The Last Refuge: Yemen, al-Qaeda, and America's War in Arabia [Hardcover]

Gregory Johnsen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 19, 2012

A gripping account of how al-Qaeda in Yemen rebounded from an initial defeat to once again threaten the United States.

Far from the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan, the United States and al-Qaeda are fighting a clandestine war of drones and suicide bombers in an unforgiving corner of Arabia.

The Last Refuge charts the rise, fall, and resurrection of al-Qaeda in Yemen over the last thirty years, detailing how a group that the United States once defeated has now become one of the world’s most dangerous threats. An expert on Yemen who has spent years on the ground there, Gregory D. Johnsen uses al-Qaeda’s Arabic battle notes to reconstruct their world as they take aim at the United States and its allies. Johnsen brings readers in-side al-Qaeda’s training camps and safe houses as the terrorists plot poison attacks and debate how to bring down an airliner on Christmas Day. The Last Refuge is an eye-opening look at the successes and failures of fighting a new type of war in one of the most turbulent countries in the world.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Gregory Johnsen has written a break-through book on one of the most under-reported and misunderstood stories of the post 9-11 era. Penned in gripping prose and with incredible attention to detail, The Last Refuge unfolds with the pace of an action novel. But this story is all too true. If we ignore the widening covert war in Yemen and fail to learn from its complicated history, we do so at our own peril. Years from now, Johnsen will be seen as one of the few who got it right.” (Jeremy Scahill, author of the international bestseller, Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army )

“Gregory Johnsen, an authority on Yemen and jihadist extremists, has delivered in The Last Refuge a wonderfully well written and deeply reported account of the only al-Qaeda affiliate that continues to pose a real threat to the West.” (Peter L. Bergen, author of Manhunt: The Ten-Year Search for Osama bin Laden from 9/11 to Abbottabad)

“The Last Refuge offers a valuable look at al-Qaeda’s operational history in Yemen. Gregory Johnsen has done us all a service by explaining the country, the threats, and why we should pay attention.” (Ali H. Soufan, author of The Black Banners: The Inside Story of 9/11 and the War Against al-Qaeda)

“Johnsen... has produced the first comprehensive history of the al Qaeda movement [in Yemen]: an engrossing account of the operations, personalities, and motivations that have caused the US such headaches.” (Publishers Weekly)

“Gregory Johnsen has written the best new book on al Qaeda in 2012 and the best book on Yemen in years.... The Last Refuge: Yemen, Al Qaeda and America’s War in Arabia is a detailed narrative account of the development of [Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula]. It is also a great read...” (Bruce Riedel - Daily Beast)

“The Last Refuge is an authoritative and deftly written account of al-Qaeda’s Yemeni incarnation. The book is dense with terrorist genealogies, but it also offers a lively portrait of the American government’s stumbling efforts to understand and influence a profoundly alien culture. His account, starting in the 1980s, implicitly places Yemen near the center of the global jihadi movement; it may not be where al-Qaeda started, but it has always furnished many of the movement’s foot soldiers, and it has now succeeded Afghanistan as the US government’s most urgent concern about counterterrorism.” (Robert R. Worth - The New York Review of Books)

“Gripping and insightful.” (Booklist)

“Part modern history, part explanatory narrative… Johnson moves deftly between decades, continents and languages.... The Last Refuge is a cogent insight into what the U.S. has done in the past twenty-five years—a bird’s-eye-view on those successes and failures, in all their shades of horrid gray...” (Haley Sweetland Edwards - The Washington Monthly)

About the Author

Gregory D. Johnsen, a former Fulbright Fellow in Yemen, is a PhD candidate at Princeton University. A frequent guest on NPR, he has contributed essays to the New York Times. He lives in Princeton, New Jersey.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company (November 19, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 9780393082425
• ISBN-13: 978-0393082425
• ASIN: 0393082423
• Product Dimensions: 1.1 x 6.3 x 9.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #64,472 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #2 in Books > History > Middle East > Yemen
  • #25 in Books > History > Middle East > Iran
  • #67 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > International & World Politics > Middle Eastern

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential reading for anyone interested in AQAP, Yemen and CT policy December 5, 2012

By Adam

Format:Hardcover

Having traveled to Yemen and followed AQAP closely for awhile I was particularly excited when this book came out. Mr. Johnsen does a great job of detailing the history behind jihadists in Yemen which is much more varied and complex than one would assume. He writes many of the chapters in a narrative format and his style is both thrilling and informative. He makes a strong case against the over-reliance on drone strikes in fighting AQAP. The one thing I would have added would be a more extensive conclusion detailing possible options such as economic and political measures that could be used in tandem with a security approach.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars AQAP Vivisected November 29, 2012

By Edmund J. Hull

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

In his remarkable book, Greg Johnsen has managed to crawl inside Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and provide us insights into personalities, ideology, organization, strengths and weaknesses. This book should be on the reading list for every diplomat, soldier or spy heading to Sana'a as well as any journalist or pundit who seeks to write or comment on Yemen's challenges or post-Bin Ladin Al Qaeda. Johnsen also treats fairly Saleh's and the U.S.' waxing and waning efforts against Al Qaeda and usefully explains the complexities of the Al Huthi rebellion and southern secession. Given his past criticism of narrowly focused counter-terrorism -- no magic missiles -- it is a bit ironic that he himself says little about efforts toward political and economic development. Clearly AQAP prioritizes it -- e.g. its efforts to bring Taliban-like justice to Jaar. A critical assessment of John Brennan's broad aspirational strategy would have been welcome, but perhaps that's volume 2. Author of High-Value Target: Countering al Qaeda in Yemen

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book, well researched. November 28, 2012

By Jamie

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Excellent book. I highly recommend for anyone who would like to know more about how Al-Qaida has evolved with the countries in the region. Puts a new perspective on the events of the last 10+ years.