PENGUIN BOOKS
AL-QAEDA
‘This young, impassioned journalist has made an important
contribution to the growing literature on al-Qaeda’
Washington Post
‘Based on careful on-the-ground investigation and penetrating
inquiry, this fine study, the most illuminating I know, gives
remarkable insight into Islamic militancy, its root causes, its
evolution and likely future. It is essential reading for anyone who
hopes to understand the “network of networks” loosely termed
Al-Qaeda, and its complex interactions both with the West and
with the societies it intends to reshape. Burke’s achievements are
of particular importance for those who hope not only to
understand but also to seek constructive initiatives to
developments that are sure to cast a long shadow over the
years to come’ Noam Chomsky
‘This book is an eye-opener’ Literary Review
‘A book which vastly increases our understanding of the
al-Qaeda phenomenon. Burke writes with admirable lucidity
and the benefit of his frontline reporting and deep research’
Peter Bergen, author of Holy War, Inc.
‘Fascinating… packed with totally new material’
Gilles Kepel, author of Jihad: The Trail of Political Islam
‘Jason Burke has finally got al-Qaeda right. He has broken the
myth of al-Qaeda as some sort of highly organized and rigidly
centralized jihadist version of the old Comintern, and in the
process laid out the true nature of an increasingly diverse, even
more dangerous islamist menace. Al-Qaeda should be required
reading for those charged with protecting the US homeland,
but who seem to have little notion of the nature of their
adversary’ Milt Bearden, former CIA official and co-author of
The Main Enemy
‘Alarmingly, the most accurate information about Islamic
extremism is coming not from governments nor intelligence
agencies, but from specialist journalists and scholars…To
that list should be added Jason Burke. The most reliable and
perceptive guide to the rise of militant Islam yet published…
full of new and important information, much of it gathered
on the ground. His obvious knowledge of, and affection for,
the people of the region gives his grim message a credibility
lacking in the ranting of so many other commentators on
“Islamic terror”’ William Dalrymple, Observer
‘Jason Burke has undertaken an impressive amount of both
desk and field research to challenge the myth of al-Qaeda as
a monolith orchestrating terrorist activity worldwide’
Peter Marsden, author of The Taliban: War and Religion
in Afghanistan
‘ Al-Qaeda stands out as a beacon of reasoned critical
scholarship; a must-read for anybody with a genuine interest in
an organization that has become a metaphor for the evil of our
times… Burke’s book might even help us understand why the
war on terror risks making things worse’ Australian Age
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jason Burke is the prize-winning Chief Reporter for the London Observer . He has covered the Middle East and southwest Asia for a decade, and saw many of the key events described in this book at first hand. He is also the author of On the Road to Kandahar: Travels through conflict in the Islamic world , published by Penguin.
JASON BURKE
Al-Qaeda
The True Story of Radical Islam
Third Edition
PENGUIN BOOKS
PENGUIN BOOKS
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL , England
Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4P 2Y3
(a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)
Penguin Ireland, 25 St Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland
(a division of Penguin Books Ltd)
Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124, Australia
(a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty Ltd)
Penguin Books India Pvt Ltd, 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi – 110 017, India
Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, North Shore 0632,
AL-QAEDA
‘This young, impassioned journalist has made an important
contribution to the growing literature on al-Qaeda’
Washington Post
‘Based on careful on-the-ground investigation and penetrating
inquiry, this fine study, the most illuminating I know, gives
remarkable insight into Islamic militancy, its root causes, its
evolution and likely future. It is essential reading for anyone who
hopes to understand the “network of networks” loosely termed
Al-Qaeda, and its complex interactions both with the West and
with the societies it intends to reshape. Burke’s achievements are
of particular importance for those who hope not only to
understand but also to seek constructive initiatives to
developments that are sure to cast a long shadow over the
years to come’ Noam Chomsky
‘This book is an eye-opener’ Literary Review
‘A book which vastly increases our understanding of the
al-Qaeda phenomenon. Burke writes with admirable lucidity
and the benefit of his frontline reporting and deep research’
Peter Bergen, author of Holy War, Inc.
‘Fascinating… packed with totally new material’
Gilles Kepel, author of Jihad: The Trail of Political Islam
‘Jason Burke has finally got al-Qaeda right. He has broken the
myth of al-Qaeda as some sort of highly organized and rigidly
centralized jihadist version of the old Comintern, and in the
process laid out the true nature of an increasingly diverse, even
more dangerous islamist menace. Al-Qaeda should be required
reading for those charged with protecting the US homeland,
but who seem to have little notion of the nature of their
adversary’ Milt Bearden, former CIA official and co-author of
The Main Enemy
‘Alarmingly, the most accurate information about Islamic
extremism is coming not from governments nor intelligence
agencies, but from specialist journalists and scholars…To
that list should be added Jason Burke. The most reliable and
perceptive guide to the rise of militant Islam yet published…
full of new and important information, much of it gathered
on the ground. His obvious knowledge of, and affection for,
the people of the region gives his grim message a credibility
lacking in the ranting of so many other commentators on
“Islamic terror”’ William Dalrymple, Observer
‘Jason Burke has undertaken an impressive amount of both
desk and field research to challenge the myth of al-Qaeda as
a monolith orchestrating terrorist activity worldwide’
Peter Marsden, author of The Taliban: War and Religion
in Afghanistan
‘ Al-Qaeda stands out as a beacon of reasoned critical
scholarship; a must-read for anybody with a genuine interest in
an organization that has become a metaphor for the evil of our
times… Burke’s book might even help us understand why the
war on terror risks making things worse’ Australian Age
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jason Burke is the prize-winning Chief Reporter for the London Observer . He has covered the Middle East and southwest Asia for a decade, and saw many of the key events described in this book at first hand. He is also the author of On the Road to Kandahar: Travels through conflict in the Islamic world , published by Penguin.
JASON BURKE
Al-Qaeda
The True Story of Radical Islam
Third Edition
PENGUIN BOOKS
PENGUIN BOOKS
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL , England
Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4P 2Y3
(a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)
Penguin Ireland, 25 St Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland
(a division of Penguin Books Ltd)
Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124, Australia
(a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty Ltd)
Penguin Books India Pvt Ltd, 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi – 110 017, India
Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, North Shore 0632,
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