Reality Check On Extremism

GULF NEWS: Gabriel G. Tabarani feels a greater ideology will rise to counter fundamentalism

By Omar Shariff

Gabriel G. Tabarani

In Jihad's New Heartlands: How The West Has Failed To Contain Islamic Fundamentalism, London-based author Gabriel G. Tabarani draws on his extensive experience in the Middle East to provide an insight into the phenomenon of extremism and what can be done to combat it. Excerpts from an interview:

· What is the future of political Islam in the Muslim world?

- Most experts' studies confirm that Islamist movements meet a deeply perceived public need in the Muslim world, a need that continues to be felt after several decades of activism that have not yet reached their end. Otherwise how does one explain these movements' success and support? It is possible that the role of political Islam will be diminished at some point in this century, but one of two things must happen: Either the conditions that helped propel Islamism into the political sphere will have to disappear, or some other force or ideology will have to rise to meet the need more effectively.

· With the death of the Al Qaida supremo, and people’s weariness with the unending militant violence, do you think we are looking at a post-extremist era in the Muslim world?

- The death of Osama Bin Laden doesn't bring the death of his brand of politics. Al Qaida and affiliates have a thriving franchise in Yemen and Pakistan, and could gain other bases in the region. However, the killing of Bin Laden comes at a crucial time in the history of the Middle East. The Arab Spring is reshaping the region and its politics in ways not seen in generations.

The successful revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt, and the unresolved uprisings in Syria, Libya and Yemen are thus far post-Islamist. These political shifts have not been driven by discourse on Israel, US foreign policy or ideological zeal. They have been caused by a desire to improve their nations' internal conditions.

· Following the toppling of the authoritarian regimes in Tunis and Cairo, both the Al Nahda in Tunisia and the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt are expected to do well in the general elections. How would you assess this probability, given that both Rashid Al Gannoushi of Al Nahda and Essam Al Erian of the Brotherhood are seen as moderate pragmatists?

- I suppose the best way to answer your question is to run through the gradients. First, I do not believe Al Nahda or the Muslim Brotherhood will gain sufficient support to form majority governments. The next gradient down from here is that they will form part of a coalition government with non-Islamist parties. This seems most likely, given the poll data (Muslim Brotherhood 20 per cent and Al Nahda 18 per cent). That accounts for the near term; the longer term will depend on how the Islamic parties perform in government or opposition.

· Is the AK Party in Turkey the model to be followed by all Islamist or Muslim conservative groups seeking power through the ballot?

- Reconciling Islamic heritage and popular demands for participatory government and individual rights has posed a dilemma for Islamic activists. This has focused on how to present Islam in a "secular" context. The debate among Muslim thinkers has yet to yield a clear explanation about the interaction between secularism and Islam. However, it is possible to glean from media and academic analysis a perception that these advocates seem to model their notion of "secular Islam" on the Justice and Development Party (AK) in Turkey, where a separation is emerging between one's faith and public life or a separation of church and state, as it is understood in the West. It seems that the AK Party in Turkey will be the model to follow by Islamist movements after its success in government under a secular constitution, which it is now trying to change.

· You contend that Ethiopia had to intervene militarily in Somalia when the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) was briefly in power — a period characterised by peace for the first time in many years. Is it fair to blame the ICU, when people at that time saw it as US-backed aggression by a dictatorial regime in Addis Ababa, which led to disastrous consequences for all concerned, especially Somali civilians?

- I never contend in my book that Ethiopia had no choice but to intervene militarily. However, given the situation at the time, "the hardliners ... began pushing the ICU [the then ruling Islamic Courts Union] into increasingly bellicose and radical positions that alarmed neighbouring Ethiopia and the United States. The ICU declared jihad on Ethiopia .... In short, the hardliners in the ICU did everything they could to provoke a war with Ethiopia, and in late December 2006 they got their wish."

So my aim in my book was never to contend or to blame. My objective is merely to put forth the truth in an unbiased manner, according to documented information. This is without taking sides or passing judgement.

