Since he was a small boy, Mosab Hassan Yousef has had an inside view of the deadly terrorist group Hamas. The oldest son of Sheikh Hassan Yousef, a founding member of Hamas and its most popular leader, young Mosab assisted his father for years in his political activities while being groomed to assume his legacy, politics, status . . . and power. But everything changed when Mosab turned away from terror and violence, and embraced instead the teachings of another famous Middle East leader. In Son of Hamas, Mosab Yousef—now called “Joseph”—reveals new information about the world’s most dangerous terrorist organization and unveils the truth about his own role, his agonizing separation from family and homeland, the dangerous decision to make his newfound faith public, and his belief that the Christian mandate to “love your enemies” is the only way to peace in the Middle East.
Son of Hamas
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Review
"Son of Hamas, written by Mosab Hassan Yousef and journalist Ron Brackin, is . . . a must-read book and one can only hope it becomes the basis of a major Hollywood motion picture. - Joel Rosenberg
" . . . a fascinating book. I couldn't put it down." - Sean Hannity --Fox News' Hannity
". . . a book more incendiary than any roadside IED . . ." --GQ Magazine
" . . . intriguingly detailed . . ." --Newsweek
" . . . one of the most extraordinary spy stories in history . . ." David Asman, America's Nightly Scoreboard, Fox Business Network
“. . . a Le Carréesque thriller wrapped in a spiritual coming-of-age story . . .” (Matthew Kaminski, The Wall Street Journal )
“reads with the page-turning ease of a great thriller.” (Claudia Rosett, Forbes )
“Explosive . . . a story that feels like a long-lost Abrahamic fable that has morphed into contemporary history.” (David Grant, Christian Science Monitor )
“ . . . more incendiary than any roadside IED” (GQ )
“Fascinating book. I couldn’t put it down.” (Sean Hannity, Fox News )
“ . . . offers a view of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict few others could provide.” (International Fellowship of Christians and Jews )
“The Israelis issued this book as a kind of propaganda.” (Hamas terrorist leader Osama Hamdan, Amanpour, CNN International )
--Amazon
" . . . a fascinating book. I couldn't put it down." - Sean Hannity --Fox News' Hannity
". . . a book more incendiary than any roadside IED . . ." --GQ Magazine
" . . . intriguingly detailed . . ." --Newsweek
" . . . one of the most extraordinary spy stories in history . . ." David Asman, America's Nightly Scoreboard, Fox Business Network
“. . . a Le Carréesque thriller wrapped in a spiritual coming-of-age story . . .” (Matthew Kaminski, The Wall Street Journal )
“reads with the page-turning ease of a great thriller.” (Claudia Rosett, Forbes )
“Explosive . . . a story that feels like a long-lost Abrahamic fable that has morphed into contemporary history.” (David Grant, Christian Science Monitor )
“ . . . more incendiary than any roadside IED” (GQ )
“Fascinating book. I couldn’t put it down.” (Sean Hannity, Fox News )
“ . . . offers a view of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict few others could provide.” (International Fellowship of Christians and Jews )
“The Israelis issued this book as a kind of propaganda.” (Hamas terrorist leader Osama Hamdan, Amanpour, CNN International )
From the Inside Flap
Before the age of twenty-one, Mosab Hassan Yousef saw things no one should ever see: abject poverty, abuse of power, torture, and death.
He witnessed the behind-the-scenes dealings of top Middle Eastern leaders who make headlines around the world. He was trusted at the highest levels of Hamas and participated in the Intifada. He was held captive deep inside Israel’s most feared prison facility. His dangerous choices and unlikely journey through dark places made him a traitor in the eyes of people he loves—and gave him access to extraordinary secrets. On the pages of this book, he exposes events and processes that to this point have been known only by a handful of individuals. . . .
