Holy Terror represents a major effort by an Iranian Muslim to take stock of a decade of Islamic revolution. To be sure, Amir Taheri is no prose stylist, nor philosopher, nor even a careful writer (the book is replete with inaccuracies). He has also served himself badly with a trendy title and a sensationalist dust jacket that make it appear his book explains the Iranian role in airplane hijacking and hostage taking — subjects of limited importance. Nevertheless, Taheri offers an informed, courageous, and rare Muslim critique of the surge in radical fundamentalist Islam. His eye for the striking detail and his insight into the arcane world of the Iranian leadership make this book an important source for ascertaining the impact of Ayatollah Khomeini's regime, both in Iran and in the Middle East as a whole.
The author offers suggestions to two diverse audiences, Western and Muslim. To the West, he advocates firm resistance to the extremists and steadfast adhesion to its own principles. As for fellow Muslims, Taheri sends out a highly unusual public call to arms: the fundamentalists have "to be faced and fought, and must eventually be defeated by forces of life in the Muslim world itself before Islamic societies can tackle the inescapable problem of modernization." Those of us on the sidelines can only hope that-this appeal is heard, for the stakes are great. Should it be ignored, hundreds of millions of Muslims will remain backward and angry, and the whole world will pay the price.
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