Dining With Terrorists

by Philip Rees

When George W. Bush screamed 'You're either with us or you're against us' in the war on terror' he eradicated the right of anyone to question his logic or challenge his new list of 'terrorist' organisations. These included as diverse candidates as Colombian coca farmers, Basque separatists and Kashmiri independence fighters. Lazily bandied around, the emotive, political and inflammatory word 'terrorism' has accompanied everything from ecology, narcotics to nuclear weapons. But one would do well to recall George Orwell and 'new speak' and to treat the headlines, the spin and the political justifications with the objectivity they deserve. By infiltrating the most inaccessible political resistance groups over the past 20 years, Phil Rees has sought to understand what motivates the 'terrorist' or 'freedom fighter' and to balance this against the context of the current world events and the sweeping power of US military might. Through the sharing of refreshment and discussion with 'terrorists' in such diverse countries as Colombia, Algeria, Kosovo, UK, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Iran, Lebanon, France, Cambodia and Ireland, Rees was able to pierce the headlines, the propaganda and the official government line to discover the human story behind the faceless, hooded caricature. As entertaining and intriguing as it is polemic and timely, this is the only book that challenges our preconceptions of just what the word terrorist actually means and how dangerous a weapon it is.

Genres: Politics, War

400 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

An unauthoratative book on terrorism in general. He did cover tons of different groups that he had interviewed over his career. It surprised me that that actual underlining theme was that the definition of terrorism is vague and that basically anyone that speaks out against the establishment can be considered a terrorist according to the war on terror and the patriot act. It wasn't anything new per say, but helped me better understand various groups' backgrounds and why they are considered terrorists by their various governments. It was also on a very readable level, but at the same time he jumped from group to group in an inefficient manner that was often confusing.

[Baybars · Rating 4 out of 5]

A welcome break from all that one sided narratives that always sound as if the author is trying to convince him/her self of the argument. With a bit of humor, too. Even though its basic message was repeated a bit too often, there was enough breadth of information about various groups to keep it interesting. I liked the way he lists what was on the menu whenever there was food on the table, just to justify the gag-title of the book, but "A Night at the Majestic" it is not.

"A bit of flat bread and dried figs..."

[Michael Mcclelland · Rating 5 out of 5]

A dizzying collection of anecdotes and name-dropping from a journalist struggling to come up with a definitive answer of just who is a terrorist. Shocking, fascinatingly-told accounts lead the reader to the conclusion that it's not as cut-and-dried as you probably thought it was. Of interest to any world citizen.

[Peaceful Warrior]

The world of terrorism is not as black and white as the media and governments portray it to be.The biggest terrorists are the governments of the western worlds, i.e America and Britain. this is what I have learn t.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Terrible title for what is a thoughtful and engrossing book.

[Peter Lindsay]

Dining with Terrorists: Meetings with the World's Most Wanted Militants by Philip Rees (2005)

[Jussi Mononen]

An excellent primer to the post 9/11 world from an unusual angle.