Fanar Haddad is a Singapore based analyst of Middle Eastern and Iraqi affairs. He previously lectured at the University of Exeter and has worked extensively on Iraq and the wider region, most recently as an analyst at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

"Haddad should be applauded not only for opening the door on further research on the subject but also for killing off the taboo hanging over sectarianism. Particularly with Syria in mind, shining the light on the relationship between sectarianism and nationalism is a key factor in mitigating and managing potential conflict, something that denying its relevance fails to do."--International Affairs

"Sectarianism in Iraq provides a valuable insight into the complex interactions of social, religious, political, and ideational dynamics that are all too often referred to as being solely responsible for the devastating decline into near-civil war in Iraq in 2006-7. Haddad presents a nuanced, balanced, at times provocative account of why Iraqis of different sectarian colour committed the most atrocious acts against each other, while both maintained a near-identical narrative of their nationalist view. Sectarianism in Iraq is a powerful and insightful analysis of one of the most catastrophic events in modern Iraqi history."--Gareth Stansfield, Professor of Middle East Politics, Director of the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, University of Exeter

"Lucid and intriguing, Fanar Haddad's book crosses the minefield of sectarianism in Iraq with great success. By focusing on sectarian relations, rather than Shiis and Sunnis alone and by analyzing various levels of culture, Haddad ably circumvents the stringencies of the dominant version of Iraqi nationalism and its discourse that silences any attempt to touch the sectarian issue. This vanguard study paves the way for further interpretations of this sensitive subject." --Dr Ronen Zeidel, Director of Research, Center for Iraq Studies, University of Haifa, Israel