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The Mind of a Terrorist: David Headley, the Mumbai Massacre, and His European Revenge
With the Pacing of a Thriller, a Veteran Journalist’s Account of the Terrorist behind the Mumbai Attacks and a Planned Attack in Europe
David Headley, the American-Pakistani also known as Daood Gilani, lived a double life. One day he would stroll through Central Park in his tailored Armani suit as a true New Yorker, and the next he would browse in the bazaar in Lahore wearing traditional Pakistani clothes. One day he would drink champagne at the most extravagant clubs; on another he would prostrate himself in prayer in remote Pakistan and pledge fidelity to Allah.
Born in 1960, the son of an American mother and Pakistani father, with one blue eye and one brown, Headley grew up between East and West. He was attracted to both worlds, even working as an informant for the US government, until one day he found he had to choose between the place of his birth and a radical form of Islam preaching global jihad. This is the disturbing story of the mastermind behind the 2008 attacks in Mumbai that killed 166 people—who two months later flew to Copenhagen to plan another act of terror with the help of al-Qaeda sleeper cells in Europe.
Veteran journalist Kaare Sørensen has reconstructed his movements and planning in a tense feat of reportage. His account, based on extensive reporting, eyewitness interviews, and documentation including wiretaps, court transcripts, and emails by Headley accessed from a chat room cache of nine thousand messages, offers unprecedented insight into the mind of the terrorist. The author has provided updates and a new preface for the English-language edition.
David Headley, the American-Pakistani also known as Daood Gilani, lived a double life. One day he would stroll through Central Park in his tailored Armani suit as a true New Yorker, and the next he would browse in the bazaar in Lahore wearing traditional Pakistani clothes. One day he would drink champagne at the most extravagant clubs; on another he would prostrate himself in prayer in remote Pakistan and pledge fidelity to Allah.
Born in 1960, the son of an American mother and Pakistani father, with one blue eye and one brown, Headley grew up between East and West. He was attracted to both worlds, even working as an informant for the US government, until one day he found he had to choose between the place of his birth and a radical form of Islam preaching global jihad. This is the disturbing story of the mastermind behind the 2008 attacks in Mumbai that killed 166 people—who two months later flew to Copenhagen to plan another act of terror with the help of al-Qaeda sleeper cells in Europe.
Veteran journalist Kaare Sørensen has reconstructed his movements and planning in a tense feat of reportage. His account, based on extensive reporting, eyewitness interviews, and documentation including wiretaps, court transcripts, and emails by Headley accessed from a chat room cache of nine thousand messages, offers unprecedented insight into the mind of the terrorist. The author has provided updates and a new preface for the English-language edition.
246 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 7, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
October 18, 2016
This tells about the 2008 Mumbai attacks and how David Headley (nee Daood Gilani) planned them. It tells of his planning for other attacks, most notably on “Jyllands Posten” the Danish newspaper that published cartoons of Mohammad. There are flash backs to his pre-terrorism life, but little on his “mind”. The book can be read in 2 sittings.
Headley was an ideal recruit for either a terrorist organization or the counter groups that track them. He was born in Washington, DC of an American mother and Pakistani father. Fluent in English, Urdu and Punjabi he can easily operate in two cultures.
In the first chapter describing the Mumbai attack the book appears to be about Jasper Bornak. Since you know the book is about Headley you wonder how Bornak fits in (he doesn’t, he is an attack survivor from Denmark). Headley appears on p. 29, quite a wait given how short this book is. This kind of emphasis continues throughout the book which I believe relates to the information the author has, not all of which is germane to the story, and very little of which is germane to the title.
Going back and forth in time you learn a bit about Headley as a cadet in an exclusive military high school in Pakistan, his return to the US to work/manage his mother’s restaurant and bar in Philadelphia, his video store (NYC) venture, his heroin dealing, bust and resulting informing for the DEA, his marriages, meeting and communicating with other terrorists, his time in terrorist training camps and his success (Mumbai) and frustration (Denmark) in planning large scale attacks.
