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A powerful story of resistance to dictatorship, a fictionalized retelling of the untold history of the Iraqi Leftist and Kurdish insurgency against Saddam Hussein
“The Spider’s Siege is rich and moving, transporting us to a pivotal moment of Iraqi history”—Ahmed Saadawi, author of Frankenstein in Baghdad
The Ansar, the Iraqi communists, and their Kurdish comrades led an insurgency against the brutal political repression of the late 1980s in Iraq, following the end of the war with Iran. Thousands of the Ansar, of all ethnic, religious, and social backgrounds, fled into the mountainous region of Kurdistan, where they joined forces with Kurdish rebels and sheltered in their villages.
Narrated by one of the guerrilla fighters from the heart of the resistance, the army’s impending attack hangs over the men and women in the mountains and as the blockade tightens, the gravity of their situation becomes clear. Many have fled with their families and children in tow and are faced with impossible choices over where to go and how long they can survive under a merciless siege in this harsh terrain.
A tragic and heartbreaking novel written by one of the surviving fighters, The Spider’s Siege unearths a little known, key period of Iraqi history: one of hardship and human struggle, one of sacrifice and determination against all the odds.
“The Spider’s Siege is rich and moving, transporting us to a pivotal moment of Iraqi history: one of resistance to tyranny and the activities of the leftist Ansar movement in the mountains of Iraqi Kurdistan at the end of the Iraq–Iran war. The members of this group are filled with dreams of the struggle against oppression and the defense of the Iraqi people, and these vivid scenes of epic tragedy are set against a rugged terrain and the harsh realities of life.”—Ahmed Saadawi, author of Frankenstein in Baghdad
“A harrowing, epic portrayal of the armed struggle against Saddam Hussein’s persecution of the Kurds in the 1980s . . . The line between reality and fiction is blurred, but the diverse cultures, faiths, beliefs, and languages are fused together to create a sophisticated read.”—ArabLit
“Karim Ketafa, has succeeded in conveying the price paid by young people who resisted tyranny and gave their lives for a human vision of their country’s future.”—Aziz Shaibani, president, Arab American Educational Foundation
“The Spider’s Siege is a captivating narrative of struggle, tragedy, survival against all odds, human forbearance put to the test, and human relationships under strain. The novel is a testimony to the courage of the Ansar and their families, to their camaraderie, endurance, and indomitable spirit.”—Salaam Yousif
“It is not easy to turn the experiences of guerrilla warfare and armed struggle into a novel . . . [Ketafa] successfully conveys this unique experience, resulting in a fine, mature novel, worthy of attention.”—Rai al-Youm
“The author has created a novel that speaks the truth . . . [Ketafa] writes with honesty and candor.”—al-Hewar
“Ketafa crafted this work with literary vision: he blends fact with fiction and skillfully delves deep into the characters . . . he has successfully transformed the historical and the factual into a work of fiction.”—al-Sharq al-Awsat
“Unfolds in a fluid, vibrant language that brings a smile to the reader’s face.”—al-Mothaqaf
“[The Spider’s Siege is] an expansive novel, it immerses the reader in its world, its atmosphere, its characters, and its meticulously documented events. As this intimacy deepens, it forges ever-stronger bonds with the readers, who find themselves searching for the boundary separating their own reality from that of the novel."—Kitabat
“This is a novel that surpasses its modern Arab counterparts in its employment . . . of cinematic techniques."—al-Sabah
"The author successfully transforms the experience of armed struggle and the lives of the Ansar from historical record into fiction, drawing upon his intimate knowledge of that experience and all the human and psychological details entailed."--al-Aalem al-Jadeed
“Ketafa succeeds brilliantly in shaping and developing his vision by tracing the impact of the historical events on those trapped within the siege—their reactions, the contradictions in their perspectives, and the thoughts and emotions stirring in their innermost selves, which frame their attitudes and ultimately determine how they respond to their ordeal.”—Tellskuf
Kareem Ketafa is an Iraqi novelist, short story writer, journalist, and critic. Born in Baghdad in 1961, he now resides in the Netherlands where he works in the field of engineering. He fought in the insurgency against Saddam Hussein’s regime in the 1980s, and The Spider’s Siege, his English-language debut, is a fictionalized account of his experiences.
Jonathan Wright is an award-winning translator. His numerous translations from the Arabic include Ahmed Saadawi’s Frankenstein in Baghdad (shortlisted for the Man Booker International Prize), Hassan Blasim’s The Corpse Exhibition (winner of the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize), Sinan Antoon’s The Book of Collateral Damage, and Ahmed Taibaoui’s The Disappearance of Mr. Nobody (winner of the Naguib Mahfouz Medal for Literature.) He lives in London.