Satish Jacob from Hotel Palestine, Baghdad

by Satish Jacob

Satish Jacobs was the only Indian correspondent in Baghdad during the US-led war to topple the Iraqi President. Saddam Hussein. From Baghdad's Hotel Palestine, Satish's spirited reports were the only eyewitness accounts of the drama of those days on Indian television.

178 pages, Hardcover

First published August 12, 2003

About the author

Satish Jacob began his journalistic career with The Statesman, worked in Ethiopia for eight years, and joined the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) as Mark Tully's assistant in 1978. He has covered the Biafra War, the Middle East War, the collapse of the Janata government and, with Mark Tully, Mrs Gandhi's assassination and the Bhopal gas leak disaster. Jacob also covered the Iraq War and overthrow of the Saddam Hussein government. He recently retired as Deputy Bureau Chief of the BBC in Delhi after 26 years of service.

Reviews

[Isabella · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this book on a whim. The word Palestine on its front cover caught my eye and i just couldn't resist.
And so, i was shell shocked when it utterly blew my mind away. Every page raised a question in my mind. The same question over and over for 171 pages, "WHY IS THIS BOOK NOT WELL KNOWN?"
If i were to give a full blown review right now, i couldn't because my mind is still stuck over the facts this book presented.
I am a sucker for anything history and non-fiction. But THIS BOOK! It opened my eyes to the Saddam Hussein regime and the invasion of Iraq by the American and British forces. The execution is in the form of diary pages written by an Indian journalist who arrived in Baghdad weeks before the war began and stayed through it all, also witnessing the shameful and brutal aftermath.
Its an understatement to say that i loved this book.
And its even less to say that every history and non-fiction buff should read this book.
JUST.READ.IT

[Thomas Seifert · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting chronology of the 2003 invasion from Iraq from the Baghdad vantage point, compelling protagonists, fascinating stories. But the narration is without life, lacks detail and colour. "And then, and then, and then." Because of that, only 2 stars.

[Rachit Malik · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nicely written book, author being a neutral gives a correct account of the war and its ill effect.