Mosab Hassan (“Joseph”) Yousef is the son of Sheikh Hassan Yousef, a founding leader of Hamas, internationally recognized as a terrorist organization and responsible for countless suicide bombings and other deadly attacks against Israel. An integral part of the movement, Mosab was imprisoned several times by the Israeli internal intelligence service. After a chance encounter with a British tourist, he started a six-year quest that jeopardized Hamas, endangered his family, and threatened his life. He has since embraced the teachings of Jesus and sought political asylum in America.
Ron Brackin has traveled extensively in the Middle East as an investigative journalist. He was in Bethlehem, Ramallah, Gaza, and Jerusalem during the Al-Aqsa Intifada. He was on assignment in Baghdad after the fall of Iraq and more recently with the rebels and refugees of southern Sudan and Darfur. He has contributed articles and columns to many publications, including USA Today and the Washington Times. Ron served as a broadcast journalist and a congressional press secretary in Washington after graduating from the University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism.
He witnessed the behind-the-scenes dealings of top Middle Eastern leaders who make headlines around the world. He was trusted at the highest levels of Hamas and participated in the Intifada. He was held captive deep inside Israel’s most feared prison facility. His dangerous choices and unlikely journey through dark places made him a traitor in the eyes of people he loves—and gave him access to extraordinary secrets. On the pages of this book, he exposes events and processes that to this point have been known only by a handful of individuals. . . .
Mosab Hassan (“Joseph”) Yousef is the son of Sheikh Hassan Yousef, a founding leader of Hamas, internationally recognized as a terrorist organization and responsible for countless suicide bombings and other deadly attacks against Israel. An integral part of the movement, Mosab was imprisoned several times by the Israeli internal intelligence service. After a chance encounter with a British tourist, he started a six-year quest that jeopardized Hamas, endangered his family, and threatened his life. He has since embraced the teachings of Jesus and sought political asylum in America.
Ron Brackin has traveled extensively in the Middle East as an investigative journalist. He was in Bethlehem, Ramallah, Gaza, and Jerusalem during the Al-Aqsa Intifada. He was on assignment in Baghdad after the fall of Iraq and more recently with the rebels and refugees of southern Sudan and Darfur. He has contributed articles and columns to many publications, including USA Today and the Washington Times. Ron served as a broadcast journalist and a congressional press secretary in Washington after graduating from the University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism.
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Customer Reviews
“ As the son of one of the founders of Hamas, Mosab Hassan Yousef has an extremely unique perspective on the Middle East, especially the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. ”
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
379 of 422 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Love Your Enemies? How The Son Of The Founder Of Hamas Went From Jihad To Jesus
March 6, 2010
Format:Hardcover
I first met Mosab Hassan Yousef, the oldest son of one of the founders of the Hamas, by phone in 2009. We spoke several times for several hours, getting to know one another and taking each other's measure. Later, we corresponded a bit by email and finally met for coffee. It was an unlikely encounter, to be sure. How often, after all, does a former aide to an Israeli Prime Minister and a former aide to the leader of a terrorist movement meet and become friends. But we have. And the reason is simple: we have both been transformed by the love of Jesus Christ.
Mosab was raised a Radical Muslim. He believed "Islam is the answer, and jihad is the way." He was poised to become the future leader of Hamas. As such, he would have become one of Israel's most dangerous and wanted enemies. But something happened along the way that changed everything. Mosab came to the stunning conclusion that Hamas was evil, that Islam was wrong, that suicide bombings and other terrorist attacks were abhorrent, that Israelis were his friends not his enemies, and that Jesus Christ was the Son of God and the Savior of the world. In short, Mosab has become a Revivalist. Today he believes "Islam is not the answer, jihad is not the way; Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life, and no one comes to the Father except through Jesus." What's more, he believes that the only way for Israelis and Palestinians to truly find peace with each other is to first find peace with God by embracing the Prince of Peace -- Jesus, who was born in Bethlehem; Jesus, who was raised in Nazareth; Jesus who died on the cross in Jerusalem, and rose again, and is coming back to the Holy Land soon.
