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Inside the Jihad: My Life with Al Qaeda | 
 enlarge | Author: Omar Nasiri
Publisher: Basic Books
Category: Book
List Price: $15.95
Buy New: $4.44
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Avg. Customer Rating:  27 reviews
Sales Rank: 61714
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 384
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 7.9 x 5.3 x 1.3
ISBN: 0465023894
Dewey Decimal Number: 327
EAN: 9780465023899
ASIN: 0465023894
Publication Date: January 7, 2008
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Product Description
Between 1994 and 2000, Omar Nasiri worked as a secret agent for Europe’s top foreign intelligence services-including France’s DGSE (Direction Generale de la Securite Exterieure), and Britain’s MI5 and MI6. From the netherworld of Islamist cells in Belgium, to the training camps of Afghanistan, to the radical mosques of London, he risked his life to defeat the emerging global network that the West would come to know as Al Qaeda. Now, for the first time, Nasiri shares the story of his life-a life balanced precariously between the world of Islamic jihadists and the spies who pursue them. As an Arab and a Muslim, he was able to infiltrate the rigidly controlled Afghan training camps, where he encountered men who would later be known as the most-wanted terrorists on earth: Ibn al-Sheikh al-Libi, Abu Zubayda, and Abu Khabab al-Masri. Sent back to Europe with instructions to form a sleeper cell, Nasiri became a conduit for messages going back and forth between Al Qaeda’s top recruiter in Pakistan and London’s radical cleric Abu Qatada.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 22 more reviews...
 Great Story, Great Book September 30, 2008
As a military member, it was nice to read a book with the good of the reader in mind and without a political agenda. The story was was a fast read, interesting to the very end, and extremley detailed as to the in's and out's of the terrorist training camps. Overall, a great read!
 Covering the Nineties and the buildup of terrorism August 11, 2008
Omar Nasiri's "Inside the Jihad" covers terrorism during the nineties in Brussels, London, and Afghanistan. Nasiri (not his real name) an Algerian became a spy for French intelligence, DGSE, after being recruited into a terrorist cell by his brother. He discusses the ammunition trade he did for his brother's "friends" or supplying the jihad. Nasiri never seems too concerned about the fight in Algeria between the GIA and the secularist regime.
Nasiri describes nerve wracking missions such as crossing heavily armed borders, Afghani terrorist camps, and mosque infiltration. The insider account he is able to publish at a great risk to his life should be read by all who want to further understand terrorism. Nasiri is eloquent in his manners and blunt with his stories and views. Us in the West will never truly understand how people kill in the name of religion, yet Nasiri clues us into some of the reasons terrorists kill innocents and foes alike. He does not agree with the killing of innocent lives, but does believe any force from a foreign force on Muslim land is a rational call for "jihad" in the name of Allah.
He describes things that I had not heard about the Taliban and Al Qaeda. He does make clear the jihad started way before Osama Bin Laden showed his face to the world in the nineties. The loose structure of terrorism can be clearly seen throughout the book. Only cells know their actual job and not anyone else. He showed the cells to be living independent organisms. The description of Chechens, Saudis, and others at the camps training together affirms the loose connections between cells and brothers; the silence of the brothers' past and future also showed the independence of each person and group in the camps.
Nasiri's account should be read by those wanting to understand the history of the nineties from the inside. He was never a high ranking member with knowledge of attacks and other plans; however, he did meet many of the players that would later raises their heads in the attacks against the West. Many of the main players of terrorism will be quickly recognized by readers of terrorism and the Middle East. This is not a hard book to approach by newcomers studying terrorism because Nasiri does a great job introducing the reader to the characters in his book.
excellent April 20, 2008
I first picked up this book b/c I noticed the review by Michael Scheuer on the back sleeve. The book itself is an excellent account of Nasiri's life inside of radical Islam while serving as a spy for the DGSE (French security service). He takes you through his journey from Europe to Afghanistan's and finally back to London. It reads like the best Clancy novel and it times you are forced to pinch yourself as a reminder that this is nonfiction. I'm still not clear on what drove Nasiri to spy for the DGSE but his account is exception. He is by no means pro-Western, and concludes the book with a damning account of our interference in the affairs of the Muslim world. He reiterates the fact that he remains a devout Muslim and, to this day, would go to war for his faith. A great read.
 Fake January 31, 2008
2 out of 13 found this review helpful
Under the auspices of "inside information" on the workings of the Jihad, this book is a piece of subjective propaganda - not all that cleverly camouflaged - an should be tagged as such.
 Interesting, questionable December 29, 2007
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
Interesting story, but self-serving when describing his motivations and insights. In truth he sounds like a sociopath who conned everyone he dealt with, for his own ends. Said he didn't write under his real name because he wouldn't be safe, but gave details, if true, that would make it clear who he was, e.g., he lived at one point in his home with his brother where an international jihad newsletter was published & mailed. Some things not plausible, e.g., that he told his co-terrorists that he was an agent for an anti-terrorist government agency, but they had no reaction. So there is a question as to how much of his story is fiction. But it's still an interesting story.
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