Furthermore, to fully understand the Ethiopian government's actions at the time, more analysis would have been needed — however, I felt that this was beyond the remit of my latest book and thus was only touched upon briefly.

· Do you think Western political and economic interests can be aligned with the values and politics of moderate Islamist parties? If so, why has this not happened across the Muslim world?

- Of course, Western political and economic interests can overlap with values and politics of moderate Islamist parties. Otherwise, how could one explain the success of Turkey's AK Party and its relationship with the West?

Perhaps a more salient question would be: Why has cooperation between the West and the Islamist moderates not yet materialised? This is owed to the West's ignorance and misunderstanding of Islamist moderates' aims compared to those held by radical Islamic Salafis — this is understandable to a certain extent after the events of September 11. However, with the arrival of the Arab Spring, it would appear that the West (the US in particular) has tacitly accepted to work with the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt and Syria and perhaps in other places in the future.

· The subtitle of your book is ‘Why the West Has Failed to Contain Islamic Fundamentalism'. But for the most part of the book, you have concentrated on the different challenges of militancy in various Muslim countries.

- You are correct in drawing attention to the subtitle. However, as mentioned it is a subtitle — there to add colour and clarity to the main title, that being Jihad's New Heartlands. I thought it is best for the reader that I focus the most part of the book on providing detailed analysis of Jihad's traditional heartlands, such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia, and its new heartlands such as Yemen, Somalia, the Levant, the Maghreb, Pakistan and Afghanistan. As this book is written in English, it is most likely to be read by Western audiences who are likely to benefit most from an understanding of the origin of radicalism in Islam, a topic sensationalised by the Western press. I wanted them to get an appreciation for Islam as a religion of peace — how it was originally intended — and not as a warlike faith as some conservative pundits in the West may pretend.

-This Interview was published in The Gulf News on 08/07/2011
-Omar Sharif is the Deputy Editor of the Gulf News

Gabriel G. Tabarani On “American Perspective Show”

The author and Journalist Gabriel G Tabarani was the guest of American anchor Judyth Piazza on her show the American Perspective on Thespo.org on 24/05/2011 to promote his new book "JIHAD'S NEW HEARTLANDS: Why The West Has Failed To Contain Islamic Fundamentalism". Below is the transcript:

Judyth Piazza: Welcome Gabriel to the show.

Gabriel G Tabarani: Thank you Judyth, I am delighted to be on your show.

Judyth: You are British citizen originally from Lebanon why do you chose to live in London?

Gabriel: In the seventies when the war in Lebanon started, a lot of media institutions moved to Europe, and most of them to London or Paris. So the publishing company with which I was working decided to move from Beirut to London in 1979, so I moved with it. In reality it was always an ambition to work in London because for me it is a leading global city, so for a political journalist point of vu, it was the ideal place to be and for a man who loves arts, education, theatre and history it was the place to settle in and live.

Judyth: How and when did you know that you would be a journalist or an author?

Gabriel: I still remember that when I was little boy, about 10 years old, I used to see my dad reading a newspaper called al-Hayat (Life), it is an influential political and independent daily pan-Arab newspaper, and always he used to call me to sit near him so he could read to me some news. I think from that moment something toward writing and journalism was built in my head. As I progressed through my education it became clear what my strengths were and things progressed from there.

For example, when I finished my high school my late father asked me what I wanted to do as a career. My reply was a journalist. And after several years on my graduation in political and economic sciences and working as reporter, journalist, correspondent, assistant manager editor, I became the managing editor in Dar al-Hayat in London the most important newspaper for my father. At that moment he told me “my son you made me proud you have realized your dream and mine”.

Judyth:  Who are some of your mentors?

Gabriel: I have couple of mentors but the most important one who affected my journalistic life was a very well-known Lebanese journalist named Salim Lozi. He was the publisher of two magazines Al-Hawadess and The Events, where I started my journalistic life. Sadly he was killed by the Syrians because of his independence and liberalism. He taught me that to be a good journalist, be fair and balanced and don’t be afraid to be with the truth whatever the consequences; he paid with his life because of that credo.