What little there is on Headley’s mind is embedded in dialog and reprinted email discussions on religion and jihad. A good treatment of his psychology would be an interesting read indeed. Wikipedia describes Headley’s mother (Sherrill Headley, he took her name) as “a prominent figure in Philadelphia society”. His father was a diplomat and broadcaster and the family remains prominent in Pakistan. With this title, one might expect an exploration of family relationships, but only a few facts are given.
After all Headley’s bravado writing about sacrifice and being true, when caught, it takes about 30 minutes for him to start spilling beans. He names names including those of long term friends. Why? Perhaps there were plea bargains, but so quickly? after all his true believer talk and writing? He did the same in his heroin plea bargain.
Prior to this, I only knew (somewhat subliminally) that an American jihadist was behind the Mumbai attacks. Now I’m more informed on the attacks, but this American was clearly not a true believer… so why did he do it?
For all its weaknesses, the author has brought together a lot of material. I would like to see someone take this and develop it into a book that fulfills the title. Headley’s psychology is not only of interest to lay readers, knowing more about his thinking can help law enforcement and the fight against terrorism.
December 8, 2022
Thanks to the Audible App I was able to listen to this brilliant book written on one of the masterminds of the Taj Palace Attack, in Mumbai in 2008.
I was studying in the second year of my MBA when this fatal incident took place, and it tore my spirit apart.
I have no clue what David Headley consumed to come up with such a gruesome plan of killing thousands of people because he was full of hatred, arrogance, and ignorance. I am glad that he was caught by the FBI agents, otherwise he would have attacked many other countries to satisfy his filthy ego and distress in mind.
It makes me feel scared knowing that any day could be our last day not because of natural death circumstances but because someone like David Headley is planning our death well in advance because he cannot stand us.
And if he had abided by any of the rules written in his holy book, he wouldn't have turned himself into a monster.
This book has opened up my mind about what a terrorist is capable of doing, how much money they are ready to invest and how many bodies they are prepared to kill just to leave their indelible scars in the world and they put it on their religion. To hell with such a person and his idiotic thoughts about religion.
David Headley needs help and all those people who believe they are followers of the Muslim community but instead inflict wrath and pain on others. You need to look within yourself, not at the world.
I was studying in the second year of my MBA when this fatal incident took place, and it tore my spirit apart.
I have no clue what David Headley consumed to come up with such a gruesome plan of killing thousands of people because he was full of hatred, arrogance, and ignorance. I am glad that he was caught by the FBI agents, otherwise he would have attacked many other countries to satisfy his filthy ego and distress in mind.
It makes me feel scared knowing that any day could be our last day not because of natural death circumstances but because someone like David Headley is planning our death well in advance because he cannot stand us.
And if he had abided by any of the rules written in his holy book, he wouldn't have turned himself into a monster.
This book has opened up my mind about what a terrorist is capable of doing, how much money they are ready to invest and how many bodies they are prepared to kill just to leave their indelible scars in the world and they put it on their religion. To hell with such a person and his idiotic thoughts about religion.
David Headley needs help and all those people who believe they are followers of the Muslim community but instead inflict wrath and pain on others. You need to look within yourself, not at the world.
May 30, 2021
This book has been on my shelf for a long time. I finally decided to pick it up and I am glad that I did. It is an eye-opening and frightening book that gives an insight into the intrinsic motivation of terrorists around the world. The most grim part was reading about the Mumbai attack in detail from the perspective of one of the people present at the attack. Definitely read this book to know more about terrorism.
August 27, 2016
This is a frightening book, everyone of us knows broadly about these terrorists, and this book is where you discover we know not much about these fellows. This book infuriates one and also gives a hint as to how profound this problem is! The book is only about one terrorist, but the contacts we discover across continents of his are baffling.
This book also gives one a different perspective on the many measures taken, with respect to counter terrorism, the drone attacks, the surveillance and other measures. At the end one can atleast understand why it has become unavoidable to adopt these measures.
Also, the book leaves no doubts lingering as to the safe havens of these terrorists, the impunity with which they roam around in these places and the tacit approval of the governments there with these terrorists. This book clearly states the epicenter of terrorists, their breeding ground, their safe house and their home.(I am refraining from using the name of those countries)
The book is about the recon man for the 26/11 mumbai attacks, David headley, an American passport holder, which becomes his biggest asset! It gives precise details as to the planning and the execution of this terrorist attack and leaves nothing to imagination! It is a quick page turner and is recommended to everyone who wants to go a little deep about these terrorists.
