After the attack on the World Trade Centre on September 11 last
year, the American reaction was one of horror - and confusion. 'Why
do they hate us?' was the question that one heard over and over
again. Many ordinary citizens had little idea of why the attacks
happened, and the simplistic attitude of many in the media,
painting Osama Bin Laden as a cartoon bad guy who was envious of
American economic success, did little to enlighten them. In fact,
the writing was on the wall a long time before September 11: the
attack on the Twin Towers was merely another stage in a battle that
had been going on for centuries, and which had gathered pace over
the four years or so leading up to 2001, and was entirely,
depressingly predictable to experts in the field of Islamic
fundamentalism. It is fascinating to read the analysis of such an
expert. Dilip Hiro, author of more than 20 books, has provided a
comprehensive historical analysis of the religious and political
influences which have led to the ongoing 'War on Terror'. He takes
an even-handed and factual approach, and it is not until the
epilogue that the reader gains any sense of his frustration at the
unilateral and uncompromising stance taken by the United States
leadership. To make sense of the motivation of those who flew the
hijacked airliners into the buildings, and of those who financed
and trained them, Hiro goes right back to basics, tracing the
history of Islam back to the seventh century and providing a wealth
of information on the various schisms that occurred along the way.
He then devotes a chapter each to the rise of fundamentalism in
three countries - Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan - before
turning his attention to the American campaign in Afghanistan and,
finally, the conflicts in Kashmir and Israel. His style is
extremely readable and authoritative, and the lay reader will
undoubtedly end the book wiser if no more optimistic about the
crisis facing the world at the beginning of the 21st century.
(Kirkus UK)
'The first war of the twenty-first century.' That is how President George W. Bush described the start of the war against terror signaled by the catastrophic terrorist attacks on New York and Washington DC on September 11th 2001. In reality, though, the war against terror began during the Presidency of Bill Clinton in August 1998 when the US responded to the Islamist terrorists' bombing of American Embassies in Nairobi and Dar as Salaam.
This book provides the historical and political context to explain these acts of terror and the West's response. After providing a brief history of Islam as a religion and as socio-political ideology, Dilip Hiro outlines the Islamist movements that have thrived in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan, and their changing relationship with America. It is within this framework that he describes the rising menace of Osama bin Laden and his Al Qaida network.
Hiro examines the Pentagon's amazingly swift victory over the Taliban in Afghanistan. He then discusses the implications of the Bush Doctrine, encapsulated in his declaration, 'so long as anybody is terrorizing established governments, there needs to be a war' - a recipe for war without end.
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