The Age Of Sacred Terror

Winner of the 2004 Arthur Ross Book Award from the Council on Foreign Relations From two of the world’s foremost experts on the new terrorism comes the definitive book on the rise of al-Qaeda and America’s efforts to combat the most innovative and dangerous terrorist group ever. Daniel Benjamin and Steven Simon trace the growth of radical Islam from its medieval origins and, drawing on their years of counter-terrorism work at the National Security Council, provide essential insights into the thinking of Usama bin Laden and his followers. With unique authority, they analyze why America was unable to defend itself against this revolutionary threat on September 11, 2001, why bin Laden’s apocalyptic creed is gaining ground in the Islamic world, and what the United States must do to stop the new terror.

Since the Gulf War, three U.S. administrations have tried desperately to negotiate peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Crafted through a series of policy missteps, the tenuous accords have done little except leave Israel compromised and vulnerable while drawing the ire of militant Islamists--culminating in the catastrophic show of force against the West via terrorist attacks on American soil and renewed violence in the West Bank and elsewhere in the Middle East. In "The High Cost of Peace, terrorism expert Yossef Bodansky uncovers the bitter legacy of a peace process that has cost tens of thousands of lives, emboldened such outlaw countries as Iran and Iraq, enriched Arab militaries with billions of U.S. dollars, and mobilized an underground network of terror cells around the globe. He reveals in engrossing detail the political undercurrents and secret deals that have shaped and destabilized the region, the confluence of events leading up to September 11, and the inside story of a dangerous quest for peace that has led to a war unlike any the Middle East has seen before--the details of which rarely make the anti-Israeli-tinged evening news. You will discover: -Why Arafat said in 1972 of the Palestinian aggression against Israel, "Peace for us means the destruction of Israel and nothing else" -How President Clinton's zeal for peace was motivated by his desire to divert national attention away from his domestic scandals, and why his administration completely ignored the growing threat of militant Islamism -What secret preparations and military build-up Saddam Hussein ordered for the next war with, and terrorist strikes against, the United States and Israel -And many more shocking revelations At the heart of the failed peace negotiations is the utopian notion that Israel's militant enemies even want peace. This book proves once and for all how the United States is put in perpetual danger of terrorist attack because of its repeated blunders in dealing with the Arab world and the vital contributions of Israel--America's staunchest ally in this turbulent region--to U.S. security interests. Meanwhile, as many Arab leaders play to American and European news cameras with empty promises of peace, they are secretly conspiring with terrorists to fulfill their ultimate goal: the complete annihilation of the Israeli state.

This is a print on demand edition of a hard to find publication. Examines terrorists¿ involvement in a variety of crimes ranging from motor vehicle violations, immigration fraud, and mfg. illegal firearms to counterfeiting, armed bank robbery, and smuggling weapons of mass destruction. There are 3 parts: (1) Compares the criminality of internat. jihad groups with domestic right-wing groups. (2) Six case studies of crimes includes trial transcripts, official reports, previous scholarship, and interviews with law enforce. officials and former terrorists are used to explore skills that made crimes possible; or events and lack of skill that the prevented crimes. Includes brief bio. of the terrorists along with descriptions of their org., strategies, and plots. (3) Analysis of the themes in closing arguments of the transcripts in Part 2. Illus.

The wars against terror have begun, but it will take some time before the nature and composition of these wars is widely understood. The objective of these wars is not the conquest of territory, or the silencing of any particular ideology, but rather to secure the necessary environment for states to operate according to principles of consent and make it impossible for our enemies to impose or induce states of terror. Terror and Consent argues that, like so many states and civilizations in the past that suffered defeat, we are fighting the last war, with weapons and concepts that were useful to us then but have now been superseded. Philip Bobbitt argues that we need to reforge links that previous societies have made between law and strategy; to realize how the evolution of modern states has now produced a globally networked terrorism that will change as fast as we can identify it; to combine humanitarian interests with strategies of intervention; and, above all, to rethink what 'victory' in such a war, if it is a war, might look like - no occupied capitals, no treaties, no victory parades, but the preservation, protection and defence of states of consent. This is one of the most challenging and wide-ranging books of any kind about our modern world.

Sacred Terror examines the religious elements lurking in horror films. It answers a simple but profound question: When there are so many other scary things around, why is religion so often used to tell a scary story? In this lucid, provocative book, Douglas Cowan argues that horror films are opportune vehicles for externalizing the fears that lie inside our religious selves: of evil; of the flesh; of sacred places; of a change in the sacred order; of the supernatural gone out of control; of death, dying badly, or not remaining dead; of fanaticism; and of the power--and the powerlessness--of religion.

This authoritative work provides an essential perspective on terrorism by offering a rare opportunity for analysis and reflection at a time of ongoing violence, threats, and reprisals. Some of the best international specialists on the subject examine terrorism’s complex history from antiquity to the present day and find that terror, long the weapon of the weak against the strong, is a tactic as old as warfare itself. Beginning with the Zealots of the first century CE, contributors go on to discuss the Assassins of the Middle Ages, the 1789 Terror movement in Europe, Bolshevik terrorism during the Russian Revolution, Stalinism, “resistance” terrorism during World War II, and Latin American revolutionary movements of the late 1960s. Finally, they consider the emergence of modern transnational terrorism, focusing on the roots of Islamic terrorism, al Qaeda, and the contemporary suicide martyr. Along the way, they provide a groundbreaking analysis of how terrorism has been perceived throughout history. What becomes powerfully clear is that only through deeper understanding can we fully grasp the present dangers of a phenomenon whose repercussions are far from over. This updated edition includes a new chapter analyzing the rise of ISIS and key events such as the 2015 Paris attacks.

"Makes the case that America can do a great deal to stem the tide of Islamic terrorism and make itself more secure. But Benjamin and Simon caution that this will require a far-reaching and creative new strategy"--[Source inconnue].