The Al Qaeda Reader (Hardcover)

~ Raymond Ibrahim (Editor)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

The global war on terror is not just a military conflict but a war of ideas. Indeed it is in some respects primarily an ideological struggle.  Yet it is a war we cannot win without a broader understanding of al-Qaeda's goals and motives.

What do our enemies believe?  What motivates their war against the West?  What is their vision of the ideal Islamic society?  Surprisingly, more than five years after 9/11, there is very little understanding of these questions. 

Despite our tendency to dismiss Islamic extremism as profoundly irrational, al-Qaeda is not without a coherent body of beliefs.  Like other totalitarian movements, the movement’s leaders have rationalized their brutality in a number of published treatises.  Now, for the first time, The Al Qaeda Reader gathers together the essential texts and documents that trace the origin, history, and evolution of the ideas of al-Qaeda founders Ayman al-Zawahiri and Osama bin Laden. 

This extraordinary collection of the key texts of the al-Qaeda movement—including incendiary materials never before translated into English—lays bare the minds, motives, messages, and ultimate goals of an enemy bent on total victory. Al-Qaeda’s chilling ideology calls for a relentless jihad against non-Muslim "infidels," repudiates democracy in favor of Islamic law, stresses the importance of martyrdom, and mocks the notion of "moderate" Islam.

Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of these works is how grounded they are in the traditional sources of Islamic theology: the Koran and the teachings of the Prophet. The founders of al-Qaeda use these sources as powerful weapons of persuasion, reminding followers (and would-be recruits) that Muhammad and his warriors spread Islam through the power of the sword and that the Koran is not merely allegory or history but literal truth that commands all Muslims to action.

In addition to laying bare al-Qaeda’s ultimate motives, The Al Qaeda Reader includes the organization’s propagandist speeches, which are directed primarily at Americans, Europeans, and Iraqis. Here, al-Qaeda’s many "official" accusations against the West are meticulously delineated, from standard complaints such as the Palestinian issue and Iraq to wholly unexpected ones concerning the U.S.’s exploitation of women and the environment.

Taken together, the Theology and Propaganda sections of this volume reveal the most comprehensive picture of al-Qaeda to date. They also highlight the double-speak of bin Laden and Zawahiri, who often say one thing to Muslims in their religious treatises ("We must hate and fight the West because Islam commands it") and another in their propaganda directed at the West ("The West is the aggressor and we are fighting back merely in self-defense").

Westerners from across the political spectrum will be fascinated and enlightened by The Al Qaeda Reader’s insights into the nature of Islamic texts and the ways in which al-Qaeda has used these texts to manufacture hatred against our civilization and our way of life.

About the Author

Raymond Ibrahim is a historian of the Middle East and Islam. He works for the Near East section of the African and Middle Eastern division of the Library of Congress, where he discovered many of the never-before-translated Arabic texts that make up the bulk of The Al-Qaeda Reader.


From the Trade Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Doubleday; 1 edition (August 7, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 038551655X
• ISBN-13: 978-0385516556
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #20,213 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

64 of 67 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not to be missed!, September 15, 2007

By	JSpangler "CALGal" (Silicon Valley, CA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Al Qaeda Reader (Paperback)

I'm just blown away when somebody creates a product, in this case a book, that so perfectly fits the requirements of its time.
I picture 302 million Americans turning to each other on 9/11/2001 and saying, "What?" "Al WHAT? The U.S. is the 'Great Satan'? What are these people talking about? What do they think we've done to them? What kind of religion encourages suicide & mass destruction?
"The Koran says people of different religions can live together. It says suicide is forbidden. It says not to kill women and children in war. It talks about kindness, taking care of the poor, and always considering the ethics of one's behavior. How, then, do they justify committing suicide, blowing themselves up in the midst of crowds of women, children, innocent bystanders, and fellow Moslims in the process?
"What in the WORLD is going on here?"
This book homes in on the basic thinking of al Qaeda and the Jihadists--how they justify their actions according to the basic texts of their religion, even though many other Moslems disagree with their interpretation.
What's fascinating is how logical they are. They are not irrational. Theirs is a very legalistic religion in which every possible human action is categorized according to the Koran and the Hadith--bad or good! We know from experience that basic humane attitudes tend to lose their power when excessively legalistic thinking takes over.
What a relief to get some answers to the questions we've been asking ourselves and each other for the past 6 years.

