Review of "Inside Al Qaeda: Global Network of Terror" by Rohan Gunaratna

Although I purchased "Inside Al Qaeda" by Rohan Gunaratna one score and three years ago, it was not until three weeks past that I found both the time and the disposition to read it.

There is no gainsaying that the author had conducted meticulous research. This is amply evident in the extraordinary level of detail presented concerning the terrorist organisation, its perverse ideology, and the inner workings of its members’ psyches --- information that appears to have been drawn from various intelligence sources upon which the author evidently relied.

What is, however, found wanting is the organisation of the book’s contents: I was excruciatingly overwhelmed by a vast welter of information and a "swathe" of unpronounceable names, together with a multitudinous array of references to organisations, acronyms, and agencies --- many of which were left unexplained. A set of glossaries would have been invaluable in aiding the reader to fathom the depth and complexity of the material.

By the time I reached the final page, the only clear impression I retained was that Al Qaeda was responsible for numerous terrorist atrocities, and that it was a formidable and dangerous Islamist organisation which had committed many a blood-curdling murder and act of violence in the name of a God ironically styled as merciful.

Were one to ask whether the information conveyed in this substantial volume had enhanced my understanding of Al Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, and their accomplices, I should, unfortunately, have to respond in the negative.

Although the book may have made banner headlines in the immediate aftermath of 9/11, I rather doubt it would have found a publisher had the manuscript been submitted even five years later. The lack of structural cohesion and thematic unity has, in my view, marred what might otherwise have been a masterly work.

In summary:

1. The text abounds with names and acronyms, yet no glossary is provided.

2. The chapter on Osama bin Laden is not architectonically arranged; it lacks internal order and unfolds without systematic design.

3. The author appears to have hurried through the manuscript, leaping from one topic to another without any discernible chronological or thematic sequence.

4. Chapter Two, which addresses Al Qaeda’s organisation, ideology, and strategy, reads more like a police training manual --- overburdened with detail and replete with superfluous information.