Judyth: Key qualities that successful people share?

Gabriel: In my opinion, before you can achieve success or speak about its key qualities, you need to define what success means to you. Unless you have a clear vision of what success is to you, you cannot work towards it.

Success means different things to different people. For some, monetary reward is a measure of success. Yet others have multiple definition of success. But whatever the definition, we know that in order to succeed, you must first be willing to fail, because the greatest barrier to success is the fear of failure. However, the most important key rests on happiness…success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful in any definition in my opinion. 

Judyth:  Is there any difference to being a journalist/author in The Middle East compared to in the USA or Europe?

Gabriel: Of course there is a big difference between how you write a political story in The Middle East and North Africa and how you write about a political situation in the West. In Europe and USA you analyse any story on the logic of political science, in the Middle East the political story is based on religion and traditions, it is politics of religions. So to become a specialist on Middle East and North Africa I studied Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Also I have visited every country in the Middle East and North Africa, to learn about all their traditions and the anthropology of the two regions.

Judyth: What is the most important lesson you have learnt in your career?

Gabriel: Never agree to anything over the phone. There's no record of what was said and things that get forgotten can lead to disputes later on. Also, if either or both of you are on cell-phones and have poor signals sometimes critical words can get cut out. If there is a need for communication via phone always tell the client that you will write up what you talked about, email it to him so he can confirm it for your records and to clarify anything that may be incorrect before moving on.

Judyth: According to your website you met very important people in your career:  Kings, Presidents, Prime Ministers …my question is: who told you something that affected you that you still remember until now?

Gabriel: I have met a lot of world leaders from democratic ones to dictators. The one who gives an example about the effect of power on people was the ex-president of Tunisia: Zein El-Abedine Bin Ali. In my first interview with him after his overthrow President for Life El-Habib Bourguiba in 1986, he told me that he overthrew Bourguiba because he was not a king, and thus could not stay in power for ever – that democracy must prevail.

He continued, saying that he would change the constitution that nobody would be able to stay in power more than two 5-years terms, and that the only way to power would be fair elections. In late nineties, I interviewed him another time, and asked him: “I see Mr President that you are still in power”. He replied laughingly that it was “The will of the people”.

Until his overthrow in February 2011 he remained president, and was considering changing the constitution to be a president for life.

Judyth:  What advice would you give to young journalists if they were to ask?

Gabriel: I encourage young journalists to create a niche for themselves. Find a subject, area, or region that you are particularly interested in and become an expert on it, while of course honing your writing and reporting skills. That’s the best way to stand out in an already-crowded field and in an industry that is constantly evolving and changing. Also, write, write, write - practice and experience will help you improve with time. Another piece of advice would be to learn how to report in all media (broadcast, web, etc.) because versatility is key. Finally, finding mentors in the field whose work you admire is invaluable - they will provide you with advice, guidance and valuable criticism.

Judyth: What is the inspiration behind your latest book (Jihad’s New Heartlands: Why The West Has Failed To Contain Islamic Fundamentalism)?

Gabriel: This book, is a continued evolution of my interest in the Greater Middle East – which is a highly complicated political ecosystem. For several years I have seen the press, politicians, voters and commentators misinterpret the current state of Islamic radicalism both in the Middle East as well as in The West.

Furthermore, there is a lack of accessible material on the subject, so it felt natural to try and help a broader audience understand what is really going on as opposed to leaving them at the mercy of sensationalist or biased media sources.

Judyth: Main message you want your readers to gain from reading your book?

Gabriel: To me, non-fiction books should be written to bring light to poorly understood topics. I just hope that I have been able to provide people with a complete, unbiased and accurate analysis of the issue of Islamic fundamentalism. Not only its genesis and history, but also the specific challenges it poses to the Western Establishment as well as political forces across the Middle East – both at home and abroad.

