Product Description

Finding Abu Musab al Zarqawi, the leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq, had long been the U.S. military's top priority -- trumping even the search for Osama bin Laden. No brutality was spared in trying to squeeze intelligence from Zarqawi's suspected associates. But these "force on force" techniques yielded exactly nothing, and, in the wake of the Abu Ghraib scandal, the military rushed a new breed of interrogator to Iraq.

Matthew Alexander, a former criminal investigator and head of a handpicked interrogation team, gives us the first inside look at the U.S. military's attempt at more civilized interrogation techniques -- and their astounding success. The intelligence coup that enabled the June 7, 2006, air strike onZarqawi's rural safe house was the result of several keenly strategized interrogations, none of which involved torture or even "control" tactics.

Matthew and his team decided instead to get to know their opponents. Who were these monsters? Who were they working for? What were they trying to protect? Every day the "'gators" matched wits with a rogues' gallery of suspects brought in by Special Forces ("door kickers"): egomaniacs, bloodthirsty adolescents, opportunistic stereo repairmen, Sunni clerics horrified by the sectarian bloodbath, Al Qaeda fanatics, and good people in the wrong place at the wrong time. With most prisoners, negotiation was possible and psychological manipulation stunningly effective. But Matthew's commitment to cracking the case with these methods sometimes isolated his superiors and put his own career at risk.

This account is an unputdownable thriller -- more of a psychological suspense story than a war memoir. And indeed, the story reaches far past the current conflict in Iraq with a reminder that we don't have to become our enemy to defeat him. Matthew Alexander and his ilk, subtle enough and flexible enough to adapt to the challenges of modern, asymmetrical warfare, have proved to be our best weapons against terrorists all over the world.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #11696 in Books
• Published on: 2008-12-02
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 304 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Alexander, a pseudonymous air force officer, and writer Bruning (House to House), collaborate to tell the stranger-than-fiction story of the intelligence operation that located and ultimately killed Abu Musab Al Zarqawi, the head of al-Qaeda in Iraq. An Air Force investigator turned interrogator, Alexander was trained in the post–Abu Ghraib interrogation techniques that replace fear and control with respect, rapport, hope, cunning and deception. He arrived in Iraq in March 2006, a month after al-Qaeda bombed the Golden Dome Mosque in Samarra in an effort to incite sectarian violence, and Zarqawi became the most wanted man in Iraq and the primary focus of U.S. intelligence efforts. Using the new methods, Alexander interrogated five captured al-Qaeda members and tracked down Zarqawi's personal spiritual adviser, who unwittingly led U.S. Special Forces to Zarqawi's hideout; this vindicated Alexander's methods and eliminated the key terrorist leader. Alexander provides a front-row seat to the intelligence war inside the Global War on Terrorism in a riveting, fast-paced account that reads like a first-rate thriller. (Oct.)
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Review
Alexander, a pseudonymous air force officer, and writer Bruning (House to House), collaborate to tell the stranger-than-fiction "story of the intelligence operation that located and ultimately killed Abu Musab Al Zarqawi," the head of al-Qaeda in Iraq. An "Air Force investigator turned interrogator," Alexander was trained in the post-Abu Ghraib interrogation techniques that replace "fear and control" with "respect, rapport, hope, cunning and deception." He arrived in Iraq in March 2006, a month after al-Qaeda bombed the Golden Dome Mosque in Samarra in an effort to incite sectarian violence, and Zarqawi became "the most wanted man in Iraq" and the primary focus of U.S. intelligence efforts. Using the new methods, Alexander interrogated five captured al-Qaeda members and tracked down Zarqawi's personal spiritual adviser, who unwittingly led U.S. Special Forces to Zarqawi's hideout; this vindicated Alexander's methods and eliminated the key terrorist leader. Alexander provides a front-row seat to the intelligence war inside the "Global War on Terrorism" in a riveting, fast-paced account that reads like a first-rate thriller. --Publisher's Weekly, August 11, 2008

Review
"[T]his is an excellent account of a high-profile victory in the often-hidden intelligence war that is at the heart of the U.S. effort in Iraq.... It is generally agreed that the Global War on Terrorism is first and foremost an intelligence war. Alexander's story offers us an absorbing behind-the=scenes look at the secret intelligence war within a war." -- www.military.com

Customer Reviews

Not For Everyone...
Some people don't see eye to eye with the Bush Administration. Some do. That's okay. We're still America. We can disagree amicably.

The author presents a story involving how psychology was used to obtain better data more rapidly than through the use of brutality. I see that as a positive thing.

People die in war. Many times the innocent suffer far out of proportion to the gulty. There is no way to eliminate "collateral damage" as long as there are wars.

And there is no way for free peoples to avoid war without just surrendering to anyone who demands it.

I liked the stories in the book. No, I'm not offering any spoilers here; but I was fascinated by the ways the captured terrorists were manipulated into willingly revealing data that they might never have given up under torture.

We all hate war; but this book shows that we can win and still be the good guys...

Couldn't Put it Down
It's non-fiction that reads with taut suspense...a hard dose of truth. A game within a game with the highest of stakes: American lives.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and literally could not put it down.

If you enjoy reading mystery, intrigue, military warfare, special ops, good vs evil, covert ops, psychological ops, and good old fashioned tactics, you will love this book and keep it displayed on your bookshelf long after you've read it.

An awesome read.

A catalyst for change
This is a very, very important book. It rekindles my belief in the integrity of America, it's moral values and my support for our brave men and women in the US military. This book should and will hopefully be the catalyst which changes the way we do things in Iraq, Afghanistan and all future military operations.

How to Break a Terrorist is a riveting story that teaches us that we, The United States, can win the war against terrorism; not by using brutality and coercion but by living up to the ideals which make our country great.

Once you begin reading How to Break a Terrorist, you will be drawn into the secret world of interrogation. You WILL NOT want to put the book down. Despite knowing the ending - you will be on the edge of your seat the entire journey.