King's Counsel: A Memoir of War, Espionage, and Diplomacy in the Middle East

King's Counsel: A Memoir of War, Espionage, and Diplomacy in the Middle East by O'Connell, Jack. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9780393063349.

A CIA station chief, later Jordans lawyer in Washington, reveals the secret history of a lost peace. Jack OConnell possessed an uncanny ability to be at the center of things. On his arrival in Jordan in 1958, he unraveled a coup aimed at the young King Hussein, who would become Americas most reliable Middle East ally. Over time, their bond of trust and friendship deepened. His narrative contains secrets that will revise our understanding of the Middle East. In 1967, OConnell tipped off Hussein that Israel would invade Egypt the next morning. Later, as Husseins Washington counselor, OConnell learned of Henry Kissingers surprising role in the Yom Kippur War. The books leitmotif is betrayal. Hussein, the Middle Easts only bona fide peacemaker, wanted simply the return of the West Bank, seized in the Six-Day War. Despite American promises, the clear directive of UN Resolution 242, and the years of secret negotiations with Israel, that never happened. Husseins dying wish was that OConnell tell the unknown story in this book.