author of Politics on the Edge and host of hit podcast The Rest Is Politics.