The war on the ground and in the air over Kuwait and Iraq was not the only Gulf War being fought in early 1990. George Bush and Saddam Hussein were also battling for public opinion and for the perception of legitimacy for their actions. In this effort both men as well as their spokespersons appealed to the just war theory of their religious traditions. In this perceptive and wide-ranging book, Kenneth L. Vaux elucidates the great just war traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, evaluating the key events of the war in light of the religious rhetoric used by both sides. From the first stirrings of conflict to its uncertain aftermath, religious and ethical traditions played a major role in winning support not just of the U.S. and Iraqi peoples but of public opinion worldwide. Throughout, Vaux demonstrates the wide gap between the religious rhetoric and the political-military action it has been called on to support. Ethics and the Gulf War is not a typical ethical treatise; Vaux understands ethical reflection to encompass history, philosophy, psychology, ecology, theology, and eschatology. His book is a valuable contribution to the understanding of the Gulf War, and it is lively reading for scholars and laypersons approaching this subject from almost any area of interest.

An introduction to just war ethics -- War chronicle : the ethics of the war over Kuwait -- War ethics in Israel : biblical and modern perspectives -- Islam, Jihad, and Iraq's holy war -- Christian traditions of pacifism and just war -- Secular just war theory -- Justice, peace, and the future of war.