An excellent and very readable book on this in the modern era is "Arabs at War" by Kenneth M. Pollack He examines a number of recent wars in the area of intere

An excellent and very readable book on this in the modern era is "Arabs at War" by Kenneth M. Pollack He examines a number of recent wars in the area of interest and discusses some of the common findings he makes. He also finds a number of situations in which armies in the region are effective; it's not just a hit piece.