Why Terrorism Went Global

Fawaz Gerges' The Far Enemy emerges from a field of texts on terrorism, jihadism, and Islamism each jostling and vying for the reader's full attention. Gerges' book, however, does not need to jockey like many others because it is painstakingly researched, thorough, and above all, humble. Gerges admits that, like many other scholars on fringe militant movements, he had missed the importance of al-Qaeda until it was too late. The main focus of his book seems to be on the so-called "number two man" Ayman al-Zawahiri, whose followers used to be known as Islamic Jihad until their merger with Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda. Gerges examines the motivations of al-Zawahiri's fanatical and all-consuming hatred of Muslim rulers and the West that supports them and in doing so, critiques the methods used by those rulers and the West that contribute to the continued attraction young Muslim men have for the Jihadis movement.

A focus on Gerges' sources and interviews are necessary at this point. He spent over two years visiting and speaking to self-identifying jihadis, both former and active. A dangerous choice one would suppose, given the subject matter and the demeanor of the persons with which he is dealing with. But as Gerges relates their tales and points of view, one begins to understand that the vast majority of jihadis are not the radical variety which is responsible for such great atrocities across the world. Many had focused on helping out their co-religionists in Afghanistan against the soviet union; others were agitating for change - often through arms - within their own country but had effectively retired from such activity.

These interviews are immensely important in understanding why, by and large, groups such as al-Qaeda whose small, fanatical numbers, had been largely marginalized or ignored by scholars of the subject. The reader also realizes that such groups, particularly al-Qaeda, are not universally loved by former and active jihadis, let alone the ummah (community) of Muslims. This is an important point to make, and Gerges returns to it time and time again, hammering it home from different angles and through repeating key themes.

This repetition, however, can at times become distracting. For example, a constant phrase Gerges returns to over and over again is the idea of the "jihadi caravan", a paraphrasing of one of Osama bin Laden's recruitment speech; something the reader does not realize the significance of until mid way through the book. Additionally, his use of parentheses to inform the reader on points that he will or already has covered tends to bring the reader out of the otherwise engrossing narrative. But it should be noted that these are minor quibbles and the overwhelming bulk of the book is insightful, precise, and critical to the on-going dialogue about terrorism, jihad and the war on terror. Fawaz Gerges' The Far Enemy: Why Jihad went Global should be required reading of foreign policy makers who would want the world to believe in the simplistic lie of a clash of civilizations.

Review: The Far Enemy: Why Jihad Went Global by Fawaz A. Gerges Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006 345 p. $27.00 ISBN: 0-521-79140-5