Samuel Helfont
@samuelhelfont.bsky.social
Middle East/International history. Three books on Iraq w/ Oxford UP. One forthcoming w/ Stanford UP. Naval War College@Naval Postgraduate School. PhD@Princeton. Views my own.
https://www.samuelhelfont.com
https://www.samuelhelfont.com
Pinned
Samuel Helfont
@samuelhelfont.bsky.social
· Nov 13
Happy to see things picking up here. I write about Middle Eastern and international history. My two books drew heavily from Iraqi archives. Here is my latest:
global.oup.com/academic/pro...
global.oup.com/academic/pro...
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
Musings On #Iraq Review Samuel Helfont, The Iraq Wars, A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press, 2025 musingsoniraq.blogspot.com/2026/02/revi...
Review Samuel Helfont, The Iraq Wars, A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press, 2025
Samuel Helfont released his third book on Iraq entitled The Iraq Wars, A Very Short Introduction . It is a brief review of...
musingsoniraq.blogspot.com
February 9, 2026 at 4:18 PM
Musings On #Iraq Review Samuel Helfont, The Iraq Wars, A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press, 2025 musingsoniraq.blogspot.com/2026/02/revi...
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
Musings On #Iraq Review Samuel Helfont, The Iraq Wars, A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press, 2025 musingsoniraq.blogspot.com/2026/02/revi...
Review Samuel Helfont, The Iraq Wars, A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press, 2025
Samuel Helfont released his third book on Iraq entitled The Iraq Wars, A Very Short Introduction . It is a brief review of...
musingsoniraq.blogspot.com
February 8, 2026 at 8:57 PM
Musings On #Iraq Review Samuel Helfont, The Iraq Wars, A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press, 2025 musingsoniraq.blogspot.com/2026/02/revi...
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
“The Iraq Wars is only about 150 pages of text and yet it packs a big punch. It adds a depth of analysis to the decades long conflict between the United States and Iraq making it a worthwhile read.” Thanks, Joel!
#Iraq Wars only about 150 pages but has a lot of important info Adds depth to analysis of how Iraq came to dominate US foreign policy for years musingsoniraq.blogspot.com/2026/02/revi...
Review Samuel Helfont, The Iraq Wars, A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press, 2025
Samuel Helfont released his third book on Iraq entitled The Iraq Wars, A Very Short Introduction . It is a brief review of...
musingsoniraq.blogspot.com
February 8, 2026 at 3:08 AM
“The Iraq Wars is only about 150 pages of text and yet it packs a big punch. It adds a depth of analysis to the decades long conflict between the United States and Iraq making it a worthwhile read.” Thanks, Joel!
“The Iraq Wars is only about 150 pages of text and yet it packs a big punch. It adds a depth of analysis to the decades long conflict between the United States and Iraq making it a worthwhile read.” Thanks, Joel!
#Iraq Wars only about 150 pages but has a lot of important info Adds depth to analysis of how Iraq came to dominate US foreign policy for years musingsoniraq.blogspot.com/2026/02/revi...
Review Samuel Helfont, The Iraq Wars, A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press, 2025
Samuel Helfont released his third book on Iraq entitled The Iraq Wars, A Very Short Introduction . It is a brief review of...
musingsoniraq.blogspot.com
February 8, 2026 at 3:08 AM
“The Iraq Wars is only about 150 pages of text and yet it packs a big punch. It adds a depth of analysis to the decades long conflict between the United States and Iraq making it a worthwhile read.” Thanks, Joel!
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
How did a Yemeni militia become one of Tehran's most powerful proxies? @osto.bsky.social and @thomasjuneau.bsky.social analyze the rise of the Houthis on the latest episode of The Iran Reckoning. (Members Only)
Listen here: warontherocks.com/ep...
Listen here: warontherocks.com/ep...
November 3, 2025 at 8:20 PM
How did a Yemeni militia become one of Tehran's most powerful proxies? @osto.bsky.social and @thomasjuneau.bsky.social analyze the rise of the Houthis on the latest episode of The Iran Reckoning. (Members Only)
Listen here: warontherocks.com/ep...
Listen here: warontherocks.com/ep...
