This book has a very detailed description of the whole event. Well written in a typcial novel style, the book goes through all the happenings in a manner that keeps the reader engaged though I felt this book could be shorter and still have the same sort of impact as it does.
An ideal book for a future movie script on an important event in the history of islam.

This book has a very detailed description of the whole event. Well written in a typcial novel style, the book goes through all the happenings in a manner that keeps the reader engaged though I felt this book could be shorter and still have the same sort of impact as it does.
An ideal book for a future movie script on an important event in the history of islam.

I was prepared to dislike this book, suspecting an "action pack thriller", full of loopy historical inaccuracies, if not outright fantasy - all because of the jarring black and red cover. Instead I found a lean, scholarly, and almost certainly dispassionately accurate account of one of the more important and not very well understood events in the last quarter of the 20th Century. It is written in a fast-paced action style, flipping back and forth among the major actors in this drama, but that enhances and does not hinder his story. Ramifications of this siege are affecting us today.

Mr. Trofimov knows his subject well, amazingly well. He deftly describes the numerous disparate historical antecedents to the taking of the mosque by Islamic fanatics, and the reactions of the major actors. The Ikhwan, the religious brotherhood which was instrumental in Abdul Aziz's conquest and consolidation of what would be the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and his decision that they overstepped their limits, and so he had to mow them down with borrowed British machine guns in the early `30's, leading to a sense of martyrdom in the remnants of the defeated communities. America was tired of "foreign adventures," Vietnam being the prime reason, and therefore the CIA was severely constrained, with the coups it directed in Chile and Iran very much in mind. There was the Kingdom itself, being overwhelmed by the "future shock" of oil revenues, and the attendant rapid "modernization," with its own ills, inevitably leaving some people behind

As with many events of this magnitude, ironies abound; they are described but not overplayed. The Royal Family must obtain a ruling from the Ulema, the chief religious body, that force can be used to remove the rebels, yet philosophically, the Ulema is in large measure in agreement with the complaints of the rebels. For days virtually no one knows the exact identify of the people who seized the mosque, so the United States insists it was Iran, and the Shiites; meanwhile Iran is insisting it is the United States and the infidels. Perhaps the best trained Arab force that could assist the Saudis is the Hashemite Jordanians, but they can not be used since they were once rulers in the Hejaz, were defeated by Abdul Aziz, and if they returned, "may not leave." Eventually the Saudis turned to the French, "because they were discreet and could keep a secret," which also proved false.

I found the section of the French involvement particularly fascinating, since it dispelled the rumors that had dominated this topic, and described in an authoritative manner the exact nature of the fairly limited intervention (3 men, and supplies). Characteristically of Trofimov's account, he states the facts which he could ascertain, but does not speculate whether Barril, one of the three Frenchmen, actually entered Mecca.

Equally important was the depiction of the immediate ramifications throughout the Muslim world, who blamed the United States, in large part because of Khomeini. US Embassies in Libya and Pakistan were burned, with loss of American life.

John Burgess, on his CrossRoads Arabia website, pointed out some (relatively minor) flaws in Trofimov's book, citing the reason that the Bedouin were settled was not, as Trofimov contends, to better perform their ablutions, but rather to stop their raiding. I'd add a couple of my own: the Nejd would never be described as the "central Arabian highlands" (p14), and, of course, 1400 is not the first year of new century, 1401 is.

On a personal note, I traveled by road in the Asir, from Abha to Taif, one week prior to the taking of the mosque, and may very well have passed some of the participants. On that trip, at a police checkpoint, was the only time in my 20 years in the Kingdom, that a Muslim did not give the proper response to my "As-Salaam Alikum" greeting; the followers of Juhayman believe(d) that a Muslim should not respond to an infidel when he gave the traditional greeting.

In Trofimov's summing up, he correctly identifies Juhayman's deed as only one of the currents which lead to the formation of Al Qaeda. He also points out a second one, arriving from Egypt, in the person of Ayman Al Zawahir (who had been inspired by the execution of his hero, Sayyid Qutb). Of course, a third could easily be postulated: the unintended consequences, a/k/a "blowback" in CIA jargon, of America and Saudi Arabia funding and arming Islamic fundamentalist to fight the Soviets in Afghanistan. And a fourth: the CIA coup against the democratically elected government of Iran in 1953.

