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| Terrorist Trail: Backtracking the Foreign Fighter
Terrorist Trail: Backtracking the Foreign Fighter 1. Synopsis Terrorist Trail combines current events with historical detail, a rare combination in the book industry. Normally, there is a twelve-month delay in production alone. Though strictly nonfiction, Terrorist Trail is well illustrated and reads like a historical novel. Delving into the national histories of the African jihadists entering Iraq, it stumbles upon major issues. While al-Qaeda has been shipping fighters from Somalia to Afghanistan, Chechnya, and Central Africa, it is Iranian-backed Hezbollah that has been shipping fighters from Sudan to the Middle East. Then, those two threads unexpectedly merge with a third that of Chinese expansionism. 2. What people are saying: “The author uses historical data and the current . . . situations that highlight why history will repeat itself if we don't change our approach. He also points out our victories and how we can institute a winning strategy that will counter the terrorists on their own terms.”- Leatherneck Magazine “[A]nother brilliant and insightful work. . . . [It has] a depth of research and understanding that . . . those facing today’s challenges [will need] . . . to clearly grasp the nature of the conflict and the enemy. . . . [A]nother must read . . . if you want to understand the true global . . . connection of the threats we face.” - Gen. Anthony C. Zinni USMC (Ret.), former CENTCOM commander “[B]ook is a chilling description of the nature and extent of the constantly evolving and emerging [terrorist] threat as well as a . . . surprising expose of those countries funding and fueling the hatreds. . . . It’s true value, however, may be in outlining tactics and strategies to defeat today’s terrorism threat.” - Maj.Gen. John H. Admire USMC (Ret.), former commander of 1st Marine Division “[F]illed with mind-stirring information not easily found elsewhere, this [book is] on terrorism and insurgencyùwhere and how they have been fought, and some of the organizations, tactics, and techniques that have worked.” - Brig.Gen. Edwin Howard Simmons USMC (Ret.), former head of History & Museums Div., HQMC “[B]ook . . . has historical and tactical information essential to the containment of terrorism. The research and detail is amazing! . . . [It says] pure massive power is counterproductive. . . . In all military schools, [it] . . . should be the bible for changing our philosophy and tactics to contain and defeat terrorism.” - Vice Adm. Thomas R. Sargent USCG (Ret.), ship commander at the Battle of Leyte Gulf “Once again, John Poole has made a substantial contribution to understanding a 21st-Century world likely to be dominated by 4th-Generation war.” - William S. Lind, author of Maneuver Warfare Handbook “China . . . has become . . . [a] player in the terrorist wars of the Middle East and elsewhere. . . . Poole recognizes this and has written a brilliant analysis of these two different but related theaters of . . . war that would make Orde Wingate and T.E. Lawrence proud. . . . This is a guide to victory over a determined foe.” - Kim Holien, professional military historian “Poole’s . . . tactical manual explores . . . urban mantracking. . . . His target audience . . . [is] light infantry commanders. . . . [This] work . . . is the seventh in a series. . . . One chapter focuses clearly on the war in Iraq and is current through August of this year.” — Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, 23 November 2006 “Poole’s ability to place you inside the clandestine world of the international terrorist is profound. . . . The underlying message drives home our overall need to evolve [tactically].” — Leatherneck Magazine, October 2006 “Well-written and thoroughly researched, the book is a bastion of knowledge and an unequalled training tool. It traces the world’s terrorist problems without taking political alliances.” — Quantico Sentry, 12 October 2006 “Poole . . . writes . . . to supplement military training manuals. . . . [He] finds that al-Qaeda has been shipping fighters from Somalia to Afghanistan, Chechnya and Kenya, and [that] . . . Iranian-backed Hezbollah is sending fighters to the Middle East through Sudan.” — Savannah Morning News, 28 October 2006 3. Table of Contents List of Illustrations Foreword Preface Introduction Acknowledgments Part One: Tail of the Viper Chapter 1: Baseej from North Africa Chapter 2: Bilad as-Sudan Chapter 3: Levant Passage Chapter 4: Euphrates Pipeline Chapter 5: The Ongoing War in Iraq Chapter 6: Iran’s Growing Militancy Part Two: “Dark Continent” Lessons Chapter 7: Zulu Double-Envelopment Chapter 8: Boer Stalking Attack Chapter 9: South African Reconnaissance Chapter 10: Selous Scout Infiltration Chapter 11: African-Style Guerrilla Warfare Chapter 12: Muslim Raids Part Three: Grasping the Viper by the Tail Chapter 13: Slowing the Flow of African Fighters Chapter 14: Urban Tracking Chapter 15: To Truly Win in a Place Like Iraq Notes Glossary Bibliography About the Author Name Index 4. Excerpt from the Introduction Since the U.S. invasion of Iraq, jihadists have been entering that country from all over North Africa, with the largest contingent coming from Sudan.1 In late 2005, Americans learned that some bound for Afghanistan were being trained in Somalia. They knew that al-Qaeda had been forced out of Sudan in 1996 and wondered if it had left a contingent nearby. Islamic extremists . . . are undergoing training at two terrorist training camps in Mogadishu, according to the Somaliland Times. The newspaper reported Dec. 12 that several dozen religious extremists were trained at the camps run by Hasan Aweys and Adan Hashi Ayro. At least 10 British nationals of Somali and South Asian [Pakistani] origin were at the training camps. . . . The camps are code-named Baytul-Amn (safe haven) and Salah Al-Diin. . . . Baytul-Amn is located near the Islamic courts headquarters in Mogadishu. The other training facility is at Shikaro, a neighborhood in SomaliaÆs lawless capital. The training program . . . is based on Al Qaida manuals. Though most of the instructors are Somalis, Arab Afghans are teaching techniques for making powerful bombs and timers from easily available material.2 . . . . . . If al-Qaeda is sending jihadists to Afghanistan from Bosaso, and to Chechnya and Kenya from Ras Komboni, then someone else must be supplying fighters to the Iraqi theater from another country in the region. The background of that operation forms the fabric of this book. To short-circuit a Muslim revolution in the Middle East, the West must reduce the flow of baseej from North Africa.
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