Preface
1 Terror and Abductions – Western Vulnerability
and Dilemma
Defining Terror
Defining Abduction
Abductions – An “Act of War” or a “Criminal Act”
State Intervention in Abduction and Bargaining Incidents
2 Abductions in the Palestinian Arena
and the Nachshon Wachsman Affair
Abductions and Bargaining Incidents in the Israeli– Palestinian
Confrontation
The Hamas Movement – Ideological/Operational Characteristics
Abductions and Attempted Abductions by the Hamas
The Abduction and Killing of Nachshon Wachsman
The Main Characteristics of Hamas Abductions
3 The Hizballah and Abductions in the
Lebanese Arena
Iran and its Use of Terror
Exporting the Iranian Revolution
Iranian Intelligence and Terror Agencies
The Iranian Terror System
The Hizballah Organization
Links between Iran and the Hamas
Hizballah Abductions against Israel
Israel’s Policy Regarding Captives and Hostages
Summary: Responding to the Challenges of Negotiation, Leverage,
and Intelligence
4 The Abduction of Foreign Hostages
in Lebanon
Imad Muraniya and the Attack Mechanism
The Kidnapping of Foreign Nationals
5 Abductions in the Iraqi Arena
Hostage-Taking and Decapitations, 2003–2005
The Islamic Tradition of Decapitation
Justification through Religious Doctrine
6 Abductions in Yemen
Yemen and Islamic Terror
The Abduction of Foreign Residents
The Arrest of the “British” Terror Network in Yemen (December
23, 1998)
7 The Confrontation Arenas, Western
Governments’ Policy, and Crimes Against Humanity by Offending
States and Organizations
The Israeli–Palestinian Confrontation Arena
The Lebanese Arena
Yemen
The Iraqi Arena
Points of Emphasis and Lessons to be Drawn
Epilogue: Abduction of Israeli Soldiers
and Civilians (June and July 2006)
The Hamas Government, Abu Mazen and Kidnapping
Abductions by Hizballah in the Zar’it Sector
Conclusions: Different Patterns of Terror Events and Changes
in Israel’s Response
Appendices
A: Interview with Chief of Staff Ehud Barak following the
IDF operation to rescue Nachshon Wachsman
B: Interview with senior Hamas leader Mahmoud a Zahar 169
C: Al Qaida claims responsibility for the murder of the Egyptian
Ambassador in Iraq
Notes
Bibliography
Index
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“Shay discusses contending definitions
of abductions – ‘acts of war’ as opposed to ‘criminal
acts’ – the role of the state as target or instigator/perpetrator,
and the politics of terror abductions in Lebanon, Iraq, and Yemen.
The author devotes considerable space to bargaining for the release
of abductees, to the intrusive role of Iran on behalf of Hezbollah
in Lebanon and Hamas in Palestine, and, as he must, to the fate
of abductees, including the spate of decapitations from 2003 to
2005. This is, in sum, a well-researched, clearly argued, and useful
addition to the terrorism literature, particularly given the focus
on abductions as an instrument of Islamic terrorism. Though the
discussion is comprehensive, it might have helped to place the
data and analysis against the larger background of terror kidnappings
elsewhere in the world. The world of political terror abductions
keeps growing, and this book is an excellent introduction. Highly
recommended.” Choice
“Shaul Shay brings his experience as a senior research fellow
at the International Policy Institute for Counter Terrorism to
the components of abduc¬tions….He focuses on Iran, giving
a chronology of its involvement with terrorist forces. Iran supports
the development of terrorists’ organiza¬tions with financial,
political and military aid. Shay’s investigation reveals
the historical commitment Iran has to terrorist organizations.
In 1991, the “Conference for the Support of the Palestinian
Jihad” was hosted in Teheran, and attended by representatives
of Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hizballa. These organizations
aligned themselves in opposition to the peace process with Israel.
This book is complete with specific details on abductions that
strive to give the process a human face … What is clear is
that complex terrorist abductions have become a threat to world
peace. Tensions can be linked to terrorist abductions and stretch
across borders and into homes beyond the Middle East. People remain
missing to this day.” Digest of Middle East Studies |
