The Siege of Mecca: The Forgotten Uprising in Islam's Holiest Shrine

(Paperback)

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Description

20 November 1979- as morning prayers began, hundereds of hardline Islamist gunmen, armed with rifles smuggled in coffins, stormed the Grand Mosque in Mecca. With thousands of terrified worshippers trapped inside, the result was a bloody siege that lasted two weeks, caused hundereds of deaths, prompted an international diplomatic crisis and unleashed forces that would eventually lead to the rise of al Qaeda. Journalist Yaroslav Trofimov takes us day-by-day through one of the most momentous - and heavily censored - events in recent hitory, interviewing many direct participants in the siege and drawing on secret documents to reveal the truth about the first operation of modern global jihad.

Reviews

Riveting Sunday Times A thriller-like account of an event largely hushed up The Times A gripping, highly informed narrative Financial Times The first detailed account of the event ... brilliantly researched and eye-opening ... this is undoubtedly a book of international significance Herald A gripping and revealing account of this brutal uprising ... The Siege of Mecca is a marvel of investigative journalism ... Trofimov's viciously gory account unfolds with a sharp eye for detail and accuracy -- Ziauddin Sardar New Statesman Trofimov tells this tale with considerable verve and authority. He has interviewed many of the surviving witnesses and participants in a country suffused with fear and paranoia, and sets the siege within a wider historical context -- Michael Burleigh Literary Review

Author Bio

Yaroslav Trofimov, a staff foreign correspondent of The Wall Street Journal since 1999, has extensively reported from the Middle East, Africa, Central Asia, and the Balkans. He is the author of The Siege of Mecca- The Forgotten Uprising and Faith at War-