GLOBAL TERRORISM: Melting Borders, Hardened Walls

This book examines the ideo-political basis of terrorism, and spans the attitudes (Jihad vs. Macworld and Islam vs. the West), latitudes (Morocco to Bali), and longitudes (New York to New Delhi to Singapore) of the developments since 9/11.

It profiles the two major theatres of terrorist actions (US and the Middle East) and focuses on the third, increasingly volatile South Asia, during the tumultuous and transformative 44 months of 9/11. It also seeks to examine the magnitude of the challenge and the changed form and style of terrorist organizations like al Qaeda. It evaluates how the US, India and Pakistan have responded to challenges of terrorism; analyzes, in detail, the genesis of fundamentalism: and documents the causal contexts behind the volatility of the vast politico-cultural Muslim bloc.

The book identifies the qualitative change in the equations in international relations and discusses foreign policy thrusts of the US, India and Pakistan, the nature of the ‘new war’ and the post-9/11 world. Again, the changed global perceptions of America that have a bearing on its capacity to manage the war on terrorism are also profiled.

Discretionary readers will distinguish this book from other publications for its chapters on the paradigms as formulated by perceptive social scientists and thinkers for developing a proper perspective of the problematiques and resolutiques of terrorism.

The book will be welcomed by students of terrorism, international relations and conflict resolution.

Pravin N. Sheth is M.A. (Gold Medalist, Gujarat University) and A.M. (University of Pennsylvania, USA). Taught summer course at Pennsylvania; and has held important positions like Professor & Head, Department of Political Science, Gujarat University; Charles Wallace Senior Fellow, University of Hull, UK; and Senior Fellow, Institute of Social Science Research, Ujjain.

Presented papers in national/international seminars/conferences on political development, eco-politics and diaspora. In addition to 14 research-based books, published numerous articles in books edited by renowned social scientists and reputed journals.

Given invited lectures in leading universities of India, USA and UK. Also worked on panel of experts appointed by the governments of Gujarat and India, and ICSSR, UGC, Narmada Project and ISRO.