Abstract

President Obama may have delivered on his campaign promise to kill Osama bin Laden, but as an Al-Qaeda strategist bin Laden has been dead for years. This book introduces and examines the new generation of Al-Qaeda leaders who have been behind the most recent attacks.

Investigative journalist Syed Saleem Shahzad dedicated his life to revealing the strategies and inner workings of Al-Qaeda and the Taliban. He had access to top-level commanders in both movements, as well as within the ISI, Pakistan's intelligence service. Shahzad's work was praised by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for 'bringing to light the troubles extremism poses to Pakistan's stability.' Inside Al-Qaeda and the Taliban explains the wider aims of both organisations and provides an essential analysis of major terrorist incidents, including the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

In May 2011, Shahzad was abducted and killed in Pakistan, days after writing an article suggesting that insiders in the Pakistani navy had colluded with Al-Qaeda in an attack on a naval air station. This book is a testament to his fearless reporting and analytical rigour. It will provide readers worldwide with an invaluable introduction to a new phase of the ongoing struggle against terrorism which threatens lives in so many countries.
'A path breaking book that enhances considerably our understanding of the complexities of Al-Qaeda'
Hameed Haroon, CEO, The Dawn Media Group, Pakistan
'A disturbing book. ... Shahzad considers the strategies of al-Qaeda and other radical Islamist movements in terms that are not often heard'
The Times, Iain Finlayson
'When Syed Saleem Shahzad talks, I listen. He is the most fearless and reliable journalist covering Pakistan and Afghanistan, and that's why his work is read even in the halls of the Pentagon'
Nir Rosen, author of 'The Triumph of the Martyrs: A Reporter's Journey Into Occupied Iraq'
'Buy Shahzad's book. It tells us what the Pakistani government, whose corruption and brutality Shahzad died to expose, does not want us to know'
Charles Glass, Taki's Magazine
'Syed Saleem Shahzad has long been able to penetrate the Afghan and Pakistani Taliban organisations in a way that no other journalist has. His unique knowledge and contacts make his writing a 'must read' for anyone who wants to understand those movements'
Gareth Porter, historian and author of 'Perils of Dominance: Imbalance of Power and the Road to War in Vietnam'
'[Shahzad's] work reporting on terrorism and intelligence issues in Pakistan brought to light the troubles extremism poses to Pakistan's stability'
Hillary Clinton, US Secretary of State
'Whether it's insights into the plans and ideologues driving Al-Qaeda, the low-down on militants across the Hindu Kush, the Taliban-led Afghan insurgency or political wheeling and dealing, Syed Saleem Shahzad is always first on the trail'
Tony Allison, editor, Asia Times Online