The History of Terrorism: From Antiquity to ISIS

This authoritative work provides an essential perspective on terrorism by offering a rare opportunity for analysis and reflection at a time of ongoing violence, threats, and reprisals. Some of the best international specialists on the subject examine terrorism’s complex history from antiquity to the present day and find that terror, long the weapon of the weak against the strong, is a tactic as old as warfare itself. Beginning with the Zealots of the first century CE, contributors go on to discuss the Assassins of the Middle Ages, the 1789 Terror movement in Europe, Bolshevik terrorism during the Russian Revolution, Stalinism, “resistance” terrorism during World War II, and Latin American revolutionary movements of the late 1960s. Finally, they consider the emergence of modern transnational terrorism, focusing on the roots of Islamic terrorism, al Qaeda, and the contemporary suicide martyr. Along the way, they provide a groundbreaking analysis of how terrorism has been perceived throughout history. What becomes powerfully clear is that only through deeper understanding can we fully grasp the present dangers of a phenomenon whose repercussions are far from over. This updated edition includes a new chapter analyzing the rise of ISIS and key events such as the 2015 Paris attacks.

• Terrorism and Homeland Security
• Al Qaeda, the Islamic State, and the Global Jihadist Movement: What Everyone Needs to Know®
• Inside Terrorism (Columbia Studies in Terrorism and Irregular Warfare)
• Beyond Fundamentalism: Confronting Religious Extremism in the Age of Globalization
• The Association of Small Bombs: A Novel
• Voices of Terror: Manifestos, Writings and Manuals of Al Qaeda, Hamas, and other Terrorists from around the World and Throughout the Ages
• Constructions of Terrorism: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Research and Policy
• The Secret Agent
• Ways of War: American Military History from the Colonial Era to the Twenty-First Century
• The Lesser Evil: Political Ethics in an Age of Terror (Gifford Lectures)