This book also gives one a different perspective on the many measures taken, with respect to counter terrorism, the drone attacks, the surveillance and other measures. At the end one can atleast understand why it has become unavoidable to adopt these measures.
Also, the book leaves no doubts lingering as to the safe havens of these terrorists, the impunity with which they roam around in these places and the tacit approval of the governments there with these terrorists. This book clearly states the epicenter of terrorists, their breeding ground, their safe house and their home.(I am refraining from using the name of those countries)
The book is about the recon man for the 26/11 mumbai attacks, David headley, an American passport holder, which becomes his biggest asset! It gives precise details as to the planning and the execution of this terrorist attack and leaves nothing to imagination! It is a quick page turner and is recommended to everyone who wants to go a little deep about these terrorists.
April 10, 2016
"Headley knows the secret about terror. It's not about death. . . . It's about the creation of fear."
American-born David Headley was the master planner behind the devastating terrorist attack in Mumbai in 2008 which killed hundreds. After a life of drug smuggling, womanizing, and prison, he embraced Salafism, a fundamentalist branch of Islam which holds the Qur'an to be the unalterable words of Allah. Following the 9/11 attacks, and the subsequent capture of Kabul, Afghanistan, by the US military, Headley joined other radical Muslims at a terrorist training camp in Pakistan. His non-Arab appearance, strategic skills and American passport soon brought him into the inner circle, with access to the world's most deadly terrorists.
In order to combat fear, we need to understand it. 'The Mind of a Terrorist: David Headley, the Mumbai Massacre, and his European Revenge' takes you deep inside Islamist terror at the highest levels. Based on many thousands of emails, official documents, testimony, witness interviews and recorded phone calls, Kaare Sorensen has written a true-life thriller.
American-born David Headley was the master planner behind the devastating terrorist attack in Mumbai in 2008 which killed hundreds. After a life of drug smuggling, womanizing, and prison, he embraced Salafism, a fundamentalist branch of Islam which holds the Qur'an to be the unalterable words of Allah. Following the 9/11 attacks, and the subsequent capture of Kabul, Afghanistan, by the US military, Headley joined other radical Muslims at a terrorist training camp in Pakistan. His non-Arab appearance, strategic skills and American passport soon brought him into the inner circle, with access to the world's most deadly terrorists.
In order to combat fear, we need to understand it. 'The Mind of a Terrorist: David Headley, the Mumbai Massacre, and his European Revenge' takes you deep inside Islamist terror at the highest levels. Based on many thousands of emails, official documents, testimony, witness interviews and recorded phone calls, Kaare Sorensen has written a true-life thriller.
October 18, 2022
Listened to the audiobook
Ever since I watched the Attacks of 26/11 movie I wanted to read more about the origins of those attacks and also wanted to understand how come such attacks at that scale were possible.
This book was an amazing insight into the life of David Headley and how he got involved in the world of terrorism. The author has done an amazing job of explaining all the attacks and the mindset of a person who just wanted to cause harm in the name of religion.
Definitely, a book I would recommend others to read.
Ever since I watched the Attacks of 26/11 movie I wanted to read more about the origins of those attacks and also wanted to understand how come such attacks at that scale were possible.
This book was an amazing insight into the life of David Headley and how he got involved in the world of terrorism. The author has done an amazing job of explaining all the attacks and the mindset of a person who just wanted to cause harm in the name of religion.
Definitely, a book I would recommend others to read.
April 18, 2017
Veteran journalist Kaare Sørensen has reconstructed Headley’s movements and planning in a tense feat of reportage. His exclusive account, based on extensive reporting, eyewitness interviews, and documentation including wiretaps, court transcripts, and emails by Headley accessed from a chat room cache of 9000 messages, offers unprecedented insight into the mind of one of the most dangerous terrorists.
June 28, 2016
A few "orientalist" bloopers aside (e.g. David Headley is portrayed as arriving in the US at age 16 "having never seen an unveiled woman", which is a bit much, since most Pakistani women are not veiled (and even fewer were veiled in 1977), this is the most complete book you are likely to read about David and his life.
