The Bin Laden Papers
How the Abbottabad Raid Revealed the Truth about al-Qaeda, Its Leader and His Family
by Nelly Lahoud
ebook
2 of 2 copies available
As seen on 60 Minutes
"A comprehensive, meticulously constructed and eye-opening look at bin Laden as husband, father and leader-in-hiding. . . . An engaging and persuasive read."—Karen J. Greenberg, Washington Post
"Never less than gripping. . . . [Offers] an extraordinary insight into the inner workings of al-Qaeda, both before and after 9/11, and lays bare the terrorist organisation's closely guarded plans, ambitions and frustrations."—Saul David, Sunday Telegraph
Usama Bin Laden's greatest fear was not capture or death but the exposure of al-Qaeda's secrets. At great risk to themselves and the entire mission, the U.S. Special Operations Forces, who carried out the Abbottabad raid that killed Bin Laden, took an additional eighteen minutes to collect Bin Laden's hard drives and thereby expose al-Qaeda's secrets.
In this groundbreaking book, Nelly Lahoud dives into Bin Laden's files and meticulously distills the nearly 6,000 pages of Arabic private communications. For the first time, al-Qaeda's closely guarded secrets are laid bare, shattering misconceptions and revealing how and what Bin Laden communicated with his associates, his plans for future attacks, and al-Qaeda's hostility toward countries such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Pakistan. Lahoud presents firsthand accounts of al-Qaeda from 9/11 until the elimination of Bin Laden, in his own words and those of his family and closest associates.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
April 12, 2022 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9780300265347
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9780300265347
- File size: 3573 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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May 1, 2022
International security and terrorism expert Lahoud pores through documents retrieved from Osama bin Laden's compound at the time of his death. When special forces forces penetrated bin Laden's Pakistani fortress, they were told to keep the raid under 30 minutes. With Adm. William McRaven's approval, they spent an extra 18 minutes to round up papers, computers, and the like--about 100,000 Arabic-language files that yielded "6,000 pages of relevant materials." These documents, notes the author, "allow us to put together a chronological account of the key events that defined al-Qaeda in the decade between 9/11 and the founder's demise in 2011." Much of the material involves mundane, even tedious, details of what amounts to an HR department with critical operational information: For example, they show that bin Laden was detached from daily command of al-Qaida during the years when he was hiding in the caves of Tora Bora, and they reveal a complex pattern of negotiation and calculation relative to Iran, which proved to be a counter to al-Qaida at many turns and therefore an unacknowledged ally of the U.S. Many al-Qaida leaders died early on in battle or by drones in Afghanistan, forcing bin Laden to reach out to recruit successors, so that "in 2004, Usama's remaining associates were second-tier leaders." Other matters of interest include plans for further terror attacks in the U.S. and in Saudi Arabia. The latter has long been accused of complicity in 9/11, given the number of Saudis involved, but Lahoud recounts that by 2008, Saudi authorities had arrested "more than 5,000 political prisoners of the jihadi variety." Along the way, Lahoud suggests that the pornography recovered from bin Laden's computer might have been a legacy from a previous owner, since by that time he was so financially strapped that he had to buy used, virus-laden equipment. Sometimes a slog, but a rich trove exposing a terrorist organization that persists even after its founder's demise.COPYRIGHT(2022) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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