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Inside Al Shabaab by Harun Maruf and ...
One of the most powerful Islamic militant groups in Africa, Al-Shabaab exerts Taliban-like rule over millions in Somalia and poses a growing threat to stability in the Horn of Africa. Somalis risk retaliation or death if they oppose or fail to comply with Al-Shabaab-imposed restrictions on aspects of everyday life such as clothing, media, sports, interpersonal relations, and prayer.
Inside Al-Shabaab: The Secret History of Al-Qaeda's Most Powerful Ally recounts the rise, fall, and resurgence of this overlooked terrorist organization and provides an intimate understanding of its connections with Al-Qaeda. Drawing from interviews with former Al-Shabaab militants, including high-ranking officials, military commanders, police, and foot soldiers, authors Harun Maruf and Dan Joseph reveal the motivations of those who commit their lives to the group and its violent jihadist agenda.
A wealth of sources including US diplomatic cables released by Wikileaks, letters taken from the Pakistani hideout of Osama bin Laden, case files from the prosecution of American Al-Shabaab members, emails from Hillary Clinton's tenure as secretary of state, and Al-Shabaab's own statements and recruiting videos inform Maruf and Joseph's investigation of the United States' campaign against Al-Shabaab and how the 2006 US-backed Ethiopian invasion of Somalia gave the group the popular support it needed to radicalize ordinary citizens and become a powerful movement.
The Real Politics of the Horn of Afri...
Brief Summary
The Real Politics of the Horn of Africa delves into the business of politics in the turbulent, war-torn countries of north-east Africa. It is a contemporary history of how politicians, generals and insurgents bargain over money and power, and use of war to achieve their goals.
Drawing on a thirty-year career in Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Somalia, including experience as a participant in high-level peace talks, Alex de Waal provides a unique and compelling account of how these countries’ leaders run their governments, conduct their business, fight their wars and, occasionally, make peace.
De Waal shows how leaders operate on a business model, securing funds for their ‘political budgets’ which they use to rent the provisional allegiances of army officers, militia commanders, tribal chiefs and party officials at the going rate. This political marketplace is eroding the institutions of government and reversing state buildingÑ and it is fuelled in large part by oil exports, aid funds and western military assistance for counter-terrorism and peacekeeping.
The Real Politics of the Horn of Africa is a sharp and disturbing book with profound implications for international relations, development and peacemaking in the Horn of Africa and beyond.
ISBN:9780745695587
Author:Alex de Waal
Little Mogadishu Eastleigh Nairobis G...
Brief Summary
Nairobi’s Eastleigh estate has undergone profound change over the past two decades. Previously a quiet residential zone, the arrival of vast numbers of Somali refugees catalyzed its transformation into ‘Little Mogadishu’, a global hub for Somali business. Dozens of malls and hotels have sprouted from its muddy streets, attracting thousands of shoppers.
Nonetheless, despite boosting Kenya’s economy, the estate and its residents are held in suspicion over alleged links to Islamic terrorism, especially after the 2013 Westgate Mall attack, while local and international media have suggested with little evidence that its economic boom owes much to capital derived from Indian Ocean piracy.
In contrast to such sensationalized reporting, Little Mogadishu is based on detailed historical and ethnographic research and explores the social and historical underpinnings of this economic boom. It examines how transnational networks converged on Eastleigh in the wake of the collapse of the Somali state, attracting capital from the Somali diaspora, and bringing goods—especially clothes and electronics—from Dubai, China and elsewhere that are much in demand in East Africa. In so doing, Little Mogadishu provides a compelling case-study of the developmental impact Diasporas and transnational trade can have, albeit in a country where many see this development as suspect.
ISBN:9780190646202
Author:Neil Carrier
Warlord Democrats in Africa by Anders...
Warlord Democrats in Africa: Ex-Military Leaders and Electoral Politics (Africa Now).
Post-war democratization has been identified as a crucial mechanism to build peace in war-ridden societies, supposedly allowing belligerents to compete through ballots rather than bullets. A byproduct of this process, however, is that military leaders often become an integral part of the new democratic system, using resources and networks generated from the previous war to dominate the emerging political landscape.
The crucial and thus-far overlooked question to be addressed, therefore, is what effect the inclusion of ex-militaries into electoral politics has on post-war security. Can ‘warlord democrats’ make a positive contribution by shepherding their wartime constituencies to support the building of peace and democracy, or are they likely to use their electoral platforms to sponsor political violence and keep war-affected communities mobilized through aggressive discourses?
This important volume, containing a wealth of fresh empirical detail and theoretical insight, and focusing on some of Africa’s most high-profile political figures – from Paul Kagame to Riek Machar to Afonso Dhlakama – represents a crucial intervention in the literature of post-war democratization.
Sowing the Mustard Seed by Yoweri Mus...
Sowing the Mustard Seed is a story of unflinching bravery. It is the story of unwavering search for a true, revolutionary and development-oriented leadership. The author takes the reader on a tell-all journey of the sacrifice that he and other young Ugandans decided to take in order to liberate their country from the jaws of helplessness to which the first post-independence governments had conspired to consign it.
In this spell-binding tale, told in the first-person voice, Yoweri Kaguta Museveni traces the journey of his life from his first few months on earth, through his education, after which he and other patriots embarked on a journey of seeking empowerment to overthrow the despotic regime of Idi Amin Dada.
It also delves into other wars, such as the long-drawn-out bid to neutralize Joseph Kony’s ragtag Lord’s Resistance Army and professionalizing the Ugandan army, after many years of sectarianism. Besides illuminating the struggles of the past, Yoweri Kaguta Museveni shares his vision for Uganda and the pillars he has over the years put in place as President to ensure Uganda’s future is secure both economically and socially.