April 15, 2020
“The enemy must fear us. When this is over, there will be much more fear in the world.”
That was the line from Karachi in Pakistan, where everything was going according to plan in the terrorists’ control room. They could make calls to the ten terrorists – who had now formed four teams – without any problem at all and thereby control them, as if they were remote-controlled robots.
The team consisting of Fahadullah and Rahman had taken the inflatable dinghy farther up the Mumbai coast, then headed directly to the Oberoi-Trident hotel complex. Once there, they wasted no time. In the lobby they killed all nine employees and three guests by the same method as their colleagues, hand grenades and bullets.
Esperanza Aguirre, the president of the Spanish region of Madrid, was about to check-in at the front desk as she heard shots fired. She threw herself down behind a table, then hid in the kitchen and then in a storage room before she was helped into an office. Finally, she fled, barefoot, out onto the street.
Meanwhile, fear spread throughout the hotel. Several people crawled out windows and clung to the walls, yelling for help.
In a sushi restaurant in the hotel, thirteen were killed. One woman was badly injured but played dead. She lay for sixteen hours before help arrived.
The two men detonated a bomb in a tea room and dragged fifteen hotel guests out into a stairwell. Fahadullah was about to execute the men when one of the wives – Meltem Muezzinoglu – suddenly yelled, “We’re from Turkey. We’re Muslims.”
She and her husband, Seyfi Muezzinoglu, were allowed to live. The other men were shot.
Later, the women in the group were executed too. Among them was the twenty-eight-year-old lawyer Lo Hoei Yen from Singapore, who was in Mumbai for a day trip. She was forced up against a wall and executed.
Out of the entire group of hotel guests taken prisoner, only Meltem and her husband survived – likely because the terrorists heard them reciting a Muslim prayer over the dead. It was the only prayer the married couple knew by heart in Arabic.
“No kill. You brothers. Go in,” said Fahadullah to the couple.
That was the line from Karachi in Pakistan, where everything was going according to plan in the terrorists’ control room. They could make calls to the ten terrorists – who had now formed four teams – without any problem at all and thereby control them, as if they were remote-controlled robots.
The team consisting of Fahadullah and Rahman had taken the inflatable dinghy farther up the Mumbai coast, then headed directly to the Oberoi-Trident hotel complex. Once there, they wasted no time. In the lobby they killed all nine employees and three guests by the same method as their colleagues, hand grenades and bullets.
Esperanza Aguirre, the president of the Spanish region of Madrid, was about to check-in at the front desk as she heard shots fired. She threw herself down behind a table, then hid in the kitchen and then in a storage room before she was helped into an office. Finally, she fled, barefoot, out onto the street.
Meanwhile, fear spread throughout the hotel. Several people crawled out windows and clung to the walls, yelling for help.
In a sushi restaurant in the hotel, thirteen were killed. One woman was badly injured but played dead. She lay for sixteen hours before help arrived.
The two men detonated a bomb in a tea room and dragged fifteen hotel guests out into a stairwell. Fahadullah was about to execute the men when one of the wives – Meltem Muezzinoglu – suddenly yelled, “We’re from Turkey. We’re Muslims.”
She and her husband, Seyfi Muezzinoglu, were allowed to live. The other men were shot.
Later, the women in the group were executed too. Among them was the twenty-eight-year-old lawyer Lo Hoei Yen from Singapore, who was in Mumbai for a day trip. She was forced up against a wall and executed.
Out of the entire group of hotel guests taken prisoner, only Meltem and her husband survived – likely because the terrorists heard them reciting a Muslim prayer over the dead. It was the only prayer the married couple knew by heart in Arabic.
“No kill. You brothers. Go in,” said Fahadullah to the couple.
November 25, 2024
This book has been a roller coaster; from the disgust, to wrath, the sheer description in some of the visceral parts, the near psychopathic nature of Headley and associates- all of these things came together into an experience/remembrance of history which I think all Indians as well as Pakistanis should read (regardless of religion)
The internet was something I was exposed to at a very young age and I’ve as a result been exposed to various political, social and religious identities which I’ve sided with (and eventually disowned- mostly). I’ve been through hate, love, adoration and blind prostration of these ideologies yet I’ve come to a position which I believe is ‘right’ (though I know looking back on it later, it won’t be so).
