Egypt After Nasser: Sadat, Peace, and the Mirage of Prosperity

Lippman describes how Anwar Sadat repudiated the legacy of his predecessor, Gamal Abdel Nasser, restored Egyptian self-esteem after the Six-Day War by his successful attack across the Suez Canal in the 1973 Yom Kippur War and established an international reputation as a stateman with his peacemaking trip to Jerusalem in 1978. The euphoria turned sour, however, as Sadat initiated a one-man rule ``disguised as a manifestation of popular will'' that culminated in a series of laws limiting political opposition and led to a confrontation with Muslim activists and Sadat's assassination in 1981. Lippman, former Cairo bureau chief for the Washington Post , takes a close and not very flattering look at Egypt today; its Rube Goldberg economy, the Malthusian nightmare that is Cairo and its increasing dependence on U.S. assistance. He characterizes the current leader, Hosni Mubarak, as apparently incorruptible but not a systematic thinker or visionary. (Jan.)