"A lucid, passionate, shocking account of Islamist terrorism. Anyone interested in how the enemies of the West operate will want to read this book. And even those who are not, should."

--Ian Buruma, author of Inventing Japan, 1853-1964

"The Age of Scared Terror provides a staggering account of the origins of al-Qaeda, its motives and its bloody history since the early 1990s. After reading this book no one should be in any doubt that a new and unprecedented form of terrorism dedicated to the mass destruction of human life now exists. The book is also the chilling story of how slow and reluctant the West has been to recognize and counter an enemy whose intentions are more deadly than any it has ever faced before. The events of September 11, 2001, changed the world: Ours has truly become the age of sacred terror. This book explains in great and compelling detail how those events were possible, how they might perhaps have been avoided, and how they could occur again. Everyone should read it--and be warned."

--Anthony Pagden, author of Peoples and Empires: A Short History of European Migration, Exploration, and Conquest, from Greece to the Present

Publisher Web Site, November, 2003

Daniel Benjamin and Steven Simon were spearheading America's counterterrorism efforts when a new breed of religiously motivated radicals first appeared on the world stage, more technically savvy, audacious, and violent than any seen before. Simon and Benjamin were the White House officials in the eye of the storm, helping coordinate the U.S. government's intelligence, military, and diplomatic actions. Just weeks after leaving the National Security Council, they predicted on The New York Times op-ed page in January 2000 that al-Qaeda would seek to carry out massive terrorist attacks against the U.S. No one knows the thinking of the new terrorists better, their hatred of the West, their sense of divine mission, or the goals behind their bloodshed.

As only such insiders can, Simon and Benjamin recount the major conspiracies of the last decade, successes such as the East Africa embassy bombings and near misses such as Ramzi Yousef's effort to destroy a fleet of American 747 jets while in flight over the Pacific. The book presents the authoritative history of the radical Islamic movement that led to Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda. It explains why the terrorists succeeded on September 11 in carrying out the most extraordinary terrorist attack in history, why the American public was caught shockingly unprepared, and why the U.S. government's decade-long effort to stop these terrorists fell tragically short. The Age of Sacred Terror explains why al-Qaeda and radical Islam will remain America's most dangerous threat, and presents concrete recommendations about what America must do to prevail against opponents who will use nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons as soon as they can get them.