You see, Islamic fundamentalism is not an organised entity-managed through one theocratic-politico leader. Instead it is an amalgamation of various views, missions, traditions and beliefs – with its own internal as well as external pressures. Given the recent death of Osama bin Laden and the Revolutions across the Middle East this is not a topic that can be afforded the luxury of being misunderstood or unappreciated any longer.

Judyth: How can people find out more about you and about your book?

Gabriel: They can visit my website www.gabrielgtabarani.co.uk or the websites of Amazon.com, barnesand noble.com or they can google or bing my name Gabriel G Tabarani and they can have all the needed information.

Judyth: Thank you to be on the Show Gabriel you must repeat it.

Gabriel: Thank you Judyth for having me on your lovely program, I was happy and honoured.

JIHAD’S NEW HEARTLANDS: Why The West Has Failed To Contain Islamic Fundamentalism

Author House, an Indiana, USA based publishing house announced the release of a new book titled: “JIHAD’S NEW HEARTLANDS - Why The West Has Failed To Contain Islamic Fundamentalism”. It is the first book in the market on Islamic radicals after the death of Osama bin Laden.

The author, Gabriel G. Tabarani, is a very well-known and respected specialist on Middle East and North African affairs. He has been involved in journalism in Beirut, Washington and London as a Journalist, Reporter, Correspondent, Managing Editor and Editor-in-Chief for over 25 years. He has already authored four books: “The Tears of the Horizon” a romantic novel; “The Winter of Discontent in The Gulf” (1991) about the first Gulf War when Saddam Hussein took over Kuwait; “Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: From Balfour Promise To Bush Declaration – The Complications and The Road For a Lasting Peace” (March 2008); and “How Iran Plans To Fight America And Dominate The Middle East”, (October 2008.)   

“Throughout this book, I have tried to apply impartial analyses and interpretations of the facts from which I have subsequently come with what I believe are balanced ad reasonable conclusions. All I can do is hope that I have succeeded in my attempts.” says Mr. Tabarani. Experts agree that the book is a fair and balanced work – making it a rare piece of impartial analysis in what is often a highly partisan body of literature.   

“Jihad's New Heartlands” is a ground breaking book offering an insightful and thorough analysis of the most important territories where Islamic fundamentalism has taken a foothold. The author, Gabriel G Tabarani, thanks to his combination of thorough research, wide-ranging travel and extensive experience in the field provides a thorough historical, political and social analysis of the key variables, historical events and most importantly their potential consequences.  

This extensive and well-documented study, across many of the world's foremost and pertinent Islamic fundamentalist breeding grounds such as Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia, The Levant (Lebanon, Palestine, Syria and Jordan), and The Maghreb (Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia), offers the reader an in depth look at the context of Islamic Fundamentalism's rise in prominence, profile and destabilising potential. This analysis is extended to Muslim populations living in Europe, Russia and America helping to explain the causes for the West’s failure to contain Islamic extremism both at home and abroad.

Jihad's New Heartlands, in addition to being written by one of the region’s foremost experts, is a must read for any person wanting to understand the causes of Islamic Fundamentalism’s rise and the consequences of its ascent in an increasingly globalised yet unstable world.

This book (476 pages) can be found and bought from over 1000 internet outlets (Websites) including  www.authorhouse.com,  or www.authorhouse.co.uk,  or www.amazon.com,  or www.amazon.co.uk,  or www.amazon.ca, or www.barnesandnobles.com, or www.target.com, or www.waterstones.co.uk, and www.whsmith.co.uk … The book can be found too at Waterstone’s Book Group or at Ingram Book Group and their affiliates and other distributors in USA, UK, Canada, Australia, and around the world.  

For more information you can contact:

Joven Morales
Marketing Advisor
Author House
1663 Liberty Drive, Suite 200
Bloomington, IN 47403, USA
Tel: 1-888-519-5121
Fax: 1-812-349 0807
Website: www.authorhouse.com

Jihad's New Heartlands: New Book For Gabriel Tabarani

AuthorHouse, the US-based publisher headquartered in Indiana, is pleased to announce an upcoming publication by well-known author and journalist, Gabriel G Tabarani entitled JIHAD’S NEW HEARTLANDS: How the West has Failed to Contain Islamic Fundamentalism. The publishing date will be announced soon.