Epilogues can be used to examine some of the "what ifs" of an event. One of the rumors concerning Juhayman's capture stated that he had asked: "But where are the armies of the north"? Trofimov does not cover this, and only alludes to the self-delusional nature of individuals who succumb to millennial dogmas; the alleged Mahdi believes that he is "bullet proof," with the attendant fatal consequences. How many of my fellow citizens believe in the "rapture," the postulated end of the world when Christ returns, and would actually like to hasten the date? And "what if" they took concrete actions to accomplish this goal? Our own Juhayman...

Trofimov account is almost certainly the best account we will ever have on the seizure of the mosque in Mecca in 1979, and is highly recommended.

Purchased: May 2008 (Kindle)

Pro: Fast-paced, concise story of an intriguing event. Illuminates the present state of affairs by presenting convincing evidence that the leader "...Juhayman's multinational venture,...was a precursor of al Qaeda itself."

Con: Considering how hard it is to get accurate information about Saudi Arabia, I was initially suspicious that I was reading another "A million Little Pieces". I suggest scanning A Note to Readers at the end of the book to better understand how information was gathered.

Overall: Buy it now

Overshadowed by other world crises in 1979, especially in Iran, the siege of Mecca has been largely forgotten. But it should not have been forgotten because it has set the stage for much of the terror that has ensued in the last 28 years. It was not exactly the birthplace of Al Quieda and Bin Laden but it gives a great insight into the trouble nature of the extremist regime of Suadi Arabia and how Saudi Arabia made a 'deal with the devil' by bringing in extremist cleric to help root out the more extremist people who had taken over the mosque. Rumours that a relative of Bin Laden was involved, the story of the beheadings of those who had participated, the claim that the French special forces called in to help converted to Islam so as not to 'offend' the Saudis and the story of the assault on American embassies throughout the Muslim world in the days that followed are all covered here.

The book begins with a discussion of the history of Saudi Arabia and its extreme religious foundations, its apartheid like legal system for men and women and the origins of the Wahhabi movement. THen the story jumps forward to describe the radicalization of several groups of Muslims, including Juhayman Said al Otaibi and his brother-in-law Muhammad bin abd Allah al-Qahtani as well as other gulf Arabs and even some African-American Muslims. On November 20th, 1979 this group of men invaded the Al-Masjid al-Haram mosque in Mecca, the Grand Mosque, and in the battles that followed some 250 people were killed. Saudi National Guardsmen were shot down easily by the well armed and trained rebels. This necccesitated the regimes work with the conservative cleric Sheikh Abdel Aziz al Baaz and the calling in of non-Muslim foreigners to help with the siege.

This is an expert story and the author not only tells it well but relates its history, its context and its aftermath, trying to show how this was pivotal in the increasing rise of Islamist terror in the Middle East that eventually culminated in Sept. 11.

Seth J. Frantzman

The "Siege of Mecca" is a book that every serious reader should read. If you are an advocate or a beach comber or a pretender, you don't need to read this book - you wouldn't enjoy it because it would not suit your interests or needs.

For "Serious Readers" (i.e. people who read everything including cereal box ingredient lists or those tags on mattresses and then think about it) the "Siege of Mecca" is simply a delight. It describes one of those weird historical moments (like the Bonfire of the Vanities) that seems to represent much more to the future than it did in its present. As far as this Serious Reader knows, Trofimov provides the most complete, dispassionate, and interesting description of this incredible act of stupidity and/or courage. It appears to be one of those "tipping point" moments in history to use the current hipster jargon.

For English readers, the writing may seem just a bit ragged. Trofimov's grasp of the English (American) idiom is a bit . . . lubricated, shall we say? It slips just a bit now and then, but Mr. Trofimov's facility with English is much better than my skill with his native language, so I'm quibbling here. Sometimes his expressions are quaint, quirky, or merely violate the grammarian's whip, but in the spirit of Strunk and White, it nonetheless works. Get over it and focus.

This book also provides one of those incredibly interesting tangents on the Global War on Terror. After you read this book you realize that there is a lot more going on than the New York Times, National Public Radio, or the current Presidential Administration is telling you. This is flip: If you like the really "good" restaurants, the ones even the cool guys don't talk about, this is the book for you. The "Siege of Mecca" is the truth, or at least the Current State of the Art.

I highly recommend this book.

In 1979, a group of over 100 Muslem fundamentalists took over Islam's holiest shrine, convinced that they were fulfilling an obscure prophecy about the Final Days. They came dangerously close to succeeding.

