Description: The contributors examine whether the challenge presented to al-Qaeda by Islamic State heralds a tectonic shift in international jihadism
Review Quotes: "This collection of essays covers almost all areas of the world where al Qaeda and/or ISIS are present. It provides fascinating insights on the nature of the terrorist narrative and offers much food for thought on what lies behind and sustains these movements. As well as being of general interest, it will certainly help in constructing an effective counter narrative." -- Richard Barrett CMG OBE, former Director of Global Counter Terrorism Operations for the British Secret Intelligence Service (SIS)
"Simon Staffell and Akil Awan have gathered a group of top class scholars who each analyse the implications in selected locales of the global competition between Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State. Timely, fact-based and scholarly, it provides the blueprint to understanding the complex infra-terrorist conflict that is leaving bloody footprints worldwide." -- Lorenzo Vidino, Director of the Program on Extremism at the Center for Cyber and Homeland Security, George Washington University, and author of The Muslim Brotherhood in the West"This book is an important and much needed effort to try to understand ISIS from the perspective of its regional affiliates. Awan and Staffell have done an excellent job of bringing together some of the world's top terrorism experts to analyse the group from the perspective of the parts of the world where the group's ideology appears to have taken root. This is an important contribution to the body of literature available to experts, officials and anyone trying to understand how we should worry about ISIS in the long-term." -- Raffaello Pantucci, Director, International Security Studies, Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies (RUSI), and author of 'We Love Death as You Love Life': Britain's Suburban Terrorists"This important volume brings together an impressive array of contributors to explore some of the most important ideas driving global jihadism today. The breadth of its approach means that both scholars and general readers will gain important insights into the various trends shaping our world today." -- Shiraz Maher, Senior Research Fellow at the International Center for the Study of Radicalization (ICSR) at Kings College, University of London, and author of Salafi-Jihadism: The History of an Idea"It is hard to think of a more important topic in national security affairs than the rise of the Islamic State. This collection of essays, mostly authored by scholars at British universities and organizations, is timely and accessible...They minimize the use of jargon and the temptation to address themselves to other specialists in their field. The result is a kind of extended briefing on a critical topic in which knowledgeable students of Middle Eastern affairs help citizens, scholars, and policy makers understand key developments in the recent evolution of the jihadist threat. Any serious student of American foreign policy or international relations will want to know what these authors have to say and how their insights might help in the development or evaluation of effective responses to a challenging set of national security dilemmas."--CHOICE