73 of 83 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A brave effort., August 10, 2007

By	Sivakumar Nadarajah "Author of America Misund... - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Al Qaeda Reader (Paperback)

I'm not writing this review to comment on the believes and interpretations of Islam. That's a whole another topic for discussion. Nor does Raymond Ibrahim's collection represents every Muslim's believes and values. In my humble opinion, "The Al Qaeda Reader" should be appreciated and viewed from a completely different angle.

First of all, I'm very pleased that the text has been presented "as is", without any alternations. Although I'm not sure how much originality has been lost in translation, the book gives us something raw and fresh to absorb and digest.

Al Qaeda's careful manipulation of selected Islamic theologies is a sad truth, not only for the west, but also for those Muslims who would like to live a peaceful life. If a religious text tells you to kill someone, then it cannot be a treated as noble. Ancient Hindu traditions asked people to drink cow's Urine. According to medical definitions, Urine is a fluid produced by the kidneys. It consists of excess water and the toxic waste products from food. You are not supposed to consume it. My grandparents drank it. My father questioned it. I now ridicule it.

Religious text and definitions should be interpreted and absorbed with sanity. Things written thousands of years ago cannot be applied to present times.

"The Al Qaeda Reader" is a brave effort. Raymond Ibrahim's effort shouldn't be considered as an insult to Islam. The book's greatest value may be to encourage moderate Muslims to read it, and more importantly, make sure their children understand that Islam is much more peaceful than what is depicted by Al Qaeda and its cronies.

N,Sivakumar
Author of: America Misunderstood: What a Second Bush Victory Meant to the Rest of the World

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Required reading , December 20, 2007

By	deep "thinker" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Al Qaeda Reader (Paperback)

As Sun Tzu in his 'Art of War' said: to win a war, know your enemy. To win the 'war on terror', this book would be on my list of required reading. Some generals during the Vietnam war didn't know about the tunnel warfare or choose to ignore them as insignificant, Hitler's Mein-Kamph and Mao's Red book were ignored as rubbish. Unfortunately, in the same vein, the 1400 year history of Muslim onslaught, starting from Mecca-Medina in Saudi-Arabia and spreading to all corners of the world, is not studied. The experience of peoples who fought against the Muslim onslaught for centuries and are still fighting, is not utilized and learned from. e.g. there are many Indian authors who have written a number of well researched books that are ignored.

Through sources such as this book and others, one would discover a lot of important information. e.g. in no particular order:
1) Same or similar strategies and tactics were used over and over again for 1400 years.
2) One would be surprised and find a simple and straightforward Muslim declaration that 'war is deception'. Considering this, everything we hear or read becomes suspect, specially: treaties, promises, safe-passages, proclamations of being brothers-in-arms, excuses for non-performance and such.
3) Everything is part of war: One would be surprised to see how various distinct elements of life are fused tightly together in Islam : religion, war to convert every non-Muslim to Islam (jihad), politics, finance, business, law etc.
4) Our practices such as: spending huge resources on trying to catch specific terrorists or getting into the cycle of tit-for-tat killing (10 terrorists for 10 innocent people killed by them) - these are exercises in futility. Such actions have not stopped the terrorist activities or changed their minds. One can come to this kind of awakenings only after 'knowing' the enemy. 1.e. the real responsibility lies with Umma (community, nation) and Ulema (learned ones, clergy). Absolutely nothing moves without express approval of (often a precedent is shown) Koran (the book) or Hadith (tradition & deeds of Muhammad) or sharia (Muslim law) and is sanctioned or quite often demanded (fatwa) by the Ulema (clergy).

There is much more.. may be I should write a book :)
So, get this book - and read it slowly over days.