Jihad in the City: Militant Islam and Contentious Politics in Tripoli

Tawhid was a militant Islamist group in Tripoli in the 1980s, implementing Islamic law at gunpoint. This book provides a comprehensive account of the group, including religious ideologues, Tripolitan rebels, neighborhood strongmen, local subalterns, and gangsters. It shows how their grand ideology and local contexts impacted their exercise of violence, with lessons for understanding social movements, rebel groups, and terrorist organizations elsewhere.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 288 pages
Publication date: 06 May 2021
Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Tawhid, a militant Islamist group, exerted control over Tripoli, Lebanon, through the force of arms during the 1980s. In hindsight, it has been labeled as the precursor to the ISIS-style Emirate. Raphaël Lefèvre, through extensive research, including two hundred interviews with Islamist fighters and their adversaries, as well as a wealth of newly uncovered archival material, presents a comprehensive account of this Islamist group. Lefèvre delves into the intricate dynamics of Tawhid, revealing how it encompassed a diverse range of individuals, including religious ideologues who aimed to establish an Islamic Republic in Lebanon, Tripolitan rebels from various factions, neighborhood strongmen with personal vendettas, local subalterns seeking social retribution, and profit-driven gangsters who sought to exploit Tawhid's violent activities for their own gain. By providing a detailed account of Tawhid's emergence in 1982, its establishment of an Emirate, and its sudden collapse in 1985, Lefèvre sheds light on the complex interplay between militant Islamist groups and local contexts. This narrative underscores the profound influence of grand ideologies on these organizations, as well as the significance of understanding the dynamics of social movements, rebel groups, and terrorist organizations in other regions.

Weight: 730g
Dimension: 164 x 229 x 30 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781108444989