Awards

• Long-listed for Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction 2025 (UK)

Overview

An extraordinary cast, globe-spanning action, this is the gripping, era-defining origin story for today's conflicts Immersive, globe-spanning and full of detail and drama, The Revolutionists is an unprecedented account of a seismic decade that transformed the modern world. In the 1970s, a network of radical extremists terrorised the West with intricately planned plane hijackings and hostage-takings. Among them were the glamorous young Leila Khaled with her jewellery made from grenade rings, the hard-drinking Carlos the Jackal in shades and designer suits, and the radical leftists of the Baader-Meinhof Gang. United by their hatred of Israel, capitalism and 'Western imperialism', they unleashed a series of audacious attacks that brought governments to their knees and glued the world to their televisions in morbid fascination. Drawing on decades of research, recently declassified government files, secret documents, and original interviews with hijackers, spies, witnesses and victims, Jason Burke takes us into the lives and minds of the perpetrators of these often-deadly operations. Through their eyes - and the eyes of the unrelenting agents who hunted them down - he uncovers a dark, complex world of loyalty, betrayal and commitment to radical change at any cost. Set against the backdrop of the Cold War and packed with revelations about iconic events such as the deadly attack on the Munich Olympic, Israel's raid on Entebbe, the Iranian revolution and the rise of Islamic extremism, this is a sweeping, scrupulously reported historical narrative with the pace and suspense of a thriller. The Revolutionists pitches the reader into these tumultuous times. Ultimately, it shows how a campaign led by secular, leftist revolutionaries gave way to a far more lethal movement of conservative religious fanaticism that would dominate the decades to come. It is impossible to understand the world today without reading this history.

Full Product Details

9781847926074

Table of Contents

Reviews

A kaleidoscopic sweep through an extraordinary era told with cool authority and a novelist's eye for detail. Burke is a master in the field -- Rory Carroll, author of Killing Thatcher The Revolutionists is an incisive account of the rise of modern terrorism following the founding of the State of Israel. It manages to be both scholarly and engaging. A wonderful book for any reader interested in the Middle East and the curse of terror that has haunted the region - and the world - for too many years -- Lawrence Wright, author of The Looming Tower

Brilliant, beautifully researched, observed and written. An astonishing window not just into the origins of modern terrorism but also into our own age -- Rory Stewart, author of Politics on the Edge A kaleidoscopic sweep through an extraordinary era told with cool authority and a novelist's eye for detail. Burke is a master in the field -- Rory Carroll, author of Killing Thatcher Jason Burke's meticulously researched book is peopled by an array of colourful characters from terrorists to idealists and double agents. By melding eye-witness accounts with a deep understanding of politics and modern history, he shows how the hijackings and political murders of the late twentieth century led to the turbulence of the 21st. It makes for a riveting read -- Lindsey Hilsum, International Editor, Channel 4 News The Revolutionists is an incisive account of the rise of modern terrorism following the founding of the State of Israel. It manages to be both scholarly and engaging. A wonderful book for any reader interested in the Middle East and the curse of terror that has haunted the region - and the world - for too many years -- Lawrence Wright, author of The Looming Tower Superb. In this deeply researched and grippingly told account of the ... radicals who held a gun to the head of Western governments in the 1970s, Burke confirms his credentials as our foremost commentator on modern terrorism -- Saul David, author of Sky Warriors A captivating account of the origins of modern international terrorism with fascinating insights into the terrorists and their opponents. A must read to understand the contemporary Middle East and more -- Bruce Riedel, author of Kings and Presidents: Saudi Arabia and the United States since FDR The Revolutionists is the authoritative true story of the encounter between leftist and Islamist radicalism, capturing in gripping and granular detail the events and ideas that elevated terrorism as a tool for political transformation. It is the culmination of years of masterful research ... The narrative is exciting, pacy and propelled forward by a cast of characters whose actions would defy all credulity if they were fictitious. By turns fascinating and heart-stopping, it is an addictive read and an extraordinary intellectual achievement -- Alia Brahimi, scholar and host of Guns for Hire podcast This is Jason Burke’s magnum opus, a hugely ambitious book that greatly benefits from his three decades of reporting on revolutionary violence. Burke seems to have read everything that is relevant about terrorism in multiple languages and talked to anybody who mattered on all sides of the conflicts he writes about. The book is propulsively written and is not only an account of the rise of leftist and Islamist terrorism in the 1960s and the decades that followed, but also a wonderfully evocative history of an era that reverberates today -- Peter Bergen, author of The Rise and Fall of Osama bin Laden

The Revolutionists is an incisive account of the rise of modern terrorism following the founding of the State of Israel. It manages to be both scholarly and engaging. A wonderful book for any reader interested in the Middle East and the curse of terror that has haunted the region - and the world - for too many years -- Lawrence Wright, author of The Looming Tower

Author Information

JASON BURKE, the International Security correspondent for the Guardian, has been a foreign correspondent for almost 30 years, reporting from the Middle East, South Asia, Europe and Africa. He is one of the foremost writers on terrorism and the author of four critically acclaimed books- The New Threat from Islamic Militancy, shortlisted for the Orwell Prize; The 9/11 Wars, 'the best overview of the 9/11 decade in print' (The Economist); the ground-breaking Al-Qaeda- The True Story of Radical Islam and On the Road to Kandahar- Travels through Conflict in the Islamic World. He lives near London.

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