This little-known event remains a profound embarrasment to Muslims in general and the Saudi kingdom in particular, so it's not surprising that information on it is hard to come by even 20 years after the fact. Indeed, I'd never heard of it until a few years ago when I was surfing Wikipedia and found a vague stub entry for the event.

"The Siege of Mecca" is the first serious effort to lift the veil of mystery on this odd event. The result is a fairly scary picture of how close the House of Saud came to collapsing and the Middle East plunging into all-out Holy War. Along the way, we get a contextual history lesson of ultra-fundamentalist Islam and its eschetology. The author also goes to some length to show how the Seige sewed the seeds for the rise of Al Qaida.

The book is a quick read, in part because it grips the reader early on. It also manages to be non-biased, heaping scorn equally on the perpetrators of the take-over, the inept Saudi responses, and the bungling US state department that apparently never fully grasped the enormity of the situation.

TSOM reads like a political thriller, which actually was the only problem I had with it. The author's prose is heavy-handed in use of passive and negative voice, which I found awkward. Also, he forgoes footnotes in favor of a "notes and sources" section at the very end of the book. When discussing things such as a Haddith or Quaran sura, I would have liked to have seen it (or had it more immediately referenced) so I could draw my own conclusions. However, these are just minor complaints, and I doubt other readers will be as picky as I am.

Over-all, a good read, and very recommended.

For those of us who keep wondering why? The Siege of Mecca reveals not the starting point, but certainly a fine example of how modern Islamic terrorism came into being. 9/11; the USS Cole; the Beirut embassy bombing; each of these events has its roots in fundamentalist Wahabi doctrine which rejects the commercial and cultural evils of the modern western world and teaches its youth to strike back and become martyrs in their quest for a "pure" Islamic world.

The only difference in Mecca was that the target was not western, but rather the holiest of shrines in all of Islam, a symbolic attack on the guardians of Mecca, the Saudi State who permit infidels to live and work among the faithful, polluting the culture and purity of those who live by Islamic law.

But the common thread is lashing out against the influence of the West and its perceived commercial and cultural imperialism, by poor but pure believers. Those who followed Mecca learned to turn the targets of their hatred away from their own and directly at the west.

The reaction of the rest of the Muslim world is more telling. For example, while the perpetrators of the siege were Muslims attacking their own people, Pakistani students launched their own deadly siege on the US embassy, convinced that the US was behind the incident, while their government did nothing to stop them.

The portrait of the Saudi leadership is eye opening, as they clearly had the opportunity to prevent this event, but chose not to, based on appeals from the truly evil, the Islamic clerics who teach the doctrine that the terrorists are only enforcing. The Saudis bumble like fools through the days that follow the siege, all the while working to keep the rest of the world from understanding what was truly going on. In the aftermath of the Siege, the Carter doctrine initiated the US military buildup to support the Saudi state, despite the weakness and its illegitimacy among its own people. Today we still pay the price.

The stars of the book are the French Special Forces team that mastermind the final retaking of the shrine without stepping one foot in the holy city. You have to respect the French here.

The seizure of the Mosque of Mecca was a most serious revolt of Saudi Sunni militants against the al-Saud state. The rebels not only wanted to impose a more drastic form of religious state on Saudis, but wanted to depose the Saudi monarchy. As a result of the revolt, Saudi Arabia become a more conservative religious state, and America was tagged as the inspirator of this revolt.

Khomeni labeled the rebels Americans who wanted to take the most holy symbol of Islam hostage. As a result of this, two American embassies in Libya and Pakistan were trashed and burned. Several embassy employees were killed as a result of this action. Again we see Moslem crowds get turned around and put the blame on a vast Western conspiracy, when in fact, Moslem fanatics caused the bloodshed. Moslem nations feed this fantasy of Western conspiracy to keep the heat off their corrupt, poorly managed regimes. Instigators like the Iranian government take advantage of this to cause terror in the Western world. It also shows the weak kneed response of the Carter Administration in dealing with terrorism.

This is a nice book that shows the politics of Saudi Arabia and how they affect the world. More understanding of how people view the West will give us better understanding of how to handle future crisises. The author sheds light on a crucial incident.