How this transformation happened -- and the choices Mosab has made as a result -- is the subject of one of the most powerful books I have ever read. SON OF HAMAS, written by Mosab and journalist Ron Brackin, is part spy thriller, part spiritual testimony of a young man leaving terror for redemption. It is a must-read book and one can only hope it becomes the basis of a major Hollywood motion picture.
In just the first week since the book was released, Mosab has received enormous media coverage -- Haaretz, Ynet News, CNN, Fox, NBC, Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, and Forbes, among many others. Most of the reports and interviews have focused on the intelligence intrigue of how Mosab became a double agent for Israel's Shin Bet secret service agency against Hamas, helping to stop scores of terrorist attacks and saving countless Jewish and Arab lives as a result. Unfortunately, most of the reports have glossed over the spiritual side of Mosab's journey. The good news is the book covers both sides of Mosab's life in gripping details.
Here are a few tidbits worth considering:
* Mosab hated the Jews. He cheered when Saddam Hussein fired 39 Scud missiles at Israel during the 1991 Gulf War, and was disappointed when Israel wasn't destroyed. He wanted Hamas to seize back all the land of "Palestine" from the Jews. But in 1996, at the age of 18, he was arrested by the Israelis for buying automatic weapons to kill Jews. He was sent to an Israeli prison. There he was stunned at what he saw: Muslims torturing Muslims. "I had never heard a human being scream like that guy did. What could he have done to deserve that." (p.97)
* "Nearby, fellow Hamas members -- fellow Arabs, fellow Palestinians, fellow Muslims -- shoved needles under [his friend] Akel's fingernails." (p. 100)
* "Every day there was screaming; every night, torture. Hamas was torturing its own people! As much as I wanted to, I simply could not find a way to justify that." (p. 102)
* Months later, after being released from Israeli prison, Mosab was walking past the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem. Someone -- not knowing who he was -- invited him to a Bible study. Curious, he attended. They studied the New Testament, and gave Mosab a copy to read for himself. "I began at the beginning [in the Gospel According to Matthew], and when I got to the Sermon on the Mount, I thought, Wow, this guy Jesus is really impressive! Everything He says is beautiful! I couldn't put the book down. Every verse seemed to touch a deep wound in my life. It was a very simple message, but somehow it had the power to heal my soul and give me hope. Then I read this: `You have heard that it was said, Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.' (Matthew 5:43-45)....I was thunderstruck by these words. Never before had I heard anything like this, but I knew that this was the message I had been searching for all my life." (p.122)
* "For years I had struggled to know who my enemy was, and I had looked for enemies outside of Islam and Palestine. But I suddenly realized that the Israelis were not my enemies. Neither was Hamas nor my uncle Ibrahim [one of the torturers in prison] nor the kid who beat me with the butt of his M16....I understood that enemies were not defined by nationality, religion, or color. I understood that we all share the same common enemies: greed, pride, and all the bad ideas and the darkness of the devil that live inside us....Five years earlier, I would have read the words of Jesus and thought, What an idiot! and thrown the Bible away....But now, everything Jesus said on the pages of this book made perfect sense to me. Overwhelmed, I started to cry." (p.122-123)
** Joel C. Rosenberg is the New York Times best-selling author of Epicenter 2.0: Why the Current Rumblings in the Middle East Will Change Your Future and Inside the Revolution: How the Followers of Jihad, Jefferson & Jesus Are Battling to Dominate the Middle East and Transform
Mosab was raised a Radical Muslim. He believed "Islam is the answer, and jihad is the way." He was poised to become the future leader of Hamas. As such, he would have become one of Israel's most dangerous and wanted enemies. But something happened along the way that changed everything. Mosab came to the stunning conclusion that Hamas was evil, that Islam was wrong, that suicide bombings and other terrorist attacks were abhorrent, that Israelis were his friends not his enemies, and that Jesus Christ was the Son of God and the Savior of the world. In short, Mosab has become a Revivalist. Today he believes "Islam is not the answer, jihad is not the way; Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life, and no one comes to the Father except through Jesus." What's more, he believes that the only way for Israelis and Palestinians to truly find peace with each other is to first find peace with God by embracing the Prince of Peace -- Jesus, who was born in Bethlehem; Jesus, who was raised in Nazareth; Jesus who died on the cross in Jerusalem, and rose again, and is coming back to the Holy Land soon.