For nearly a year-and-a-half Mr Tabarani has travelled and researched extensively the World’s Islamic fundamentalist breeding grounds including, amongst others: Afghanistan, Pakistan (Kashmir, Baluchistan and Waziristan), Russia (Chechnya and Ingushetia), Malaysia, Indonesia, Bangladesh, the Philippines, the African Sub-Sahara countries and Yemen.

Gabriel G Tabarani is a recognised expert on Middle East and North African affairs. He graduated from the French University in Beirut (St Joseph) specialising in Political and Economic Sciences. He started his working life in 1973 as a reporter and journalist for the pan-Arab magazine “Al-Hawadess” in Lebanon later becoming its Washington, D.C. correspondent. He subsequently moved to London in 1979 joining “Al-Majallah” magazine as its Deputy Managing Editor. In 1984 joined “Assayad” magazine in London initially as its Managing Editor and later as Editor-in-Chief. Following this, in 1990 he joined “Al-Wasat” magazine (part of the Dar-Al-Hayat Group) in London as a Managing Editor.

Mr Tabarani has already authored four books. The first “The Tears of the Horizon” is a love story. The second “The Winter of Discontent in The Gulf” (1991) focuses on the first Gulf war sparked by Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait. His third book is entitled “Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: From Balfour Promise to Bush Declaration: The Complications and the Road to a Lasting Peace” (March 2008). The fourth and most recent book is titled “How Iran Plans to Fight America and Dominate the Middle East” (October 2008).

Furthermore, he wrote the memoirs of national security advisor to US President Ronald Reagan, Mr Robert McFarlane, serializing them in “Al-Wasat” magazine over 14 episodes in 1992.

For more information please contact:

Joven Morales
Marketing Advisor
AuthorHouse
1663 Liberty Drive, Suite 200
Bloomington, IN 47403, USA
www.authorhouse.com
Tel: 1-800 839 8640

HOW IRAN PLANS TO FIGHT AMERICA AND DOMINATE THE MIDDLE EAST

Author House, an Indiana, USA based publishing house announced the release of a new book titled: “How Iran Plans To Fight America And Dominate The Middle East”.

The author, Gabriel G. Tabarani, is a very well known and respected specialist on Middle East affairs. He has been involved in journalism in Beirut, Washington and London as a Reporter, Correspondent, Managing Editor and Editor-in-Chief for over 25 years. He has already authored three books: “The Tears of the Horizon” a romantic novel, “The Winter of Discontent in The Gulf” (1991) about the first Gulf War when Saddam Hussein took over Kuwait, and “Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: From Balfour Promise To Bush Declaration – The Complications and The Road For a Lasting Peace” (2008).

“My goal with this book is to provide a fair and balanced view with compelling information and analysis on a very important and sensitive issue which could take the world down a dangerous path, ” says Mr. Tabarani. Experts agree that the book is a fair and balanced piece, which makes it very rare in its kind.

Mr. Tabarani takes us in his new book with his eloquent style through information, documents and arguments to learn about the Shiite-Sunni divide in the Middle East and how Washington, by eliminating the Saddam Hussein and Taliban regimes, created a regional power vacuum. Though happy to take advantage of this situation, Iran is planning and intending to fight America through unique means in order to dominate and to exert influence across the Middle East.

The book develops and explains the substantial body of history, information, background and analysis required for a meaningful understanding of the current troubles. It covers in detail the regional and global ambitions of Iran and its financial and military capabilities including -and not limited to- its relations with non-state armed groups such as Hizbollah, Hamas and the Mahdi Army as well as its long-standing alliance with Syria.

Furthermore, he argues and discusses in detail the relations between Iran and the Arab Gulf Countries, USA and Israel. He also covers in detail the American strategy for the Gulf region as a whole.

