HOLY WAR - WHY DO SOME MUSLIMS BECOME FUNDAMENTALISTS?
By Bill Musk
Monarch Books. 320 pages
ISBN 1 85424 609 7
This is a revised and expanded edition of the book first published in 1992 under the title: Passionate believing: the 'fundamentalist' face of Islam. It is divided into three clear parts: an introduction to Islamic fundamentalism; significant historical and modern models of Islamic fundamentalism; an evaluation and reflection. The author states his aim is to 'delve into those various passions and prejudices and discover their foundations' (p 15).
The first part looks in some detail at the influence of Mullah Omar, founder of the Taliban, exploring the historical background and thus showing how Afghanistan was fertile ground for reaction and the rise of this group. Such a setting was ideal breeding ground for other fundamentalist/terrorist movements from neighbouring countries, not least Usama bin Ladin's 'base' Al-Qaida.
