September 24

Covering the Marriott Hotel bombing in Islamabad this week, I was struck by how many people blamed the US for the attack – eyewitnesses, businessmen, newspaper writers. A few bought the outrageous conspiracy theory that the CIA was behind the bombing (to justify further US raids in the tribal areas, they said). But more saw the attack as Taliban/AQ payback for US military operations inside Pakistan. So, by their logic, average Pakistanis again paid the price for US actions unconnected to their interests. They were angry, angrier than I’ve seen them in a long time.

As we approach Friday’s foreign policy debate for the US presidential candidates, it reminded me of the mountain the next president has to climb in the Muslim World: not only fighting jihadis, but a much wider population who doesn’t see the war on terror as their war. It’s not just an image problem, but a real problem advancing US interests, from fighting the Taliban in Pakistan to winning the war in Afghanistan to keeping young British Muslims from joining jihad in London. I’m hoping the candidates face at least one or two hard questions on this. Jim

Hello from New York, It's day 7 of my book tour in the US. I'm grateful for the interest I've received from interviewers as well as readers I've met in New York and Washington. I'd like to take this chance to respond to some on the web who have criticized the book for ignoring the contribution of radical Islam - and the governments who espouse such thought - to the resentment of America. First, let me say I don't believe I ignore it. In the Saudi Arabia chapter, for instance, there are detailed descriptions of Saudi financial support for spreading its conservative brand of Wahhabi brand of Islam far and wide, as well as an account of Saudi Arabia's long delay in confronting Islamic extremism at home and abroad and continued questions about its sincerity in doing so. However, what I intend to focus on in this book are the moderates who share the extremists' views - and what it means for America when we lose the moderates, in addition to the extremists who we probably never had a chance with. Fact is, anti-American anger is not confined to radical Muslims. In fact, it extends to many secular Muslims and even to non-Muslims in the region, such as the Lebanese Christian girl who I profile in the chapter on Lebanon. This feeling is in many ways nationalistic rather than religious - a sense of a whole culture being under assault. I don't mean to justify it. Often, the thinking is based on pure lies. And this is not about a feel-good factor. It's about advancing US interests, one, by reducing the appeal of the core ideology that drives young Muslims to violence and, two, by increasing the chances that people working for positive change in the region actually want to work with us. Right now, many of them don't One example is Gameela Ismail, whom I profile in the Egypt chapter. The US encouraged her husband, Ayman Nour, to challenge President Hosni Mubarak in presidential elections in 2005. It was, said US officials, a sign of democratic progress in the region. But just a few weeks after the election, Nour was sent to jail, where he remains three years later. Ismail and Nour feel betrayed by the US government, understandably I think. As a result, they and other democracy activists in Egypt now doubt the American commitment to democratic reform there. And not because of radical Islam, but because they see America as standing in the way of change, rather than promoting it. I'm curious to hear what you think. Please feel free to email me on the website. All the best and thank you, Jim

June 12, 2008
Afghanistan

Hello all and welcome to the website. I’m still travelling the Muslim world regularly, so what I hope to give you here is a continuing tour of the region. I won’t repeat what you hear on the evening news or read on news websites. Instead, I hope to give you a real on-the-ground sense of the latest news including what people are saying, thinking and doing about America.

I’ll begin with Afghanistan. I’ll be spending two weeks here this month, with the US military and with Afghans. More and more, Afghanistan is becoming the central test of American efforts to challenge its critics. What the US accomplishes – and fails to accomplish – here will have long-term implications for American interests and influence in the region and the world.

Homa, whom I profile in chapter seven, is passing all her tests with flying colors. Will the US do the same?

I hope this finds you well. And thank you for your interest.

Jim