The penetrating history of the British government's sponsorship of radical Islamic terrorism, from Iran, Afghanistan and Libya to the July 7 bombings

In Dirty Wars, acclaimed historian Mark Curtis shows how Britain has helped create the Islamic jihadist terrorism that now threatens us. Exploring how the bombings of 7/7 can be traced back to groups and individuals trained and supported by Britain, Curtis draws on formerly secret government files to unravel a long recent history of British governments’ secret collusion with and direct involvement in Islamic terrorism, from 1945 to the present day. From the overthrow of Iran’s popular government during the 1950s and the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria, to Libya, Kosovo, Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia’s ruthless internal repression, Dirty Wars shows Britain’s hidden hand in the rise of global terrorism. At a time when British forces are being reconfigured to fight this new enemy, this urgent, explosive book shows how British leaders now posing as the public’s defenders have escaped accountability for their previous policies. In reality, they are our greatest threat

Praise for Web of Deceit
“Mark Curtis is, in my opinion, Britain’s best popular historian & Curtis’ brilliant, exciting and deeply disturbing book unwraps the whole package, layer by layer, piece by piece. Not since Noam Chomsky’s Deterring Democracy has there been such a disclosure. — John Pilger

“Scrupulously, relentlessly, Mark Curtis rescues the historical and documentary record from a web of distortion and self-serving illusion. The range of his inquiries is as impressive as the care and diligence with which they are conducted. The picture of British policies that Curtis reveals should serve as a call to action for those who hope to understand the world that has been shaped by Western power, and to overcome the injustice and suffering that is, in no small measure, its cruel legacy.” — Noam Chomsky

Mark Curtis is the author of two recent bestselling books: Unpeople: Britain’s Secret Human Rights Abuses and Web of Deceit: Britain's Real Role in the World. He is a former Research Fellow at the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House) and has written extensively on British and US foreign policies. He is currently a freelance journalist and regular commentator in the Guardian and other international media, including the Independent, ZNet and al-Ahram.