The looming tower : Al-Qaeda and the road to 9

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Brilliantly written and highly original, this book tells the full story of Al Qaeda from its origins to 9/11. Drawing on interviews and first-hand sources, it explores the ideologues behind the organization and those who sought to stop them. Sayyid Qutb, a tormented Egyptian, was horrified by the perceived godlessness in America in 1948, and his writings made him a martyr for Islamic extremists. Ayman al-Zawahiri, a devout student, formed an underground jihadist cell by age fifteen. Osama bin Laden, a Saudi multimillionaire turned mujahideen commander, combined his interests with al-Zawahiri's to create a global terror coalition. The narrative also features John O'Neill, the FBI's flamboyant counterterrorism chief, whose warnings of an impending threat went unheeded, ultimately leading to his fate at the Twin Towers. Interweaving events like the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, and the first World Trade Center attack, the book delves into training camps and secret meetings to uncover the complex origins of Al Qaeda's animosity toward the West. The acclaimed work includes a new Afterword addressing events since its publication, including Osama bin Laden's death.