The Revolutionists

The Story of the Extremists Who Hijacked the 1970s

De: Jason Burke

Narrado por: Kristin Atherton

SHORTLISTED FOR THE BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE • An epic, authoritative, gripping account of the years when a new wave of revolutionaries seized the skies and the streets to hold the world for ransom

In the 1970s, an unprecedented wave of international terrorism broke out around the world. More ambitious, networked and far-reaching than ever before, new armed groups terrorized the West with intricately planned plane hijackings and hostage missions, leaving governments scrambling to cope. Their motives were as diverse as their methods. Some sought to champion Palestinian liberation, others to topple Western imperialism or battle capitalism; a few simply sought adventure or power. Among them were the unflappable young Leila Khaled, sporting jewelry made from AK-47 ammunition; the maverick Carlos the Jackal with his taste for cigars, fine dining, and designer suits; and the radical leftists of the Baader-Meinhof Gang or the Japanese Red Army. Their attacks forged a lawless new battlefield thirty thousand feet in the air, evading the reach of security agencies, policymakers, and spies alike. Their operations rallied activist and networks in places where few had suspected their existence, leaving a trail of chaos from Bangkok to Paris to London to Washington, D.C.

Veteran foreign correspondent Jason Burke provides a thrilling account of this era of spectacular violence. Drawing on decades of research, recently declassified government files, still secret documents, and original interviews with hijackers, double agents, and victims still grieving their loved ones, The Revolutionists provides an unprecedented account of a period which definitively shaped today’s world and probes the complex relationship between violence, terrorism, and revolution. From the deserts of Jordan and the Munich Olympics to the Iranian Embassy Siege in London and the Beirut bombings of the early 1980s, Burke invites us into the lives and minds of the perpetrators of these attacks, as well as the government agents and top officials who sought to foil them. Charting, too, such shattering events as the Iranian Revolution and the Lebanese civil war, he shows how, by the early 1980s, a campaign for radical change led by secular, leftist revolutionaries had given way to a far more lethal movement of conservative religious fanaticism that would dominate the decades to come.

Driven by an indelible cast of characters moving at a breakneck pace, full of detail and drama, The Revolutionists is the definitive account of a dark and seismic decade.

compelling

A gripping narrative. A detailed exploration of an extremely complex subject. Expertly narrated. Provides context for understanding contemporary global issues.

The tragedy of the left

I’m a historian of the Cold War and, in my view, this new book should be a required reading for anyone trying to understand the strange metamorphosis of the Western Left during the last 3-4 decades of the 20th century. How did the children and grandchildren of the Nazis, full of guilt and angst over their families’ past, come to embrace extreme violence, including or rather especially the “antizionist” violence against the Jews? Why would those advocating anticolonial fight for self-determination and antiracism enter an alliance with fascist theocratic movements, committed to violent ideological antisemitism? I think this is something that a lot of people these days are struggling to comprehend. A remarkable book.

insightful retrospective of some history I witnessed myself, but now with new eyes.

The first part plays like a novel, the remainder is more Middle East v West terror history. I enjoyed the deep dive.