Jihad Joe: Americans Who Go to War in the Name of Islam - Hardcover

J. M. Berger

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1597976938 ISBN 13: 9781597976930

Publisher: POTOMAC BOOKS, 2011

Synopsis

They are Americans, and they are mujahideen. Hundreds of men from every imaginable background have walked away from the traditional American dream to volunteer for battle in the name of Islam. Some have taken part in foreign wars that aligned with U.S. interests, while others have carried out violence against Westerners abroad, fought against the U.S. military, and even plotted terrorist attacks on American soil. This story plays out over decades and continents: from the Americans who took part in the siege of Mecca in 1979 through conflicts in Lebanon, Afghanistan, and Bosnia, and continuing today in Afghanistan and Somalia.

Investigative journalist J. M. Berger profiles numerous fighters, including some who joined al Qaeda and others who chose a different path. In these pages he portrays, among others, Abdullah Rashid, who fought the Soviets in Afghanistan; Mohammed Loay Bayazid, who was present at the founding of al Qaeda; Ismail Royer, who fought in Bosnia and Kashmir, then returned to run training camps in the United States; Adam Gadahn, a Jewish Californian who is now al Qaeda’s chief spokesman; and Anwar Awlaki, the Yemeni-American imam with links to 9/11 who is now considered one of the biggest threats to America’s security.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

REVIEW
"Berger's work is detail-packed and focused, and a useful resource for that reason alone. But it is also and specifically the work of someone who has read and talked with and listened to the people he is writing about, and his work carries their voices embedded in his own commentary. It thus joins such works as Jessica Stern's Terror in the Name of God: Why Religious Militants Kill and Mark Juergensmeyer's similarly named and similarly excellent Terror in the Mind of God: The Global Rise of Religious Violence."-Charles Cameron, Zenpundit.com
ADVANCE PRAISE FOR "JIHAD JOE"
"A fascinating journey into the rise, expansion, and future of American jihadism. J. M. Berger goes beyond the Awlaki mania to investigate firsthand the changing nature of the terrorist threat to the United States." -Jean-Charles Brisard, former chief investigator for the 9/11 families' lawsuits
"Jihad Joe is a hell of a book -- authoritatively reported, well sourced, and painstakingly researched. This is required reading for anyone seeking to understand the true nature of the terrorist threat that confronts us. Berger has succeeded in producing a timely work that will tell everyone something they didn't know about the topic, whether they are everyday people or those well versed in the subject." -Josh Meyer, former terrorism/national security reporter, Los Angeles Times, and director of education and outreach, Medill National Security Journalism Initiative, Northwestern University
"A must-read insight into America's Muslim 'holy warriors.' J. M. Berger tracked down the families and former associates of U.S. citizens who turned to jihad and violence, and asked a key question: why? Jihad Joe is meticulously researched and refreshingly free of rhetoric." -David Hebditch, documentary filmmaker and coauthor of How to Stage a Military Coup

About the Author:

J.M. Berger is the author of Extremism (MIT Press, September 2018) and a research fellow with VOX-Pol. An analyst studying extremism, terrorism, propaganda and social media analytical techniques, Berger's previous works include ISIS: The State of Terror, with Jessica Stern, and Jihad Joe: Americans Who Go to War in the Name of Islam.

About this edition

• Publisher: POTOMAC BOOKS
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 1597976938
• ISBN 13: 9781597976930
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 280