Despite the saturation of global media coverage, Osama bin Laden's own writings have been curiously absent from analysis of the "war on terror." Over the last ten years, bin Laden has issued a series of carefully tailored public statements, from interviews with Western and Arabic journalists to faxes and video recordings. These texts supply evidence crucial to an understanding of the bizarre mix of Quranic scholarship, CIA training, punctual interventions in Gulf politics and messianic ant...

It took a quarter-century of bad strategy, including more than a dozen years of Western air attacks and invasions in the Middle East, to bring the so-called "Islamic State" into existence. Can we somehow manage to avoid the well-trodden path of overreacting to the provocations of Islamist extremists?With the rise of ISIS, a new style of terrorism that publicly gloats over acts of extreme cruelty has reawakened the fears of the global audience. But in Don't Pani...

He stands only 5-foot-4 and smiles incessantly. But behind that charismatic persona beats the heart of a genocidal terrorist.Meet the World’s Most Dangerous ManIn his provocative, well-researched exposé of Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, prophecy expert Mark Hitchcock unveils the insidious agenda behind this radical Shiite’s regime:Ahmadinejad plans to hasten the return of the Islamic messiahby ushering in his vision of the apo...

This book is essential reading for anyone who desires a complete, balanced view of Islam beyond what appears on the nightly news, Written from a western Christian viewpoint, but with a detailed first-hand knowledge of Muslim life, Islam: Its Prophet, Peoples, Politics, and Power digs deep beneath the surface to reveal Islam as a rich, proud and powerful force in world affairs. Though Dr. Braswell's book is thorough and scholarly, his personal experiences and insights make it a practical tr...

Following his #1 New York Times bestseller, Our Endangered Values, the former president, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, offers an assessment of what must be done to bring permanent peace to Israel with dignity and justice to Palestine.President Carter, who was able to negotiate peace between Israel and Egypt, has remained deeply involved in Middle East affairs since leaving the White House. He has stayed in touch with the major players from all ...

Demystifies the area's culture, politics, and religionsExplore Middle Eastern history from ancient to modern timesLooking to better understand the Middle East? This plain-English guide explains the importance of the region, especially in light of recent events. You'll meet its people and their leaders, discover the differences and similarities between Arab and Western mindsets, and examine the wars and conflicts - including the Israeli-Palestinian turmoil - that led up to t...

'A powerful corrective' Guardian'This should be compulsory reading' Peter Frankopan, author of The Silk Roads**'**For anyone interested in the future of Islam, both in Britain and the Islamic world, this is an important book' The TimesThe gulf between Islam and the West is widening. A faith rich with strong values and traditions, observed by nearly two billion people is seen by the West as...

The new Israeli government headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly declared that a primary foreign policy objective is to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons capability.Israel is a "one-bomb state," such that one atomic weapon, even a relatively low-yield bomb of the type the United States dropped on Hiroshima or Nagasaki in World War II, would destroy the modern Jewish state as we know it today.The Obama administration has repeatedly declared the...

This award-winning study traces the shifting relations between Israel, Iran, and the U.S. since 1948—including secret alliances and treacherous acts.Vitriolic exchanges between the leaders of Iran and Israel are a disturbingly common feature of the news cycle. But the real roots of their enmity mystify Washington policymakers, leaving no promising pathways to stability. In Treacherous Alliance, U.S. foreign policy expert Trita Parsi untangles to complex and...

In a move that would forever alter the map of the Middle East, Israel captured the West Bank, Golan Heights, Gaza Strip and Sinai Peninsula in 1967's brief but pivotal Six Day War. CURSED VICTORY is the first complete history of the war's troubled aftermath - a military occupation of the Palestinian territories that is now well into its fifth decade.Drawing on unprecedented access high-level sources, top-secret memos and never-before-published letters, the book provides a gripping ...

The 1400-year-old schism between Sunnis and Shi`is has rarely been as toxic as it is today, feeding wars and communal strife in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Pakistan, Afghanistan and many other countries, with tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran escalating. In this richly layered and engrossing account, John McHugo reveals how this great divide occurred. Charting the story of Islam from the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad to the present day, he describes the conflicts that raged over the succes...

**SUNDAY TIMES AND GUARDIAN BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2017'Comprehensive and compelling ... A nuanced, landmark study that has deservedly won plaudits from both Palestinian and Israeli historians' Justin Marozzi, The Times**A century after Britain's Balfour Declaration promised a Jewish 'national home' in Palestine, veteran Guardian journalist Ian Black has produced a major new history of one of the most polarising conflicts of the modern age.