The Way of the Knife: the CIA, a secret army, and a war at the ends of the earth

(Hardback)

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

A Pulitzer Prize - winning reporter's riveting account of the transformation of the CIA and America's special operations forces into man-hunting and killing machines The most momentous change in American warfare over the past decade has taken place away from the battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq, in the corners of the world where large armies can't go. The Way of the Knife tells the previously untold story of that shadow war- a campaign that has blurred the lines between soldiers and spies and lowered the bar for waging war across the globe. America has pursued its enemies with killer drones and special operations troops; trained privateers for assassination missions and used them to set up clandestine spying networks; and relied on mercurial dictators, untrustworthy foreign intelligence services, and proxy armies. Washington has embraced this new approach to war as a lower-risk, lower-cost alternative to the messy wars of occupation, championing it as a clean and surgical way of conflict. But the knife has created enemies just as it has killed them. It has fomented resentments among allies, fuelled instability, and created new weapons, unbound by the normal rules of accountability during wartime. Mark Mazzetti tracks an astonishing cast of characters engaged in the shadow war, and reveals how two proud and rival entities, the CIA and the American military, are elbowing each other for supremacy. The CIA, created as a Cold War espionage service, is now more than ever a paramilitary agency ordered by the White House to kill off America's enemies - in the mountains of Pakistan and the deserts of Yemen, in the tumultuous civil wars of North Africa and in the chaos of Somalia. For its part, the Pentagon has become more like the CIA, dramatically expanding spying missions everywhere. Sometimes, as with the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, their efforts have been perfectly co-ordinated. At other times, including in the failed operations disclosed here for the first time, they have not. For better or worse, their struggles will define American national security in the years to come.