I'm glad this book was not out when I was working as a nurse and living in Saudi Arabia in 1979. It makes so much sense now that I have read the book. I remember well reading the headlines of The Herald Tribune that Thanksgiving day in 1979 while sitting at the bar in the Intercontinental Hotel in Paris- " Grand Mosque In Mecca Under Seige." I was shocked and very frightened as I was due back in Saudi in three days. All communications from The Kingdom had been severed and I had no idea what situation I would return to. When I did arrive in Jeddah, I was shocked at the lax security, but could get no information on what was going on. When I returned to the Saudi Military base where I was working,just 50 miles from the Yemen border, the security was indeed very tight as it was rumored some of the rebels were holed up in the mountains near the base. It was probably true that it was the beginning of AL-Queda. At the time, there were tanks and convoys heading out to Yemen, but of course it was all "top secret." None of the Westerners were privy to any of the military operations. I realize now how naieve I was when I mentioned this incident in my book"Single in Saudi." The Siege of Mecca brought it all together, and gives a great historical account of the start of the current anti- American sentiment now so prevalent in the world. Genia

must read for anyone interested in more about pre-911 and about Saudi Arabia religious-political history.

THE SIEGE OF MECCA is everything a history/polysci/current events book should be: extremely well written (by a news professional with 15+ years of experience in the Middle East, not an academic) with little "spin" by the author. Like a good news story, the book is brief and to the point, and holds the reader's attention throughout.

Trofimov has done a superb job of organizing his facts and supporting his thesis that response to this terrorist act provided much of the emotional impetus for the foundation for al Qaeda. Anyone interested in Middle East politics or the sectarian aspects of Islam should pay attention to this book.

The writing of this account of the take-over of the Grand Mosque is well-written and well-documented. The book is a real page-turner.

For those who are troubled by the terrorism and intolerance that seems to have roots in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the book makes the following chilling points: 1) The influential Saudi cleric Abdelaziz Bin Baz provided the theological inspiration for Juhayman al Uteybi, the leader of the Mecca uprising; 2) the Wahhabi clerics extracted a massive commitment of power and money from the House of Saud before they would issue a fatwa against the uprising, 3) the same fundamentalists agreed with all that Juhayman's organization espoused (including terrorism and reining in the House of Saud) except the arrival of the Mahdi; and 4) the House of Saud's Prince Turki has expressed profound regret for allowing this idology to flourish as a consequence of the uprising.

Reading just like a classic thriller written by the likes of Graham Greene or John Le Carre, Wall Street Journal reporter Yaroslav Trofimov's "The Siege of Mecca" is an important, comprehensive examination of the events leading up to the two-week siege of Mecca's Grand Mosque, the siege of itself, and subsequent events afterwards, which would lead inexorably to the rise of Al-Qaeda and the spectacular 9/11/01 terrorist attacks upon the United States. This is without question, an important event not only in contemporary Islam, but for the world too, and yet it is one that has been ignored these past few decades. Now, finally, the untold story of the 11/20/79 seizure of the Grand Mosque, has been pieced together by Trofimov, who has written what ought to be regarded as one of the most important books of the year. Surprisingly, Trofimov covers much terrain in what proves to be a relatively terse book on this bloody episode in recent Saudi Arabian history, emphasizing the origins, but even, the aftermath of this attack, which, he asserts was the first of many bloody incidents of Islamofascist terror leading up to the 9/11/01 terrorist attacks.

Trofimov opens with a brief, but concise, history of both the Saudi royal family, emphasizing its 20th Century history and, especially, of the fundamentalist Sunni Islam sect known as Wahhabism; a sect which has been preaching Islamic Jihad (`Holy War") against the Western infidels encroaching upon Middle Eastern land for centuries. He emphasizes the close, centuries-old ties between the al-Saud family and Wahhabi clerics, reminding us of an early 19th Century Saudi-led effort to conquer the entire Arabian peninsula, hoping to transform it into a Wahhabi Islamic state; an attempt defeated only by an Egyptian military force acting on behalf of the Ottoman Sultan, after more than five years of bloody warfare (The Saudi ruler was finally captured, taken to Constantinople, and beheaded there amidst "fireworks and a public celebration".). A century later, the Saudis were far more successful in their religiously-motivated desire for empire-building, imposing upon their newly conquered domains, a strict adherence to Wahhabi Sunni Islam, cleverly using a crack troop of fanatical Wahhabis, the Ikwan, to lead the conquest of much of Arabia from the early 1910s to the late 1920s. Eventually, however, the Ikwan revolted against the Saudis, appalled by the king's embrace of Western beliefs and technology, such as telephones, only to be crushed decisively at the March 1929 battle of Sbala. Years later, one of these Ikwan veterans would celebrate the birth of a son, Juhayman, the future mastermind behind the 11/20/79 seizure of the Grand Mosque.

