Middle Eastern Terrorism: From Black September to September 11 [Hardcover]

Mark Ensalaco (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0812240464 | ISBN-13: 978-0812240467 | Publication Date: November 30, 2007

Selected by Choice magazine as an Outstanding Academic Title

Since the first airplane hijacking by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine in September 1970, Middle Eastern terrorists have sacrificed innocent human lives in the name of ideology. From Black September to the Munich Olympics, to the embassy bombing in Beirut, to the devastating attacks of September 11 and beyond, terrorism has emerged as the most important security concern of our time.

"Where did this come from?" Inspired by a student's question on the morning of September 11, 2001, Mark Ensalaco has written a thoroughly researched narrative account of the origins of Middle Eastern terrorism, addressing when and why terrorists started targeting Americans and American interests and what led to the September 11 attacks.

Ensalaco reveals the changing of motivations from secular Palestinian nationalism to militant Islam and demonstrates how competition among terrorists for resources and notoriety has driven them to increasingly extreme tactics. As he argues, terrorist attacks grew from spectacle to atrocity. Drawing on popular works and scholarly sources, Middle Eastern Terrorism tells this story in rich detail and with great clarity and insight.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A must read for everyone."—Journal of American History

"There is little or no work like this available to scholars, teachers, and citizens at a time when an informed public should be engaged in a thoughtful discourse on this matter."—Donna M. Schlagheck, author of International Terrorism: An Introduction to Concepts and Actors

"In a clear, methodical, and conscientiously neutral way, Ensalaco documents the political history of the rise of terrorism in the Middle East. . . . Essential for anyone beginning a study of Middle Eastern terrorism, or as a historical reference."—Choice

About the Author

Mark Ensalaco is Raymond A. Roesch Chair in the Social Sciences at the University of Dayton. CNN Headline News, Reuters, and the Associated Press, among others, have interviewed Ensalaco about terrorism. He is the author of several books, including Chile Under Pinochet: Recovering the Truth, also available from the University of Pennsylvania Press.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 328 pages
• Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press (November 30, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812240464
• ISBN-13: 978-0812240467
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,206,724 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A coherent history that is as timely as it is necessary, March 2, 2008

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Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Middle Eastern Terrorism: From Black September to September 11 (Hardcover)

In one sense, terrorism has been employed as a weapon of both civil and international warfare since the earliest recorded events of human conflicts from the fertile crescent of Ur and Babylonia, to the kingdoms of ancient Egypt. The current expression of terrorism arising in and stemming from the middle east is largely focused on an internecine conflict between competing branches of Islam (principally between the Sunni and the Shia), and the conflict between a fundamentalist Islam and the Western cultural and political influences from the democracies of North American and the former colonial powers of Europe. The terrorism-based warfare that began against the United States and its allies (in both Europe and the Middle East) in the 1970s and evolved into the war against fundamentalist Islamic forces such as those that have attacked Americans at home and abroad directly is the subject and focus of "Middle Eastern Terrorism: From Black September to September 11" by academician and historian Mark Ensalaco (holder of the Raymond A Roesch Chair in the Social Sciences, University of Dayton) and is a vital contribution of the history of the violence that has ensued between hostile Islamic forces against the West, including its origins in American support for dictatorial suppressive governments of Middle Eastern countries as part of the Cold War confrontation between American and the Soviet Union, the Palestinian/Israel conflict, and the American/European corporate exploitation of Middle Eastern resources. Professor Ensalaco offers cogent insights and a coherent history that is as timely as it is necessary in light of the continuing and expanding terrorist-based violence seen today on the international stage. Also very highly recommended for both academic and community library collections from the University of Pennsylvania Press is "Leaderless Jihad: Terror Networks In The Twenty-First Century" (9780812240658) by forensic psychiatrist and government counter-terrorism consultant Marc Sageman.