Zarqawi: The New Face of al-Qaeda [Hardcover]

Jean-Charles Brisard (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 18, 2005

In recent months, Abu Musab al--Zarqawi has emerged as the driving force behind the worlda s most feared terrorist organization, Al Qaeda. As Bin Ladena s apparent successor, al--Zarqawi has been labelled a public enemy number onea by the US government and the price on his head has risen to almost 25 million dollars. Until now, little has been known about al--Zarqawi. Born in Jordan in 1968, he spent the 1980s in war--torn Afghanistan, followed by five years in prison before joining Al Qaeda in 1999. Having quickly gained the confidence of his superiors, al--Zarqawi ran Al Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan, where he taught recruits to use chemical and biological weapons. From 2001 onwards, he controlled several regional terrorist groups across Europe, which have been linked to attacks in the UK, France, Russia and the notorious train bombing in Madrid. His armed group, Tawhid and Jihad, is currently terrorizing Iraq, beheading hostages and carrying out deadly attacks across the country. In this, the first major study of al--Zarqawi, Jean--Charles Brisard takes an in--depth look at the man now widely regarded as the new face of Al Qaeda. Based on witness statements, official documents and previously unpublished material, Brisard offers a vivid and compelling account of Zarqawia s rise to power as the incarnation of international terrorism and Islamic extremism.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This hastily penned biography of Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi, known to Americans principally for his beheading of Nicholas Berg, is notable chiefly for its innocent failure to answer a fundamental question about terrorism: Why? Zarqawi's past is carefully described here, yet his background offers few clues. An undistinguished young daydreamer and petty criminal, Jordanian Zarqawi appears to have found his calling at a local mosque, where he became a practicing Muslim eager to participate in jihad against the Soviet Union. Zarqawi arrived in Khost too late for battle, but in time to befriend several radical Islamic theoreticians. Such connections eventually lead him to Al-Qaeda, but it wasn't until his cell's successful assassination of U.S. diplomat Laurence Foley that he was admitted to its inner circle. Although Brisard presents the facts of his rise to prominence, the narrative provides little insight into the motivating force behind Zarqawi's actions, leaving the reader, largely, with a simple timeline of events. Individuals and organizations are described and named, but their complexity and unfamiliarity make navigating various Islamic groups and their relationships the equivalent of reading a Russian novel without the requisite family tree. The clumsy translation from Brisard's native French provides an awkward read that often leans on hyperbole. These faults aside, the book provides a depth and history lacking in conventional news accounts.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"The book is extraordinarily detailed ... It is driven by the need to expose -- relentlessly, in minute detail -- a terrorist conspiracy with al--Zarqawi at its centre." The Age "Offers fascinating detail on how jihadis now think about a their wara on the crusader West." International Affairs

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 283 pages
• Publisher: Polity (July 18, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0745635717
• ISBN-13: 978-0745635712
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,007,326 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jean-Charles Brisard (1968) is an international expert and consultant on international terrorism. He authored the first and most exhaustive study ever written on the financial network of the Bin Laden organization, "The economic environment of Osama Ben Laden". His report was written for the French intelligence community and published by the French National Assembly in 2001. He testified on his work before the US Congress Joint Inquiry into the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 and before the US Senate Banking Committee. He served as an expert or witness in prosecutions of terrorism financing and money laundering cases in France, Switzerland, the UK and the United States. Between 2002 and 2009, he served as chief investigator for lawyers representing families of the 9/11 victims in the course of civil lawsuits. He is the author of best-seller "Forbidden Truth: U.S.-taliban Secret Oil Diplomacy And The Failed Hunt For Bin Laden" in 2002 and "The New Face of Al-Qaeda" about Jordanian terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in 2005.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars don't waste your time, December 13, 2005

By 

S Sys "S Sys" (Phoenix AZ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Zarqawi: The New Face of Al-Qaeda (Paperback)

First, the author hops from one subject to another without really coming to a meaningful conclusion.

Second, it is obvious even to me, a non expert in this stuff that at least some of it is wrong.

Third, he says he's an expert but what has he done? All I could find was that he said he wrote a report for the UN but then it turned out they said he did not.

So my conclusion is save your money and read something else!

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Of Marginal Worth, December 19, 2005

By 

Matthew P. Arsenault (SW Michigan) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Zarqawi: The New Face of Al-Qaeda (Paperback)

Indeed, Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi has become the new image of Al-Qaeda, but Jean-Charles Brisard has barely pulled the mask away from the mystery. Seemingly relying solely on press releases, news paper articles and trial transcripts, Brisard constructs little more than a compilation of media snippets and sound bites. The author adds little clarification to the Zarqawi myth than could be gathered from watching CNN or reading the New York Times.

Brisard does provide an interesting look at the process of emergence of terrorist organizations in the Middle East and Central Asia. In addition, Brisard does add clarity to the changing structure of Al-Qaeda, claiming that many of the emerging factions are acting with a high degree of autonomy from Osama Bin-laden and others at the organization's center.

Lastly, the author also presents a brief look at how the security organizations and governments in Mid-East attempt to quell the spread of terrorist factions, while maintaining a relationship with Islamic culture. Nevertheless, Brisard's book has limited scope and only marginal work. I expected much more, and am sorely disappointed. In order to learn more about the new face of Al-Qaeda, I suggest looking elsewhere.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Criticism is Needed, November 1, 2005

By 

Larissa Marek (Prague, Czech Republic) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Zarqawi: The New Face of Al-Qaeda (Paperback)

The situation in Iraq impacts the entire world. Understanding key figures such as Zarqawi is undeniably important.

This book falls short of the objective of providing this understanding.

It presents many facts but few of these facts are provided with support. A book such as this should be based on facts that are without dispute. It is not always possible to tell which facts are actually facts and which then are suppositions advanced by the author. An argument consisting of this mixture is thus impure and of limited value.

One must also look at the author. In the media he is stated as an expert on the subject of terrorist finance. However his commercial undertaking in these lines in Switzlerland was apparently closed due to a lawsuit. What has he done to support his own claim of expertise?

To be an expert it is necessary to do more than write books. The author has given testimony to the US government but that testimony is diminished as it is claimed that the author did not actually produce a report by the request of the UN. That is a concern.

The author does do work on some US court matters but these are not settled.

A mixed book such as this by an author who is not truly an expert cannot be found to have value.