Through Juhayman's eyes, Trofimov traces the rise of radical Islamist movements throughout the Middle East, especially Egypt, from the 1950s through 1970s. Juhayman acquires his devout, fanatical adherence to Wahhabism via service as a member of the Saudi National Guard. Eventually he's influenced strongly by the charismatic blind cleric Bin Baz; the arch foe of Saudi Arabia's incessant rush towards modernization, criticizing sales of cigarettes, displaying portraits of the royal family in public buildings, and, in particular, the emerging emancipation of Saudi women. But Juhayman would go much further than Bin Baz, by criticizing the very existence of the Saudi kingdom in a religious manifesto smuggled out of the country, and published in neighboring Kuwait. He would anoint a young religious student, Mohammed Abdullah, as Islam's Mahdi (redeemer), destined to lead the faithful at the Grand Mosque at the dawn of Islam's 14th Century (11/20/79). He would smuggle arms and munitions into the Grand Mosque, drawing elaborate plans for its seizure at the dawn of the new century; plans which nearly resulted in success.

Trofimov demonstrates that not just the Saudi ruling family, but the West, too, was caught completely off guard by Juhayman's seizure of the Grand Mosque. While some of this was attributable to a strict ban against non-Muslims entering Mecca itself; another, equally compelling, reason was the ongoing hostage crisis at the United States Embassy in Teheran, Iran (Erroneously, at first, Iran was thought to have been the foreign power responsible for the siege itself.). A bloody comedy of errors ensues, as ill-equipped Saudi troops try storming the mosque, only to be mowed down by superior weaponry possessed by Juhayman and his band of militants (A band that includes Afro-Americans with military training.). Meanwhile, the Saudi family receives permission from leading Wahhabi clerics - including Bin Baz - to mount an all-out assault upon the mosque itself, in exchange for ending the family's modest efforts at Western-influenced modernization, and other measures which set the stage for the 9/11/01 terrorist attacks upon America itself. Last, but not least, at the Saudi family's urging, France sends an elite team of anti-terrorist commandos and tear gas; it is this team that directs the final, successful assault upon the mosque.

This is a well written and well researched account of the now almost forgotten 1979 assault of the Grand Mosque of Mecca by a group of Islamic-Sunni extremists. This assault almost brought down the Royal House of Saud and with it oil rich Saudi Arabia. In the course of this story Trofimov provides the reader with an all together fascinating account of the fundamentalist Sunni Wahhabi sect which was embraced by the house of Saud and still has a symbiotic relationship with them. Wahhabism is a fundamentalist breeding ground for extremism and more dangerously terrorism. It served in 1979 and even today as a source for religiously inspired anti-western feeling throughout the Islamic world. Because of the relationship between the Saudi Royal Family and the Wahhabi sect, Saudi Arabia to this day has an under current of fanaticism its government is loathe to repress.

In 1979 Saudi security forces were ill-organized and ill-trained with very little understanding modern security and combat techniques. This has presumably changed, but one has many reasons to doubt this. The attack on the Mosque itself served to fuel an already volatile anti-Americanism that was a constant under current in the Islamic world then and now. With Iranian encouragement Pakistani mobs burned the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad to ground and came close to killing the Embassy staff. Americans every where in the Near East were in real danger. Yet in the end the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan served to take some the pressure off of the U.S. and suddenly Pakistan moved into the position that it retains to this day as an indispensable strategic ally. A status the Saudi Arabia has had since the end of WWII.

As Trofimov recounts this story, the administration of President Jimmy Carter (1976-1980) repeatedly is shown as having a weak and vacillating foreign policy towards Islam reflecting a remarkable ignorance and confusion on the part of the President and his advisors. It is not clear from this book if this an accurate picture or not.

The Siege of Mecca tells the true story of the 1979 takeover of the holiest place in Islam -- the Grand Mosque of Mecca. The author deftly weaves the details of the takeover and recapture of the Grand Mosque with the internal politics of Saudi Arabia and the international ramfications for America. His analyses of the "scene on the ground" and the related geopoltical situation are exceptionally insightful, yet straight-forward.

