| Islam and the Politics of Terrorism: Aspects of the British Experience (2008) | |||||||||||||||
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| Chapter 2 of "Fresh Perspectives on the ‘War on Terror’". The debate about the relationship between Islam and terrorism is at a critical stage. While crass Orientalist arguments that Islam is essentially violent have been largely removed from the agenda, the attempt to construct a distinction between moderate and extremist Islam has been revealed as overly simplistic. Since 11 September 2001 (9/11) most governments have attempted to distinguish between Islam as a religion practised by millions and the tiny minority of Muslims who subscribe to an interpretation of Islam that authorises the use of violence against its enemies. However, this approach fails to engage with the complexities of Islam as a social category, which has a long and varied history. | |||||||||||||||
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