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
Always great to see it out in the wild! #aha @academic.oup.com
January 9, 2026 at 11:40 PM
Always great to see it out in the wild! #aha @academic.oup.com
Always great to see it out in the wild! #aha @academic.oup.com
January 9, 2026 at 11:40 PM
Always great to see it out in the wild! #aha @academic.oup.com
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
This is my first deliberately academic read of 2026, and so far my thought is to tell students researching related topics that this is their essential orientation #Iraq
I had a great time speaking with Miranda Melcher @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social about “The Iraq Wars: A Very Short Introduction.” @academic.oup.com
newbooksnetwork.com/the-iraq-wars
newbooksnetwork.com/the-iraq-wars
January 5, 2026 at 7:36 PM
This is my first deliberately academic read of 2026, and so far my thought is to tell students researching related topics that this is their essential orientation #Iraq
See everyone there!
Headed to Chicago this week? Check out these panels made by and for @shafrhistorians.bsky.social #AHA2026
January 4, 2026 at 7:25 PM
See everyone there!
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
I am looking forward to assigning @samuelhelfont.bsky.social's "The Iraq Wars" from @academic.oup.com in a class on the subject during the spring semester. I used a couple "A Very Short Introduction" books this fall & they worked well & were well received by students.
global.oup.com/academic/pro...
global.oup.com/academic/pro...
December 28, 2025 at 5:36 PM
I am looking forward to assigning @samuelhelfont.bsky.social's "The Iraq Wars" from @academic.oup.com in a class on the subject during the spring semester. I used a couple "A Very Short Introduction" books this fall & they worked well & were well received by students.
global.oup.com/academic/pro...
global.oup.com/academic/pro...
Thanks Michael!
Great interview of @samuelhelfont.bsky.social about his new book "The Iraq Wars: A Very Short Introduction" with @oxunipress.bsky.social on the @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social.
pocketcasts.com/podcast/new-...
pocketcasts.com/podcast/new-...
Samuel Helfont, "The Iraq Wars: A Very Short Introduction" (Oxford UP, 2025)
pocketcasts.com
December 28, 2025 at 5:09 AM
Thanks Michael!
I had a great time speaking with Miranda Melcher @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social about “The Iraq Wars: A Very Short Introduction.” @academic.oup.com
newbooksnetwork.com/the-iraq-wars
newbooksnetwork.com/the-iraq-wars
December 28, 2025 at 5:09 AM
I had a great time speaking with Miranda Melcher @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social about “The Iraq Wars: A Very Short Introduction.” @academic.oup.com
newbooksnetwork.com/the-iraq-wars
newbooksnetwork.com/the-iraq-wars
Did anyone else get an email about the Anthropic settlement?
December 2, 2025 at 11:59 AM
Did anyone else get an email about the Anthropic settlement?
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
Happy news: My new book -- Humanitarianism: A Very Short Introduction -- now has a cover and is available for preorder! The book is a concise history of humanitarianism in an international and global perspective, from the 18th century to the present. More info here: global.oup.com/academic/pro...
November 10, 2025 at 5:16 PM
Happy news: My new book -- Humanitarianism: A Very Short Introduction -- now has a cover and is available for preorder! The book is a concise history of humanitarianism in an international and global perspective, from the 18th century to the present. More info here: global.oup.com/academic/pro...
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
Lisa Blaydes et Samuel Helfont (eds.) - Ba‘thist Iraq Through Archives
Reflections, Explorations, and Opportunities
À paraître en juin aux Stanford UP
Reflections, Explorations, and Opportunities
À paraître en juin aux Stanford UP
October 22, 2025 at 7:47 PM
Lisa Blaydes et Samuel Helfont (eds.) - Ba‘thist Iraq Through Archives
Reflections, Explorations, and Opportunities
À paraître en juin aux Stanford UP
Reflections, Explorations, and Opportunities
À paraître en juin aux Stanford UP
It’s being read by someone named Tom Campbell. If you click on his name, you can hear samples of the other books he has narrated. Sounds pretty good to me! www.audible.com/pd/The-Iraq-...
October 20, 2025 at 1:25 AM
It’s being read by someone named Tom Campbell. If you click on his name, you can hear samples of the other books he has narrated. Sounds pretty good to me! www.audible.com/pd/The-Iraq-...