While the Siege of Mecca is intended and suitable for the general reader, it should be required reading for American diplomats, so they can better understand the powerful forces inside Islam. It should also be required reading for Saudi high school students, so they can appreciate the dangers of extremism.

Terrific. A must read if you want to get a grip on today's world situation. Superbly researched and clearly presented.

The author has done an exceptional job of researching and sourcing material for this amazing look at a pivotal event in modern Islam and Middle Eastern history. While I was vaguely familiar with the attempted siege of the Grand Mosque in Mecca in 1979, the details behind the takeover by Sunni's intent on overthrowing the Saudi Royal family and the ultimately "successful" subduing of the followers of Juhayman makes for a fascinating read and raises questions about the lasting impact of this event. Occuring shortly after the Iranian Revolution, Trofimov provides a revealing look into never before covered facts about how close the Saudi regime came to being overthrown, the ineptitude of the Saudi government departments in putting down the situation (National Guard, Dept. of Interior) and the role of the French special forces in assisting the royal family. Especially captivating were Trofimov's chapters on the harrowing situations for American diplomats and their staffs in Pakistan and Libya as Islamic students attempted to destroy the US Embassy's and quite possibly replicate the situation that existed in Tehran. For anyone intersted in the Islam and the Middle East, this book is an absolute must.

The book flowed well, providing background information in a readable and concise format.The events of this little known story from 1979 unfold in a manner that reminded me of a Tom Clancy novel. It will be the defining account of the Seige of the Grand Mosque.

This is both an excellent read and a genuine contribution to the history of contemporary neo-jihadism.

I had had a vague sense that the 1979 seizure of Mecca's Grand Mosque was the work of an otherwise irrelevant sect of apocalyptic crazies; Trofimov shows that it was, in fact, the first overt manifestation of the same coalition between superheated Wahhabist fundamentalists native to Saudi Arabia and darkling Muslim Brotherhood Islamists native to Egypt that forms the structure of al Qaeda now. The demented apocalyptic expectations of the besiegers of Mecca--that is, that their Mahdi, or Muslim Messiah, would initiate the return of Jesus, his destruction of Christianity and Judaism (those arrogant and unworthy rivals of Islam) and facilitate the world's entrance into a state of undisturbed enjoyment of Islamic justice--these expectations were, Trofimov demonstrates, appendages to their original and most immediate concern: the forcible return of Saudi Arabia itself to proper piety after its unchecked drift into sin and forgetfulness under the materialistic Saudi regime.

There seem to be two major tendencies in the West in accounting for current Islamic terrorism: 1) that it is only apparently religious, but is actually political; and "political" in this context usually has a rather narrower meaning than it usually does, namely "merely responsive to the aggressions of American foreign policy," and 2) that it is, in actual fact, primarily religious in motivation and outlook.

Trofimov's book makes it clear that the latter is the case: Islam is not just a vocabulary, or way of speaking, for this insurgency, but is its content and its lifeblood. Because Islam itself is beyond criticism, and the Muslim ummah or community is assured in the Quran that it is the world's best, there is a tendency among at least some Muslims to blame external enemies for any internal dysfunctions (Bernard Lewis has repeatedly, and as far as I can tell, accurately made this claim). So it was here: as soon as news of the ongoing attack of Muslim upon Muslim leaked out, there followed a rash of more or less spontaneous assaults on US embassies throughout the Muslim world, in imitation of the then recent embassy takeover in Iran.

An important point about defeating this kind of terrorism emerges, I think, from Trofimov's narrative. For Muslims, unlike Christians, a dead messiah is worthless. His value lies in what he can accomplish on earth--namely, the setting right of the historical wrongs Muslims have suffered, from their own point of view (the establishment of Israel, for example, or the loss of al Andalus (one of bin Laden's complaints), and in general, their present weakness and relative lack of prestige). The besiegers of Mecca were militarily defeated, finally, but the fight only really went out of them when they all knew that their Mahdi had died. If this had been widely known earlier, the fight might have been shorter and less intense that it was.

Al Qaeda or other neo-jihadist movements aren't now, as far as I know, supporting the claims of any particular Mahdi, but something apocalyptically hopeful remains in their overall outlook. If it becomes clear to Muslims generally that this enterprise isn't actually leading to a world-historical correction in the shape of a new Islamic ascendancy, but is off on some historically irrelevant tangent, we will have gone a long way toward defeating it. If its Mahdi can't be killed, its charisma doubtless can be.

