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Saturday, June 9, 2012

Genesis of Jihadism?: Winston Churchill- Crusade against the Empire of the Mahdi, Radical Islamism and Jihad, NewAgeIslam.com

Radical Islamism and Jihad
Genesis of Jihadism?: Winston Churchill- Crusade against the Empire of the Mahdi
The publication, which runs to almost 450 pages, is perfectly timed; the West has only recently rediscovered the Sudan War and, with it, Churchill's pertinent contribution. And as has been already the case with some of the other translations of the book, published originally in 1899 under the title "The River War A Historical Account of the Reconquest of the Sudan", a rather sensationalist title has been adopted for the German version also: "Kreuzzug gegen das Reich des Mahdi" (Crusade Against the Empire of the Mahdi).

Winston Churchill was not only British Prime Minister; he was also awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature, winning the prize for his historical works in 1953In his excellent introduction to Churchill's experiences in Sudan, which also looks at the more recent modern history of the country, Brunold draws the reader's attention to the fact that militant 19th century Islam had already made its appearance long before the Sudanese uprising. The objective tone adopted by writer and translator is not done justice to here, however, by the choice of the word "crusade" in the German title. This, it seems, is intended to provide a sensationalist element by association – with George W Bush's "crusade" against terror springing readily to mind.

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