The Conflict of Tribe and State in Iran and Afghanistan

The Conflict of Tribe and State in Iran and Afghanistan

Richard Tapper

Croom Helm

In 1978 and 1979, revolutions in Afghanistan and Iran marked a shift in the balance of power in South West Asia and the world. Shaken by events in Iran and the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, the world has once more been made aware that tribalism is no anachronism in a struggle for political and cultural self-determination.
In Afghanistan the Soviet army is encountering tough opposition from tribesmen, whilst in Iran the onset of the revolution gave the tribes, many of which are separate minority nations, an opportunity to move towards independence. Indeed, Iran is still threatened by the possibility that it may break up into smaller national units. Much new research in this book provides historical and anthropological perspectives necessary to the eventual understanding of the events surrounding the revolutions.

Richard Tapper is a Lecturer in the Department of Anthropology and Sociology at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.