Reviews

"The New York Times"
Superb the best account yet.
"Foreign Policy"
[An] indispensable CIA history.
"The Hindu" (India):
"[A] masterpiece."
Dexter Filkins, author ofThe Forever War
"The story of how the CIA got back into the killing business is as chilling and dramatic as a spy novel--except it s true. Mark Mazzetti has laid out an extraordinary tale, tracking the spies as they track the terrorists. "The Way of the Knife "is as close as you'll ever get to the real thing."
Jane Mayer, staff writer, The New Yorker; author ofThe Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned Into a War on American Ideals:
""The Way of the Knife "provides a stunning, inside account of the CIA's transformation after 9/11 from an intelligence agency into a global clandestine killing machine. Mazzetti, who is one of America's best national security reporters, has written a frightening, must-read book."
Thomas E. Ricks, author ofFiascoandThe Generals:
"The United States fought three wars after 9/11: Iraq, Afghanistan and the one in the shadows. This is an authoritative account of that that third war, conducted by the CIA and military Special Operators in Yemen, East Africa and, most of all, Pakistan. If you want to understand the world we live in, you need to read it."
"The Week"
The definitive history of how the intelligence agency became something much more like a paramilitary wing de-evolving, in a sense, back to the days when the agency's adventurism influenced foreign policy around the world. It's a fascinating expose of what information the U.S. was not collecting and how an attempt to fill the gap fell through oversight mechanisms and complicated geopolitics in Pakistan.
"San Francisco Chronicle"
A highly engaging account that should please the curious and experts alike. Mazzetti manages to give a fresh reading to such oft-told stories as the bureaucratic jousting among White House, CIA and Pentagon officials over killer drones, secret prisons, harsh interrogations and going global with military assassins.
"The Economist"
The new American way of war is here, but the debate about it has only just begun. In "The Way of the Knife," Mr Mazzetti has made a valuable contribution to it.
"The New Republic"
Essential background reading there are many signs that the novel military-intelligence complex that Mazzetti describes is becoming unacceptably controversial at home and abroad.
"Dawn" (Pakistan):
"Mazzetti's is an assiduously compiled account that strings together some of the missing parts in the puzzle "The Way of the Knife" is a tale full of intrigues."
"The New York Times Book Review"
A fascinating, trenchant, sometimes tragicomic account.
"The Age" (Australia):
"An astounding tale that melds the immediacy of fiction with the authority of fact."
"The Washington Post"
[A] deeply reported and crisply written account While "The Way of the Knife" recounts the important shifts in the architecture of the U.S. military and intelligence communities, it also reveals the many eccentric characters who emerged during this.
"Los Angeles Times"
Mazzetti finds new details and tracks the ominous blurring of traditional roles between soldiers and spies, the lush growth of a military-intelligence complex, and what the shift portends for the future....a valuable addition to a canon that is exposing America's use of lethal operations far from declared war zones."
"Foreign Affairs"
[A] fine account Mazzetti describes in compelling detail the agency s turf battles with the Pentagon, its awkward relations with its Pakistani counterpart, and its reliance on a motley collection of freelancers and private contractors.
"Popmatters"
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Mark Mazzetti s "The Way of the Knife" makes for an incisive guide to what he terms the 'shadow war' being waged in multiple countries around the world, away from prying eyes....[W]ith crisp, precision reporting, Mazzetti lays out a chronology of how one thing led to another after al-Qaeda s asymmetric attacks in 2001 and the ruinously bloody and inconclusive invasions that followed exposed glaring weaknesses in both the American military and its intelligence services.
"Kirkus Reviews"
A well-reported, smoothly written book for anyone who wants to understand contemporary American military might and the widespread hatred for the U.S. that has been the result. "
"The New York Times"
"Superb...the best account yet."
"Foreign Policy"
"[An] indispensable CIA history."
"The Hindu" (India):
"[A] masterpiece."
Dexter Filkins, author of The Forever War
"The story of how the CIA got back into the killing business is as chilling and dramatic as a spy novel--except it's true. Mark Mazzetti has laid out an extraordinary tale, tracking the spies as they track the terrorists. "The Way of the Knife "is as close as you'll ever get to the real thing."
Jane Mayer, staff writer, The New Yorker; author of The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned Into a War on American Ideals:
""The Way of the Knife "provides a stunning, inside account of the CIA's transformation after 9/11 from an intelligence agency into a global clandestine killing machine. Mazzetti, who is one of America's best national security reporters, has written a frightening, must-read book."
Thomas E. Ricks, author of Fiasco and The Generals:
"The United States fought three wars after 9/11: Iraq, Afghanistan and the one in the shadows. This is an authoritative account of that that third war, conducted by the CIA and military Special Operators in Yemen, East Africa and, most of all, Pakistan. If you want to understand the world we live in, you need to read it."
"The Week"
"The definitive history of how the intelligence agency became something much more like a paramilitary wing--de-evolving, in a sense, back to the days when the agency's adventurism influenced foreign policy around the world. It's a fascinating expose of what information the U.S. was not collecting--and how an attempt to fill the gap fell through oversight mechanisms and complicated geopolitics in Pakistan."
"San Francisco Chronicle"
"A highly engaging account that should please the curious and experts alike. Mazzetti manages to give a fresh reading to such oft-told stories as the bureaucratic jousting among White House, CIA and Pentagon officials over killer drones, secret prisons, 'harsh interrogations' and going global with military assassins."
"The Economist"
"The new American way of war is here, but the debate about it has only just begun. In "The Way of the Knife," Mr Mazzetti has made a valuable contribution to it."
"The New Republic"
"Essential background reading... there are many signs that the novel 'military-intelligence complex' that Mazzetti describes is becoming unacceptably controversial at home and abroad."
"Dawn" (Pakistan):
"Mazzetti's is an assiduously compiled account that strings together some of the missing parts in the puzzle... "The Way of the Knife" is a tale full of intrigues."
"The New York Times Book Review"
"A fascinating, trenchant, sometimes tragicomic account."
"The Age" (Australia):
"An astounding tale that melds the immediacy of fiction with the authority of fact."
"The Washington Post"
"[A] deeply reported and crisply written account... While "The Way of the Knife" recounts the important shifts in the architecture of the U.S. military and intelligence communities, it also reveals the many eccentric characters who emerged during this."
"Los Angeles Times"
"Mazzetti finds new details and tracks the ominous blurring of traditional roles between soldiers and spies, the lush growth of a military-intelligence complex, and what the shift portends for the future....a valuable addition to a canon that is exposing America's use of lethal operations far from declared war zones."
"Foreign Affairs"
"[A] fine account... Mazzetti describes in compelling detail the agency's turf battles with the Pentagon, its awkward relations with its Pakistani counterpart, and its reliance on a motley collection of freelancers and private contractors."
"Popmatters"
"Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Mark Mazzetti's "The Way of the Knife" makes for an incisive guide to what he terms the 'shadow war' being waged in multiple countries around the world, away from prying eyes....[W]ith crisp, precision reporting, Mazzetti lays out a chronology of how one thing led to another after al-Qaeda's asymmetric attacks in 2001 and the ruinously bloody and inconclusive invasions that followed exposed glaring weaknesses in both the American military and its intelligence services."
"Kirkus Reviews"
"A well-reported, smoothly written book for anyone who wants to understand contemporary American military might and the widespread hatred for the U.S. that has been the result."
"The New York Times"
"Superb...the best account yet."
"Foreign Policy"
"[An] indispensable CIA history."
"The Hindu" (India):
"[A] masterpiece."
Dexter Filkins, author of The Forever War"
"The story of how the CIA got back into the killing business is as chilling and dramatic as a spy novel--except it's true. Mark Mazzetti has laid out an extraordinary tale, tracking the spies as they track the terrorists. "The Way of the Knife "is as close as you'll ever get to the real thing."
Jane Mayer, staff writer, The New Yorker"; author of The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned Into a War on American Ideals"
""The Way of the Knife "provides a stunning, inside account of the CIA's transformation after 9/11 from an intelligence agency into a global clandestine killing machine. Mazzetti, who is one of America's best national security reporters, has written a frightening, must-read book."
Thomas E. Ricks, author of Fiasco" and The Generals"
"The United States fought three wars after 9/11: Iraq, Afghanistan and the one in the shadows. This is an authoritative account of that that third war, conducted by the CIA and military Special Operators in Yemen, East Africa and, most of all, Pakistan. If you want to understand the world we live in, you need to read it."
"The Week"
"The definitive history of how the intelligence agency became something much more like a paramilitary wing--de-evolving, in a sense, back to the days when the agency's adventurism influenced foreign policy around the world. It's a fascinating expose of what information the U.S. was not collecting--and how an attempt to fill the gap fell through oversight mechanisms and complicated geopolitics in Pakistan."
"San Francisco Chronicle"
"A highly engaging account that should please the curious and experts alike. Mazzetti manages to give a fresh reading to such oft-told stories as the bureaucratic jousting among White House, CIA and Pentagon officials over killer drones, secret prisons, 'harsh interrogations' and going global with military assassins."
"The Economist"
"The new American way of war is here, but the debate about it has only just begun. In "The Way of the Knife," Mr Mazzetti has made a valuable contribution to it."
"The New Republic"
"Essential background reading... there are many signs that the novel 'military-intelligence complex' that Mazzetti describes is becoming unacceptably controversial at home and abroad."
"Dawn" (Pakistan):
"Mazzetti's is an assiduously compiled account that strings together some of the missing parts in the puzzle... "The Way of the Knife" is a tale full of intrigues."
"The New York Times Book Review"
"A fascinating, trenchant, sometimes tragicomic account."
"The Age" (Australia):
"An astounding tale that melds the immediacy of fiction with the authority of fact."
"The Washington Post"
"[A] deeply reported and crisply written account... While "The Way of the Knife" recounts the important shifts in the architecture of the U.S. military and intelligence communities, it also reveals the many eccentric characters who emerged during this."
"Los Angeles Times"
"Mazzetti finds new details and tracks the ominous blurring of traditional roles between soldiers and spies, the lush growth of a military-intelligence complex, and what the shift portends for the future....a valuable addition to a canon that is exposing America's use of lethal operations far from declared war zones."
"Foreign Affairs"
"[A] fine account... Mazzetti describes in compelling detail the agency's turf battles with the Pentagon, its awkward relations with its Pakistani counterpart, and its reliance on a motley collection of freelancers and private contractors."
"Popmatters"
"Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Mark Mazzetti's "The Way of the Knife" makes for an incisive guide to what he terms the 'shadow war' being waged in multiple countries around the world, away from prying eyes....[W]ith crisp, precision reporting, Mazzetti lays out a chronology of how one thing led to another after al-Qaeda's asymmetric attacks in 2001 and the ruinously bloody and inconclusive invasions that followed exposed glaring weaknesses in both the American military and its intelligence services."
"Kirkus Reviews"
"A well-reported, smoothly written book for anyone who wants to understand contemporary American military might and the widespread hatred for the U.S. that has been the result."