I was living in Germany going to college at the time and remember how the end of 1979 was chaos in the Middle East. The author gives an excellent account how the siege of Mecca was the trigger for much of this.

The author describes very well the story of the Ikhwan (brothers) in Saudi Arabia. This group of Sunni extremists was used by the House of Saud in order to take over Saudi Arabia around the 1920's. The Ikhwan were such bigots, aside from considering non-Sunni heretics, that they would not even say hello to other Sunni who did not belong to their brand of religion, what we all now refer to as the Wahhabis. This attitude of the Ikhwan, by the way, is very similar to the Jewish settlers in the occupied territories. I lived there before and just try to say hello to American Jews when you hear them in the market. they switch to Hebrew and then ignore you. (I merely mention this comparison as the settlers are the same problem as the Ikhwan).

The Ikhwan had to be crushed as they turned against the House of Saud when the latter refused to expand into areas occupied by Britain or France. The Ikhwan declared war on the House of Saud and were then defeated. How this ties in to the siege is that the father of the leader of the siege (Juhayman) was at the last battle of the Ikhwan. It was just a matter of time.

The author shows how the House of Saud was so paranoid regarding the ramifications of the siege that they blacked out all reporting. While falsely stating all was under control, they had to turn to the French for help in putting it down. It was really touch and go for all. The author shows the devil's bargain the House of Saud had to make with the Saudi clerics in order to call Juhayman and his followers apostates. To fight in Mecca was a sin and this was some bargain. Saudi Arabia became very backwards instead of progressive as they were at the time as a direct result.

The takeover of the American embassy in Tehran and attacks on American embassies in the Middle East showed how inept the Carter Administration was in dealing with this new Islamic threat. The Soviets were also inept, as the siege precipitated their own invasion of Afghanistan. Saudi Arabia was able to get rid of the Juhayman followers by sending them to Afghanistan to fight the godless communists as a sign of piety.

Many authors like to point to certain past events as being the catalyst for Al Qaeda. They are all right to a certain degree, but this author shows how the siege in 1979 had significant unintended consequences.

I found The Siege of Mecca to be well written and interesting. The author uses clear prose and presents a very interesting topic. However, I found that his political bias shows through more than I would normally like. Other than that, a very good book.

The Siege of Mecca: The Forgotten Uprising in Islam's Holiest Shrine and the Birth of al-Qaeda

This is a fascinating expose of the mess that is Saudi Arabia...Arrogant Royals, Fanatical Wahhabis, incompetent police and army.

From this siege, the madness of the Fundamentalist rebellion led by Khomeini in Iran was inflamed by the export of Wahhabi fanatics to Afghanistan to help the Taliban chuck the Russians out...and having done that..the "Hate all infidels" gospel spread right across the Islamic world..even to Indonesia and the Philippines...and Back to Morocco , Algeria, Egypt, and Syria.

Frightening to see how the pronouncements of the Prophet Mohammed have been distorted to promote the Arab tribal pastime of murdering your neighbours to murdering anyone not of your particular sect of Islam.

I thoroughly enjoyed this recounting of the capture of the holy shrine in Mecca in late 1979. The author does an outstanding job telling the story of the uprising and along the way gives the reader a primer on the history of Islam. This is no dull academic exercise however as it reads like an international thriller in many respects. The author also shows how the uprising in 1979 has led directly to many of the problems the USA faces with the Islamic world today. The birth of Al Qaeda is connected directly to this event as is the rise of Osama Bin Laden. For those of us confused by what is happening in the Middle East this is an excellent resource for getting up to speed and perhaps delving more deeply into the Islamic world.

November 20, 1979 was the first day of Islam's year 1400, and the beginning of the third week of the Iranian hostage situation. Much less well known, though probably more important, it also brought the siege of the Grand Mosque in Mecca, and launched modern jihad. "The Siege of Mecca" tells that story, despite the closed Saudi Arabian society and its highly restricted coverage of the event - at least partly because the royal family's response was seen as incompetent and lessening loyalty among its citizens.

Mixing with the locals inside the mosque were 100,000 Muslims from all over the world. Hidden among them were hundreds of rebels, mostly Saudis of Bedouin stock. They smuggled in arms inside caskets supposedly carrying dead relatives brought for blessing.