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
Very proud to have a chapter examining Kurdish and Iraqi attempts to claim human rights violations in the '90s in "Ba'thist Iraq Through Archives," coming June 2026 from @stanfordpress.bsky.social, edited by @samuelhelfont.bsky.social & @lisablaydes.bsky.social www.sup.org/books/histor...
Ba‘thist Iraq Through Archives | Stanford University Press
The opening of Iraq's Ba'th Party archives revolutionized the study of Iraqi politics and history, offering scholars unprecedented access to the inner workings of one of the world's most impenetrable ...
www.sup.org
October 16, 2025 at 9:30 PM
Very proud to have a chapter examining Kurdish and Iraqi attempts to claim human rights violations in the '90s in "Ba'thist Iraq Through Archives," coming June 2026 from @stanfordpress.bsky.social, edited by @samuelhelfont.bsky.social & @lisablaydes.bsky.social www.sup.org/books/histor...
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
I had the pleasure of reading a draft: it’s outstanding!!!
I am happy to announce the publication of my latest book
The Iraq Wars: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press).
amazon.com/Iraq-Wars-Shor…
An audio-book version is scheduled for release in December.
The Iraq Wars: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press).
amazon.com/Iraq-Wars-Shor…
An audio-book version is scheduled for release in December.
October 16, 2025 at 5:55 PM
I had the pleasure of reading a draft: it’s outstanding!!!
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
Can’t wait to read.
October 16, 2025 at 5:48 PM
Can’t wait to read.
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
I am happy to announce the publication of my latest book
The Iraq Wars: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press).
amazon.com/Iraq-Wars-Shor…
An audio-book version is scheduled for release in December.
The Iraq Wars: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press).
amazon.com/Iraq-Wars-Shor…
An audio-book version is scheduled for release in December.
October 15, 2025 at 11:13 PM
I am happy to announce the publication of my latest book
The Iraq Wars: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press).
amazon.com/Iraq-Wars-Shor…
An audio-book version is scheduled for release in December.
The Iraq Wars: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press).
amazon.com/Iraq-Wars-Shor…
An audio-book version is scheduled for release in December.
I am happy to announce the publication of my latest book
The Iraq Wars: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press).
amazon.com/Iraq-Wars-Shor…
An audio-book version is scheduled for release in December.
The Iraq Wars: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press).
amazon.com/Iraq-Wars-Shor…
An audio-book version is scheduled for release in December.
October 15, 2025 at 11:13 PM
I am happy to announce the publication of my latest book
The Iraq Wars: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press).
amazon.com/Iraq-Wars-Shor…
An audio-book version is scheduled for release in December.
The Iraq Wars: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press).
amazon.com/Iraq-Wars-Shor…
An audio-book version is scheduled for release in December.
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
Glad to see this important volume come to fruition- kudos to @lisablaydes.bsky.social & @samuelhelfont.bsky.social for putting us all in conversation with each other. Thrilled to have co-authored a critical chapter with @marsin.bsky.social on archival access & hierarchies of knowledge production
Coming from @stanfordpress.bsky.social in the summer of 2026! @lisablaydes.bsky.social and I edited a book "Ba'thist Iraq through Archives" with a star studded list of contributors!
September 30, 2025 at 1:59 PM
Glad to see this important volume come to fruition- kudos to @lisablaydes.bsky.social & @samuelhelfont.bsky.social for putting us all in conversation with each other. Thrilled to have co-authored a critical chapter with @marsin.bsky.social on archival access & hierarchies of knowledge production
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
Now this looks like a really incredible list of chapters and contributors.
September 30, 2025 at 12:24 AM
Now this looks like a really incredible list of chapters and contributors.
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
Looking forward to this.
Coming from @stanfordpress.bsky.social in the summer of 2026! @lisablaydes.bsky.social and I edited a book "Ba'thist Iraq through Archives" with a star studded list of contributors!
September 30, 2025 at 12:29 AM
Looking forward to this.
Reposted by Samuel Helfont
Woot!
Coming from @stanfordpress.bsky.social in the summer of 2026! @lisablaydes.bsky.social and I edited a book "Ba'thist Iraq through Archives" with a star studded list of contributors!
September 29, 2025 at 11:57 PM
Woot!