"The story of how the CIA got back into the killing business is as chilling and dramatic as a spy novel--except it's true. Mark Mazzetti has laid out an extraordinary tale, tracking the spies as they track the terrorists. "The Way of the Knife "is as close as you'll ever get to the real thing."
--Dexter Filkins, author of "The Forever War"

""The Way of the Knife "provides a stunning, inside account of the CIA's transformation after 9/11 from an intelligence agency into a global clandestine killing machine. Mazzetti, who is one of America's best national security reporters, has written a frightening, must-read book."
--Jane Mayer, staff writer, "The New Yorker"; author of "The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned Into a War on American Ideals"

"The United States fought three wars after 9/11: Iraq, Afghanistan and the one in the shadows. This is an authoritative account of that that third war, conducted by the CIA and military Special Operators in Yemen, East Africa and, most of all, Pakistan. If you want to understand the world we live in, you need to read it."
--Thomas E. Ricks, author of "Fiasco" and "The Generals "

Author Bio

MARK MAZZETTI is a national security correspondent for "The New York Times." In 2009, he shared a Pulitzer Prize for reporting on the intensifying violence in Pakistan and Afghanistan and Washington s response, and he has won numerous other major journalism awards, including the George Polk Award (with colleague Dexter Filkins) and the Livingston Award, for breaking the story of the CIA's destruction of interrogation videotapes. Mazzetti has also written for the "Los Angeles Times," "U.S. News & World Report," and "The Economist." He lives in Washington, D.C."