In 2003, Moises Saman was in Iraq as a photojournalist covering the US-led invasion and occupation. Glad Tidings of Benevolence, published by GOST Books in 2023 to mark the twentieth anniversary of the war, brings together photographs Saman took in Iraq during this period and the following years, alongside documents and texts relating to the conflict. The book examines how competing narratives of the war are constructed through image and language, and it represents the culmination of Saman’s twenty years of work across Iraq.

Saman’s photographs are central to the volume, but the inclusion of archival material and written documents expands its frame. A preface by Sinan Antoon provides one perspective among others. Together, the materials raise questions about the complex representation of war, competing narratives, and the truths buried within the clamour—at a time when the war is beginning to recede from global public memory. The book’s 384 pages allow for an extended sequence, giving the visual and textual material room to interact.

Published as a softback edition of 384 pages, Glad Tidings of Benevolence is a substantial object. Its significance lies in its sustained attention to a conflict that, as the publisher notes, is beginning to recede from public memory. Saman’s long-term commitment—two decades of work across Iraq—produces a body of images that resist the episodic nature of news coverage. The combination of photographs with documents and texts makes the book an inquiry into how war is represented and remembered, rather than a conventional retrospective.

Please note that the publisher indicates this book contains graphic imagery.