How this transformation happened -- and the choices Mosab has made as a result -- is the subject of one of the most powerful books I have ever read. SON OF HAMAS, written by Mosab and journalist Ron Brackin, is part spy thriller, part spiritual testimony of a young man leaving terror for redemption. It is a must-read book and one can only hope it becomes the basis of a major Hollywood motion picture.
In just the first week since the book was released, Mosab has received enormous media coverage -- Haaretz, Ynet News, CNN, Fox, NBC, Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, and Forbes, among many others. Most of the reports and interviews have focused on the intelligence intrigue of how Mosab became a double agent for Israel's Shin Bet secret service agency against Hamas, helping to stop scores of terrorist attacks and saving countless Jewish and Arab lives as a result. Unfortunately, most of the reports have glossed over the spiritual side of Mosab's journey. The good news is the book covers both sides of Mosab's life in gripping details.
Here are a few tidbits worth considering:
* Mosab hated the Jews. He cheered when Saddam Hussein fired 39 Scud missiles at Israel during the 1991 Gulf War, and was disappointed when Israel wasn't destroyed. He wanted Hamas to seize back all the land of "Palestine" from the Jews. But in 1996, at the age of 18, he was arrested by the Israelis for buying automatic weapons to kill Jews. He was sent to an Israeli prison. There he was stunned at what he saw: Muslims torturing Muslims. "I had never heard a human being scream like that guy did. What could he have done to deserve that." (p.97)
* "Nearby, fellow Hamas members -- fellow Arabs, fellow Palestinians, fellow Muslims -- shoved needles under [his friend] Akel's fingernails." (p. 100)
* "Every day there was screaming; every night, torture. Hamas was torturing its own people! As much as I wanted to, I simply could not find a way to justify that." (p. 102)
* Months later, after being released from Israeli prison, Mosab was walking past the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem. Someone -- not knowing who he was -- invited him to a Bible study. Curious, he attended. They studied the New Testament, and gave Mosab a copy to read for himself. "I began at the beginning [in the Gospel According to Matthew], and when I got to the Sermon on the Mount, I thought, Wow, this guy Jesus is really impressive! Everything He says is beautiful! I couldn't put the book down. Every verse seemed to touch a deep wound in my life. It was a very simple message, but somehow it had the power to heal my soul and give me hope. Then I read this: `You have heard that it was said, Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.' (Matthew 5:43-45)....I was thunderstruck by these words. Never before had I heard anything like this, but I knew that this was the message I had been searching for all my life." (p.122)
* "For years I had struggled to know who my enemy was, and I had looked for enemies outside of Islam and Palestine. But I suddenly realized that the Israelis were not my enemies. Neither was Hamas nor my uncle Ibrahim [one of the torturers in prison] nor the kid who beat me with the butt of his M16....I understood that enemies were not defined by nationality, religion, or color. I understood that we all share the same common enemies: greed, pride, and all the bad ideas and the darkness of the devil that live inside us....Five years earlier, I would have read the words of Jesus and thought, What an idiot! and thrown the Bible away....But now, everything Jesus said on the pages of this book made perfect sense to me. Overwhelmed, I started to cry." (p.122-123)
** Joel C. Rosenberg is the New York Times best-selling author of Epicenter 2.0: Why the Current Rumblings in the Middle East Will Change Your Future and Inside the Revolution: How the Followers of Jihad, Jefferson & Jesus Are Battling to Dominate the Middle East and Transform
169 of 191 people found the following review helpful
By Aras
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
This book was very well written and gripping - i couldn't put it down! It was filled with details of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, yet was easy to understand and follow. The story pulls you in so much that it 'feels' more like reading a fictional spy book than an autobiography. From a literary standpoint this book was an amazing work. Making a history lesson interesting is no easy task.