When Headley says that he’s a changed man, do I believe him? When he who’s had a history of lying, hard drug consumption and dealing, womanising whilst he has a wife and claiming to follow his religion fully yet owning a dog, attacking civilians, draw offensive caricatures of his other prophets like Jesus- can you believe him on his word?
I won’t lie- I have hate for this man and would much rather see him on a death penalty. Yet I also know where his hate stems from like the accidental attack by Indian forces on his school. I as a child had glorified war after watching movies like 300 along with from books and video games. Yet I must ask- how many more David Headleys will be created if I let hate take over me?
You ever know a stupid guy who says something which you believe is stupid but it ends up being the right answer? That’s exactly how I feel right now. The easier path is hate, hopefully I (or my country or world) doesn’t acquiesce fully to it.
PS: I’m very grateful to the author writing this book and the translator for bringing it to life in English. Sincerely thank you.
The internet was something I was exposed to at a very young age and I’ve as a result been exposed to various political, social and religious identities which I’ve sided with (and eventually disowned- mostly). I’ve been through hate, love, adoration and blind prostration of these ideologies yet I’ve come to a position which I believe is ‘right’ (though I know looking back on it later, it won’t be so).
When Headley says that he’s a changed man, do I believe him? When he who’s had a history of lying, hard drug consumption and dealing, womanising whilst he has a wife and claiming to follow his religion fully yet owning a dog, attacking civilians, draw offensive caricatures of his other prophets like Jesus- can you believe him on his word?
I won’t lie- I have hate for this man and would much rather see him on a death penalty. Yet I also know where his hate stems from like the accidental attack by Indian forces on his school. I as a child had glorified war after watching movies like 300 along with from books and video games. Yet I must ask- how many more David Headleys will be created if I let hate take over me?
You ever know a stupid guy who says something which you believe is stupid but it ends up being the right answer? That’s exactly how I feel right now. The easier path is hate, hopefully I (or my country or world) doesn’t acquiesce fully to it.
PS: I’m very grateful to the author writing this book and the translator for bringing it to life in English. Sincerely thank you.
June 10, 2024
"The Mind of a Terrorist: David Headley, the Mumbai Massacre, and His European Revenge" is a meticulously researched and gripping account of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, offering minute-by-minute details of the planning and execution. Through a comprehensive narrative, it delves into David Headley's transformation from a drug dealer to a sophisticated terrorist operative, exploring his dual existence across various countries. The book humanizes the collateral damage of terrorism by shedding light on the lives of Headley's family and friends, providing a nuanced perspective on its personal ramifications. Additionally, it examines the psychological and ideological factors driving Headley's embrace of terrorism, offering profound insights into the mind of a terrorist and the broader implications of radicalization.
May 26, 2019
This book covered David Headley's involvement in planning the attacks on Mumbai and a Danish newspaper. There were many details, such as transcriptions of phone calls. The book was easy to follow since it mainly followed the story of one individual, as compared to books like "The Siege: 68 Hours Inside The Taj Hotel" which tried to comprehensively discuss all the people involved. The book also drew parallels to other terrorists, suggesting that there are common factors that make people susceptible to becoming radicalised, such as having identity crises.
February 16, 2019
Fantastic book. A must read for anyone interested in the intricacies of a typical terrorist’s mindset. This book is more about how Headley got to become what he ended up becoming and demonstrates the common characteristics of a typical terrorist.
July 5, 2018
An incredible insight into the minds of different people who can have such a different interpretation of life and death.
June 17, 2020
The story of David Headley, the Pakistani-American mastermind behind the 26/11 attacks by a Danish investigative journalist.
December 27, 2022
It offers a first hand account of investigation on the Mumbai attack. Scintillating insights . Brilliant.
June 17, 2016
Another chilling but most comprehensive account, especially as far as the post 26/11 period is concerned
May 3, 2017
the research that has been done for this book is amazing.Some of the e mails etc quoted in the book serves to remind us how dangerous it can be to get fanatic about our beliefs.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews