Author:Yaroslav Trofimov
20 November 1979: as morning prayers began, hundreds of hardline Islamist gunmen, armed with rifles smuggled in coffins, stormed the Grand Mosque in Mecca. With thousands of terrified worshippers trapped inside, the result was a bloody siege that lasted two weeks, caused hundreds of deaths, prompted an international diplomatic crisis and unleashed forces that would eventually lead to the rise of al Qaeda.
Journalist Yaroslav Trofimov takes us day-by-day through one of the most momentous – and heavily censored – events in recent history, interviewing many direct participants in the siege and drawing on secret documents to reveal the truth about the first operation of modern global jihad.
Riveting
—— Sunday TimesA thriller-like account of an event largely hushed up
—— The TimesA gripping, highly informed narrative
—— Financial TimesThe first detailed account of the event … brilliantly researched and eye-opening … this is undoubtedly a book of international significance
—— HeraldA gripping and revealing account of this brutal uprising … The Siege of Mecca is a marvel of investigative journalism … Trofimov's viciously gory account unfolds with a sharp eye for detail and accuracy
—— Ziauddin Sardar , New StatesmanTrofimov tells this tale with considerable verve and authority. He has interviewed many of the surviving witnesses and participants in a country suffused with fear and paranoia, and sets the siege within a wider historical context
—— Michael Burleigh , Literary ReviewA sympathetic and interesting guide to the intellectual and social landscape of the past 200 years or so.
—— Church TimesReadable and memorable, this is intellectual history at its best
—— Publishers Weekly
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