Moreover, Tabarani discusses thoroughly the current nuclear crisis that will change the face of the Middle East. He also includes commentary on the present and future role of both Russia and China in the region.

In his conclusion after analyzing Turkey’s emerging role in the region, Tabarani comes to recommendations as to how to broker a peaceful solution to the current US-Iranian crisis. It is groundbreaking for a book to provide such a detailed course of action that can help all parties involved achieve lasting peace.

This book (436 pages) can be found and bought by Internet on : www.authorhouse.com  or www.authorhouse.co.uk or www.amazon.com or www.amazon.co.uk, or www.amazon.ca or www.filedby.com/author/gabriel_g_tabarani/995379, or www.waterstones.co.uk, or www.whsmith.co.uk …. The book can be found too at Ingram Book Group and its affiliates and other distributors in USA, UK, Canada, Australia, and around the world.

For more information you can contact:

Joven Morales
Marketing Advisor
Author House
1663 Liberty Drive, Suite 200
Bloomington, IN 47403, USA
Tel: 1-888-519-5121
Fax: 1-812-349 0807
Website: www.authorhouse.com

ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT: From Balfour Promise To Bush Declaration

Author House, an Indiana, USA based publishing house announced the release of a new book titled: “Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: From Balfour Promise to Bush Declaration - The Complications and The Road for a Lasting Peace”

The author, Gabriel G. Tabarani, is a very well known and respected specialist on Middle East affairs. He has been involved in journalism in Beirut and London as a reporter, Managing Editor and Editor-in-Chief for over 25 years. He has already authored two books: “The Tears of the Horizon” a romantic novel, as well as “The Winter of Discontent in The Gulf” (1991) about the first Gulf War when Saddam Hussein took over Kuwait.

“My goal with this book is to provide a fair and balanced view on a very important, sensitive and long running conflict,” says Mr. Tabarani. Experts agree that the book is a fair and balanced piece, which makes it very rare in its kind.

Mr. Tabarani takes us on a trip back through the history of the Middle East reaching back into Biblical times. He discusses in detail the origins of both Zionism and the Palestinians as well as from which Biblical and historical sources the Jewish and the Palestinians factions base their claims to the former British mandate of Palestine.

The book develops and explains the substantial body of history required for meaningful understanding of the current troubles, it covers in detail the wars, conflicts and compromises, as well as their impacts and consequences on the Palestinian and the Jewish peoples, including the 1948 war, the Suez war in 1956, the Six-Day War in 1967, the 1973 War, the Lebanese Wars, and most recently the two Palestinian “Intifadas” (uprising)…

Furthermore, he argues and discusses in detail the issue of both Palestinian and Jewish refugees in addition to the political effects of those wars on the peace process, including the situation of the Palestinian Arabs citizens of Israel.

Moreover, Tabarani speaks in detail about the obstacles to a lasting peace, taking into consideration international involvement of various parties, including USA, EU, Russia and Iran. In addition, he discusses the economic and political viability of a Palestinian state in the West bank and in the Gaza Strip.

In his conclusion Tabarani comes to recommendations as to how to broker a stable peace in the Middle East. It is groundbreaking for a book to provide such a detailed course of action that can help all parties involve to reach a lasting peace.

This book (452 Pages) can be found and bought by Internet on www.authorhouse.com,  or www.authorhouse.co.uk,  or www.filedby.com/author/gabriel_g_tabarani/995379  or www.amazon.com,  or www.amazon.co.uk,  or www.barnesandnoble.com  or www.booksamillion.com,  or www.target.com, www.waterstones.co.uk, www.whsmith.co.uk . The book can be found too at Ingram Book Group and its affiliates and other distributors in USA, UK, Canada, Australia, and around the world.

 For more information you can contact:

 Joven Morales
 Marketing Advisor
 Author House
 1663 Liberty Drive, Suite 200
 Bloomington, IN 47403, USA
 Tel: 1-888-519-5121
 Fax: 1-812-349 0807
 Website: www.authorhouse.com