Anatomy of Terror: From the Death of bin Laden to the Rise of the Islamic State
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- $22.99
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- $22.99
Publisher Description
"Anyone who wants to understand the world we live in now should read this book." —Lawrence Wright
To eliminate the scourge of terrorism, we must first know who the enemy actually is, and what his motivations are. In Anatomy of Terror, former FBI special agent and New York Times best-selling author Ali Soufan dissects Osama bin Laden’s brand of jihadi terrorism and its major offshoots, revealing how these organizations were formed, how they operate, their strengths, and—crucially—their weaknesses. This riveting account examines the new Islamic radicalism through the stories of its flag-bearers, including a U.S. Air Force colonel who once served Saddam Hussein, a provincial bookworm who declared himself caliph of all Muslims, and bin Laden’s own beloved son Hamza, a prime candidate to lead the organization his late father founded.
Anatomy of Terror lays bare the psychology and inner workings of al-Qaeda, the Islamic State, and their spawn, and shows how the spread of terror can be stopped.
Winner of the Airey Neave Memorial Book Prize
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Soufan (The Black Banners), a Lebanon-born former FBI special agent who specialized in antiterrorism, takes a deep look at the inner workings, ideology, internal politics, and strategies of modern Islamic terrorism. Based on unclassified sources as well as on detailed knowledge from Soufan's time in the FBI, the book follows the evolution of Islamic terrorism in the post bin Laden era. One of the major points of focus here is the divisions among different terrorist leaders regarding strategy. A primary example concerns those who see the goal of terror as the defeat of the U.S. as compared with those who see their primary purpose as defeating local leaders. Soufan describes how Osama bin Laden's death combined with the rise of the Islamic State to deal a double blow to al-Qaeda. He concludes, however, that the eclipse of al-Qaeda by the Islamic State is only temporary. This is the war on terror as seen from the other side; Soufan covers the backgrounds, families, and personal connections of the top terrorist leaders, and how those relationships influence decisions on strategy and organization. Soufan reveals himself to be a true expert on the subject and this is an important read for understanding these groups' goals and operations.