Ragged-looking rebels chained shut and guarded all 51 gates as soon as the regular prayers ended. Machine-gun nests were set up atop the shrine's 7 minarets. The Saudis imposed a communications blackout and its soldiers were reluctant to act for fear of condemnation for fighting fellow Muslims in a holy place. Obtaining that essential religious support required that the Saudi rulers commit to stricter Islamic observation - no more women on TV, billions to be spent spreading rigid Wahhabi Islam around the world, etc.

The Saudi Army then blasted the snipers out of the minarets (using U.S. Army TOW missiles), and then brought in armored personnel carriers to clear out the rebels in the above-ground portion of the mosque. Unfortunately, the mosque had a seemingly impenetrable underground labyrinth of rooms and tunnels that still housed rebels, and the Saudis were unable to dislodge them.

Jordan volunteered help, but was declined because of the site's history - originally taken from Jordan. The CIA was not used - presumably because this would have required Carter's authorization. Thus, the Saudis went to the French, and were given three commandos as advisers. Their strategy involved wider use of a stronger gas than the Saudis had used, and successfully led to retaking the shrine.

The two week takeover brought an estimated 1,000 casualties, per independent experts (vs. the Saudi estimate of 500). Saudi intelligence brought no warning of the siege - it had been focused on Communists, nationalists, and pro-Iranian revolutionaries. After the takeover the Wahhabis decided to support the Saudi Arabian government as a defense against Communism in Afghanistan and the Shiite heresy from Iran. Unfortunately, the militant strains of Islam greatly benefited from the new support, and al Qaeda eventually was born.

Yaroslav Trofimov's "The Siege of Mecca" is an attempt at forging a secret history of Al-Qaeda through the lens of an oft-forgotten 1979 uprising in the Grand Mosque in Mecca that has been all but forgotten in many modern histories. The precise information of the uprising was suppressed in media outlets by the Saudi government in order to avoid upsetting Saudi Arabia's public perception and the delicate situation the Saudi royal family was in as caretakers of the two holiest cities in Islam. Trofimov weaves a multi-faceted account of what happened, showing how the mistakes of well-meaning individuals at all levels on the world stage helped contribute to the current climate of radical Islamic fundamentalism.

The book is a quick read, well paced and well-researched, Trofimov relying both on perviously hard to obtain offical records regarding the uprising and his own extensive rearch and interviews. He has provided a great service in assembling good research in a book that is accessible to anyone with interest.

But most important are the lessons that are learned from the book. Trofimov reminds us that, while we are rarely gifted with the gift of foresight in our involvement in world affairs, it pays to learn from the past. The raw ideological materials for al-Qaeda were present 30 years ago, but the imminent concerns of the Soviet Union and the Ayatollah's Iran prevented this seemingly isolated incident to be recognized as the eventual world threat that it would turn into. With the fate of our future involvement in the Iraq war looming and with many in our nation preferring isolationism and the satisfaction of our imminent concerns over our participation in the world scene, it would do us good to remember that, like it or not, there's a world out there that's aware of us even if we are not aware of it.

While this book is a valuable history of the attempted takeover of Mecca to install a purported Mahdi, its greatest value is its insights into workings of the House of Saud and the mindsets of the Sunni and Shia of the area. It reads very well and is highly detailed and well researched. Alas, the circumstances that it describes are still with us today. If you wish to understand some of the current Iraq, Iran, and Middle East situation as we now have it, read this book along with authors such as Qutb, Vali Nassr, etc. Very simply a must have book for today.

This is a brilliantly written extremely well researched book about the seige of Mecca fomented by the belief in the returm of the Mahdi. These events are still illegal to talk about or teach in most the Muslum world.
Along the way the reader is given an excellent history of Islam especially relating to modern events. It pieces the puzzel together in a way that gave me many "eureka" moments as I started to relate historic and modern events. THE WORLD NOW MAKES MORE SENSE!!
Everyone should read this book!!

This book is about an event that was little-reported in the West at the time but has since had a big impact. The siege of one of Islam's holiest shrines disgraced the Saudi regime and fueled radical Islam. I was really impressed by how the author dug out new documents by using the Freedom of Information Act. He also went to Saudi Arabia and talked to many of the participants. These interviews let him create exciting scenes, like when the brave but doomed Saudi troops try to storm the mosque. He weaves in some good background and history on the region and radical Islam, so at the end of the book you've had some fun but also learned a lot.