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The Blurb On The Back:
New York, Washington, Madrid, London, Paris, and Brussels – the list of Western cities targeted by radical Islamic terrorists waging global jihad continues to grow. Does this extreme violence committed in the name of Islam point to a fundamental enmity between the Muslim faith and the West?
In this compelling essay, leading authority on Islam Tamara Sonn argues that whilst the West has many enemies among Muslims, it is politics not religion that informs their grievances. The longer these demands remain frustrated, the more violence has escalated and recruitment to groups like Islamic State has increased. Far from fuelling the spread of Islamic extremism, Western military intervention has helped to turn nationalist movements into radical terrorist groups with international agendas. Islam, Sonn concludes, is not the problem, just as war is not the solution.
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
Tamara Sonn is a Professor in the History of Islam at Georgetown University and in this essay she sets out the basic tenets driving Al Qaeda and Daesh’s campaign against the West, including a summary of the events governing how they were founded and operate and a brief discussion of how their ideology differs from Islamic teaching. It’s an interesting read and a good summary for those seeking an introduction to the subject but anyone who has been following this in the press won’t find anything new here and while Sonn argues that the terrorists’ beliefs are incompatible with Islam, there is no analysis about whether they are nevertheless deeply and sincerely held beliefs that use some Islamic teaching to support them and nor is there any real mention of the Saudi’s funding of Wahhabism and how that feeds into Daesh recruitment.
Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
New York, Washington, Madrid, London, Paris, and Brussels – the list of Western cities targeted by radical Islamic terrorists waging global jihad continues to grow. Does this extreme violence committed in the name of Islam point to a fundamental enmity between the Muslim faith and the West?
In this compelling essay, leading authority on Islam Tamara Sonn argues that whilst the West has many enemies among Muslims, it is politics not religion that informs their grievances. The longer these demands remain frustrated, the more violence has escalated and recruitment to groups like Islamic State has increased. Far from fuelling the spread of Islamic extremism, Western military intervention has helped to turn nationalist movements into radical terrorist groups with international agendas. Islam, Sonn concludes, is not the problem, just as war is not the solution.
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
Tamara Sonn is a Professor in the History of Islam at Georgetown University and in this essay she sets out the basic tenets driving Al Qaeda and Daesh’s campaign against the West, including a summary of the events governing how they were founded and operate and a brief discussion of how their ideology differs from Islamic teaching. It’s an interesting read and a good summary for those seeking an introduction to the subject but anyone who has been following this in the press won’t find anything new here and while Sonn argues that the terrorists’ beliefs are incompatible with Islam, there is no analysis about whether they are nevertheless deeply and sincerely held beliefs that use some Islamic teaching to support them and nor is there any real mention of the Saudi’s funding of Wahhabism and how that feeds into Daesh recruitment.
Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
