War on Terror: The Middle East Dimension

The attacks of September 11 2001 were transformative events, both in how Americans view their own sense of security and in how America engages with the world. Although the initial battle in the US-led war against terror has been fought in Central and South Asia, the principles behind that campaign have special resonance in the Middle East. Not only is the region home to organizations which share both ideology and methodology with the perpetrators of September 11, but many aspects of the more general threat to US interests are particular to this part of the world: the frightening spread of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery; the ongoing challenge to the international system posed by Iraq; and, perhaps most of all, the reluctance that many US allies in the region exhibit to confront their own religious militants. In this volume, key US and Middle East decision-makers, academics and journalists discuss important themes such as the common interests in regional states in co-operation against terrorism, the different strategies adopted by regimes in confronting their Islamist challenges and the impact of the September 11 events on the Israeli-Palestinian arena.