The story itself is also amazing. As a Christian, it was inspiring to see how one sentence from the Bible was able to transform Mosab's heart and change the course of his life. As a result, many lives were saved. It is also a work of peace, helping us see that there are no cut and dry answers to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. All have done wrong, with Jesus all are capable of peace.
Amazing job, Mosab! Thanks for sharing your story.
The story itself is also amazing. As a Christian, it was inspiring to see how one sentence from the Bible was able to transform Mosab's heart and change the course of his life. As a result, many lives were saved. It is also a work of peace, helping us see that there are no cut and dry answers to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. All have done wrong, with Jesus all are capable of peace.
Amazing job, Mosab! Thanks for sharing your story.
104 of 118 people found the following review helpful
By Isaak Lerner
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I heard about this book and its author on NPR a few weeks ago and preorder it on my Kindle. While I was expecting a good story and some unique insight into the Arab side of the conflict my hopes were not high for the quality of writing and storytelling that I assumed a man with a military and religious background could produce. Boy, was I wrong about the quality!!! The book opened up the inner working or rather lack of inner workings within Hamas and loudly vindicated what Israel and the whole world knew about Arafat as a selfish global beggar, who was the main driver behind the second intifada with no regard for the well being of his people. The story is extremely well written and shares a writing style with Natan Sharansky's Fear no Evil. While the author's Christianity plays a large role in his life journey this book should be enjoyed by everyone. I am surprised at how good the actual writing style was and commend Masab on the lives he has saved through considerable risk to his own. Hopefully there are many more operatives like him operating in Gaza and will lead to the release of Gilad Shalit.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
The outstanding story of the transformation of a human being.
What I liked most is how knowledge and education can transform and awakening the intelligence of a human being and expand their worldview to be able to understand other cultures.
Published 3 hours ago by DULCE M. CHACON DE V.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Intriguing and interesting read.
This story is compelling and very readable. I gave it 4 stars only because it wasn't one that I could not put down before finishing. I recommend it to any and all muslims. Read more
Published 1 day ago by Daniel Lopez
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great on Audible
Read by the author made this audible book more real. We learned a great deal about the great turmoil that goes on in this country and how it affects families. Read more
Published 2 days ago by Timalee
5.0 out of 5 stars
True Story
A gripping true story. I appreciated the integrity of the two main characters, their committment to do their best in very challenging circumstances. Read more
Published 2 days ago by Annie
5.0 out of 5 stars
Mind Boggling!
This book is for everyone, especially those of us with Western mindsets. Everyone should be interested in understanding Middle Eastern mindsets. Read more
Published 4 days ago by alligep
5.0 out of 5 stars
Awesome
This book reads more like a fictional spy novel than a real life story. Fascinating look at the game of espionage and intelligence that occurs between Israel and Hamas. Read more
Published 9 days ago by Dustin Heap
4.0 out of 5 stars
A gripping and eye opening account of the unrest in the middle East...
A fantastic inside view of the rise of Hamas through Mosab Hassan Yousef, the son of one of the founders of Hamas. Read more
Published 13 days ago by Adam Mason
5.0 out of 5 stars
Must read.
A man with great courage, willing to tell the truth. The real Hamas exposed. Gives the reader a great inside view of a very closed organization.
Published 15 days ago by CC
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wow... won't this play with your brain!!!
It's better than an exposé. Most of those are told from the outside in. This is told from the inside out. Read more
Published 22 days ago by D.D.T...
5.0 out of 5 stars
What a read!
Loved this book. Couldn't put it down. I learned so much about the conflict in the middle east and the Muslim religeon. Read more
Published 24 days ago by Megan Relihan-perez
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