Global Alert

The Rationality of Modern Islamist Terrorism and the Challenge to the Liberal Democratic World

Author: Boaz Ganor Series: Columbia Studies in Terrorism and Irregular Warfare

A provocative book that will generate discussion. -- Erica Chenoweth, Josef Korbel School of International Studies, University of Denver In Global Alert Boaz Ganor addresses the fundamental dilemmas that confront the liberal democratic state in combating contemporary terrorist groups. He makes the point that terrorism is not mindless violence. Today's terrorist leaders think strategically. They have benefitted from decades of experience, observing their predecessors, enabling them to create new kinds of organizations and formulate strategies that exploit the disadvantages of the democratic state. Intellectually, states have not kept up, and radical rethinking is in order. Global Alert starts us in a new direction. -- Brian Jenkins, senior advisor to the president of the RAND Corporation When it comes to outstanding informed analytical and policy-oriented scholarship on counter-terrorism in the context of open societies, the work of Boaz Ganor is plainly and simply inescapable for academics, politicians, security practitioners, and concerned citizens. -- Fernando Reinares, professor of politics and security studies, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, and senior analyst on international terrorism, Elcano Royal Institute, Madrid Boaz Ganor, who has dealt with the phenomenon of Islamic terrorism for more than twenty years and is rightly considered an international authority on the subject, deals with the fundamental issues of radical Islam, clarifies them, and translates them for the Western conceptual world of the twenty-first century. There is no doubt that this book will serve as a significant contribution to a better understanding of the conflict that will accompany human society for many years to come. -- Shabtai Shavit, former director of the Mossad In Global Alert Boaz Ganor, a true expert in the field of terrorism and counter-terrorism, enlightens readers of the Israeli-Palestinian reality, which he understands flawlessly. This book is a must read for researchers, academics, practitioners, and decision makers, who will find a comprehensive strategic doctrine and operational approach to counter this plague of modern times. -- Judge Jean-Louis Bruguiere, former vice president of the Paris Court of Serious Claims

Describes the motivations that lead to modern Islamist terrorism and the different stages in the execution of a terrorist attack.

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Summary

Describes the motivations that lead to modern Islamist terrorism and the different stages in the execution of a terrorist attack.

Description

Many associate terrorism with irrational behavior and believe only lunatics could perpetuate such horrific acts. Global Alert debunks this myth by anatomizing the rationale behind modern terrorism. It draws a distinct picture of its root and instrumental causes and plots the different stages of a terrorist attack, from indoctrination and recruitment to planning, preparation, and launch.

Global Alert also exposes the measured exploitation of democratic institutions by terrorists to further their goals. Despite its strong capabilities and extensive resources, the modern liberal-democratic state is nevertheless subject to the rules of war, which partially restrict the state's ability to operate and maneuver. Boaz Ganor shows how terrorist organizations exploit these values to paralyze or neutralize the states they oppose. In outlining this new "hybrid" terrorist organization and its activity in both the military–terrorist arena and the political–welfare arena, Ganor advances an international doctrine for governing military operations between state and nonstate actors as part of a new type of armed conflict termed "multidimensional warfare."

Critic Reviews

“When it comes to outstanding informed, analytical and policy-oriented scholarship on counterterrorism in the context of open societies, the work of professor Boaz Ganor is plainly and simply inescapable for academics, politicians, security pratitioners and concerned citizens.”

An important addition to the literature on global Islamic terrorism...It is a very well-referenced and argued book...It should be a required reading for all university courses on global Islamic terrorism. Washington Book Review I highly recommend that anyone interested in the subject of combating the plague of terrorism today read Ganor's short but punchy book. Jerusalem Post Global Alert is a must read for national security professionals, political leaders, academics, and any citizens who simply want to better understand the rationale and threat of modern Islamist terrorism. -- Randolph Lake H-War

About the Author

Boaz Ganor is the founder and executive director of the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism (ICT), the Ronald Lauder Chair for Counter-Terrorism, and the dean of the Lauder School of Government, Diplomacy, and Strategy at the Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) Herzliya. He has served as an advisor and/or a consultant to the Israeli Counter-Terrorism Bureau, the Israeli National Security Council, and the Israeli Ministry of Defense.