Written in easily accessible but highly Africanized language, it is a tale of unstinting focus and commitment that will both inform and inspire the reader.
Pocket Guide Butterflies of East Afri...
Butterflies are among the most familiar and popular of all the insects, and butterfly watching makes an absorbing hobby. This handy, compact guide serves as an introduction to East Africa’s amazing butterfly diversity. It introduces 246 of the more common, spectacular and interesting species found in Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi.
Each species account features concise text describing key identification features, habits, habitat and larval food plants; full-color photographs; and distribution maps showing each butterfly’s range.
This handy guide should prove invaluable to beginners and more experienced butterfly enthusiasts alike.
Pocket Guide Insects of East Africa b...
Brief Summary
This book forms part of our growing Pocket Guide series. It will fill a gap in the East African market as there is currently no book on the subject for that region. The book covers close to 400 common and interesting insects found in the region.
The focus will be on identification, but the book will also offer insight into life cycles and interesting behavior among certain insect groups. Full-color images accompany each species entry.
Beneath the Lions Gaze by Maaza Mengiste
An epic tale of a father and two sons, of betrayals and loyalties, of a family unraveling in the wake of Ethiopia’s revolution.
This memorable, heartbreaking story opens in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 1974, on the eve of a revolution. Yonas kneels in his mother’s prayer room, pleading to his god for an end to the violence that has wracked his family and country.
His father, Hailu, a prominent doctor, has been ordered to report to jail after helping a victim of state-sanctioned torture to die. And Dawit, Hailu’s youngest son, has joined an underground resistance movement—a choice that will lead to more upheaval and bloodshed across a ravaged Ethiopia.
Beneath the Lion’s Gaze tells a gripping story of family, of the bonds of love and friendship set in a time and place that has rarely been explored in fiction. It is a story about the lengths human beings will go in pursuit of freedom and the human price of a national revolution. Emotionally gripping, poetic, and indelibly tragic, Beneath the Lion’s Gaze is a transcendent and powerful debut.
Lonely Planet Tanzania -Travel Guide ...
Lonely Planet Tanzania is your passport to all the most relevant and up-to-date advice on what to see, what to skip, and what hidden discoveries await you. Watch East Africa's greatest natural dramas play out on the Serengeti plains, learn about local Chagga culture, or wander through the narrow alleyways of Zanzibar; all with your trusted travel companion.
Get to the heart of Tanzania and begin your journey now!
Inside Lonely Planet Tanzania Travel Guide:
1. Colour maps and images throughout
2. Highlights and itineraries show you the simplest way to tailor your trip to your own personal needs and interests
3. Insider tips save you time and money and help you get around like a local, avoiding crowds and trouble spots
4. Essential info at your fingertips - including hours of operation, phone numbers, websites, transit tips, and prices
5. Honest reviews for all budgets - including eating, sleeping, sight-seeing, going out, shopping, and hidden gems that most guidebooks miss
6. Cultural insights give you a richer and more rewarding travel experience - including customs, history, religion, art, music, dance, politics, landscapes, wildlife, and cuisine
7. Over 46 local maps
8. Useful features - including Month-by-Month (annual festival calendar), Safaris, and Active Tanzania
9. Coverage of Dar es Salaam, Mt Kilimanjaro, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, the Zanzibar Archipelago, Stone Town, Lake Victoria, the Serengeti Plains, the Mahale Mountains, Katavi, Ruaha, and more
The Perfect Choice: Lonely Planet Tanzania, our most comprehensive guide to Tanzania, is perfect for those planning to both explore the top sights and take the road less travelled.
• Looking for more extensive coverage? Check out Lonely Planet's East Africa guide for a comprehensive look at all the region has to offer.
Operation Thunderbolt by Saul David
The definitive account of one of the greatest Special Forces missions ever, the Raid of Entebbe, by acclaimed military historian Saul David.
On June 27, 1976, an Air France flight from Tel Aviv to Paris was hijacked by a group of Arab and German terrorists who demanded the release of 53 terrorists. The plane was forced to divert to Entebbe, in Uganda--ruled by the murderous despot Idi Amin, who had no interest in intervening.
Days later, Israeli commandos disguised as Ugandan soldiers assaulted the airport terminal, killed all the terrorists, and rescued all the hostages but three who were killed in the crossfire.
The assault force suffered just one fatality: its commander, Yoni Netanyahu (brother of Israel's current Prime Minister.) Three of the country's greatest leaders: Ehud Barak, Shimon Peres and Yitzhak Rabin planned and pulled off one of the most astonishing military operations in history.
White Mischief by James Fox
Brief Summary
Just before 3am on January 24th, 1941, when Britain was preoccupied with surviving the Blitz, the body of Josslyn Hay, Earl of Erroll, was discovered lying on the floor of his Buick, at a road intersection some miles outside Nairobi, with a bullet in his head.
A leading figure in Kenya's colonial community, he had recently been appointed Military Secretary, but he was primarily a seducer of other men's wives. Sir Henry Delves Broughton, whose wife was Erroll's current conquest, had an obvious motive for the murder, but no one was ever convicted and the question of who killed him became a classic mystery, a scandel and cause celebre.
Among those who became fascinated with the Erroll case was Cyril Connolly. He joined up with James Fox for a major investigation of the case in 1969 for the SUNDAY TIMES magazine. After his death James Fox inherited the obsession and a commitment to continue in pursuit of the story both in England and Kenya in the late 1970s.
One day, on a veranda overlooking the Indian Ocean, Fox came across a piece of evidence that seemed to bring all the fragments and pieces together and convinced him that he saw a complete picture.