CAMILLE AL-TAWIL, Al-Haraka Al-Islamiyya Al-Musalaha fi Al-Jazair: Min “Al-Inqadth” ila “Al-Jamaעa” (The Armed Islamic Movement in Algeria: From the FIS to the GIA) (Beirut: Dar al-Nihar, 1998). Pp. 337.KHALED HROUB, Hamas: Political Thought and Practice (Washington, D.C.: Institute for Palestine Studies, 2000). Pp. 343. $29.95 cloth.QUINTAN WIKTOROWICZ, The Management of Islamic Activism: Salafis, the Muslim Brotherhood, and State Power in Jordan (Albany: State University of New York Press, 2001). Pp. 216. $55.50 cloth, $18.95 paper.

Extract

The study of Islamic movements has taken on a special relevance since the tragic events of 11 September 2001. More than ever, people inside and outside of academe are inquiring about the origins, motivations, and consequences of Islamic activism around the globe. The three books under review contribute to our understanding of Islamic activism in three countries: Algeria, Palestine/Israel, and Jordan. Camille al-Tawil's Al-Haraka addresses the rise of armed movements in Algeria since 1992 and their justification for violence, especially anti-civilian carnage, in the mid-1990s. Khaled Hroub's Hamas covers the origins, strategic orientation, and ideological evolution of one of the most controversial and militant Islamic movements in the Muslim world. Quintan Wiktorowicz's The Management of Islamic Activism sheds light on a moderate Islamic movement in the Middle East and the mechanisms of social control that foster such quiescent Islamism. These three works speak to the diverse nature of contemporary Islamic movements and the importance of political context in shaping Islamic strategic orientations. Each offers original empirical and theoretical insights that will surely enhance the discussion of Islamic activism in years to come.