Overview

In the wake of its 'Caliphate' declaration in 2014, the self-described Islamic State has been the focus of countless academic papers, government studies, media commentaries and documentaries. Despite all this attention, persistent myths continue to shape--and misdirect--public understanding and strategic policy decisions. A significant factor in this trend has been a strong disinclination to engage critically with Islamic State's speeches and writings--as if doing so reflects empathy with the movement's goals or, even more absurdly, may itself lead to radicalisation. Going beyond the descriptive and the sensationalist, this volume presents and analyses a series of milestone Islamic State primary source materials. Scholar-practitioners with field experience in confronting the movement explore and contextualise its approach to warfare, propaganda and governance, examining the factors behind its dramatic evolution from failed proto-state in 2010 to standard-bearer of global jihadism in 2014, to besieged insurgency in 2019. 'The ISIS Reader' will help anyone--students and journalists, military personnel, civil servants and inquisitive observers--to better understand not only the evolution of Islamic State and the dynamics of asymmetric warfare, but the importance of primary sources in doing so.

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9781787381971

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Reviews

'[The ISIS Reader] offers a rich view of the signal moments in the Islamic State's early and recent history, coupled with analysis and commentary that is incisive and will be helpful as the world considers the future trajectory of the Islamic State. ... This book will be a valuable resource to scholars from a variety of different disciplines and methodological perspectives.' -- Terrorism and Political Violence 'An important work that should be read by anyone interested in truly understanding the history of the Islamic State.' -- Perspectives on Terrorism 'An extraordinary resource for all defenders of pluralism and the free society.' -- Areo Magazine 'An absolutely essential reference work. The authors have masterfully assembled documents that shed important light on ISIS's ideology, world view, and approaches to warfare and governance, and its place in the Salafi-Jihadi universe.' -- Bruce Hoffman, Professor of Security Studies, Georgetown University, and author of 'Inside Terrorism' 'A remarkable work of textual historiography, The ISIS Reader blends a careful selection of primary sources with insightful analysis. Scholarly yet accessible, it is an indispensable resource to understand the world's deadliest terrorist organisation.' -- Lorenzo Vidino, Director of the Program on Extremism, George Washington University 'Each author of The ISIS Reader is brilliant and authoritative. Together, they have created an essential work, combining carefully curated primary sources with deeply informed analysis.' -- J.M. Berger, Associate Fellow, International Centre for Counter-Terrorism, and co-author of 'ISIS: The State of Terror' 'An enormously useful set of carefully curated primary sources that cuts through the fog of when, why and how ISIS emerged and evolved.' -- Elisabeth Kendall, Senior Research Fellow in Arabic and Islamic Studies, Pembroke College, University of Oxford 'You've seen their graphic violence, but have you read their texts? Few have, but now three leading jihadism experts have parsed the ISIS corpus and produced a fascinating guide through the Caliphate's dark ideological world.' -- Thomas Hegghammer, Senior Research Fellow, Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI) 'The authors have done a meticulous job of translating key ISIS texts and tying them together into a coherent, historical narrative. Rigorous and authoritative--an essential resource.' -- Anne Stenersen, Research Fellow, Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI) 'The ISIS Reader is exceptional and not merely another title to consider for one's personal or academic library. It presents exacting and collaborative scholarship which is, at many points, groundbreaking. A number of audiences will welcome this book, from teachers in under-graduate classrooms, to faculty holding graduate seminars on jihadism and violent non-state actors, to policy planners.' -- Special Operations Journal

'A remarkable work of textual historiography, The ISIS Reader blends a careful selection of primary sources with insightful analysis. Scholarly yet accessible, it is an indispensable resource to better understand the world's deadliest terrorist organisation.' -- Lorenzo Vidino, Director of the Program on Extremism, George Washington University

'An absolutely essential reference work for understanding ISIS's astonishing rise and fall. The editors have masterfully assembled a collection of compelling documents that shed important light on ISIS's ideology, world view, and approaches to warfare and governance, and its place in the Salafi-Jihadi universe.' -- Bruce Hoffman, Professor of Security Studies, Georgetown University, and author of 'Inside Terrorism' 'A remarkable work of textual historiography, The ISIS Reader blends a careful selection of primary sources with insightful analysis. Scholarly yet accessible, it is an indispensable resource to better understand the world's deadliest terrorist organisation.' -- Lorenzo Vidino, Director of the Program on Extremism, George Washington University 'Each author of The ISIS Reader is individually brilliant and authoritative. Together, they have created an essential work, combining carefully curated primary sources with deeply informed analysis that will guide the study of ISIS for years to come.' -- J.M. Berger, Associate Fellow, International Centre for Counter-Terrorism, and co-author of 'ISIS: The State of Terror' 'You've seen their graphic violence, but have you read their texts? Few have, but now three leading jihadism experts have parsed the ISIS corpus and produced a fascinating guide through the Caliphate's dark ideological world.' -- Thomas Hegghammer, Senior Research Fellow, Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI) 'The authors have done a meticulous job of translating key ISIS texts and tying them together into a coherent, historical narrative. The book is rigorous and authoritative--an essential resource for anyone seeking to understand the Islamic State phenomenon.' -- Anne Stenersen, Research Fellow, Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI)

Author Information

Haroro J. Ingram is a senior research fellow at George Washington University's Program on Extremism.

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