In Their Own Words: Understanding Lashkar-e-Tayyaba

by C. Christine Fair

Overview

This path-breaking volume reveals a little-known aspect of how Lashkar-e-Tayyaba, a jihadist terrorist group, functions in Pakistan and beyond by translating and commenting upon a range of publications produced and disseminated by Dar-ul-Andlus, the publishing wing of LeT.
Only a fraction of LeT's cadres ever see battle: most of them are despatched on nation-wide "prozelytising" (dawa) missions to convert Pakistanis to their particular interpretation of Islam, in support of which LeT has developed a sophisticated propagandist literature. This canon of Islamist texts is the most popular and potent weapon in LeT's arsenal, and its scrutiny affords insights into how and who the group recruits; LeT's justification for jihad; its vision of itself in global and regional politics; the enemies LeT identifies and the allies it cultivates; and how and where it conducts its operations. Particular attention is paid to the role that LeT assigns to women by examining those writings which heap extravagant praise upon the mothers of aspirant jihadis, who bless their operations and martyrdom. It is only by understanding LeT's domestic functions as set out in these texts that one can begin to appreciate why Pakistan so fiercely supports it, despite mounting international pressure to disband the group.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780190909482
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	01/15/2019
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.60(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

C. Christine Fair, Professor, Provost's Distinguished Associate Professor, Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University

C. Christine Fair is a Provost''s Distinguished Associate Professor in the Security Studies Program within Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University, USA.

Table of Contents

Dedication vii

Acknowledgements ix

1 Introduction 1

What's in a Name? 4

Overview of Pakistan's Contemporary Militant Landscape 10

Data and Methods 16

Plan of the Book 17

2 The Genesis of the Indo-Pakistan Security Competition 21

Summoning A Muslim Zion in South Asia 24

The Origins of Pakistan's Kashmir Obsession 27

Three Obdurate Princes 28

Rending the Punjab 31

Military, Mullah, Militant Nexus: The Army and the Ideology of Pakistan 32

Pakistan Repeatedly Tries to Change Maps through War 37

Implications of this History 42

3 Pakistan's Creeping Jihad and Expanding Nuclear Umbrella 45

Twinned Histories of Proxy Warfare and Nuclear Coercion 47

Jihad in Afghanistan and India Under Expanding Nuclear Umbrella 55

Pakistan's Jihad in Afghanistan 56

Pakistan's Jihad in India 60

Conclusions and Implications 65

4 What is the LeT? A Critical Examination 67

Situating LeT within South Asia's Salafis 67

Early History of MDI, JuD and LeT 74

Organizational Structure 82

Key Leadership 89

Financing the Army of the Pure 94

Training Soldiers in the Army of the Pure 98

The Nascence of the Milli Muslim League 102

Conclusions and Implications 106

5 Who Are the Soldiers in the Army of the Pure? 111

Introduction to the Dataset on Slain LeT Activists 112

Characteristics of the Soldiers in the Army of the Pure 115

Why They Fight: Motivating the Fighters in the Army of the Pure 127

Recruiting the Families of the Fighters: Mothers May Matter Most 130

Conclusions and Implications 147

6 The Domestic Policies of LeT 149

Key Sources for this Chapter 152

Why Wage Jihad and Under What Circumstances? 158

Defending Jihad against the Myriad Excuses against Jihad 168

Why Not Wage Jihad in Pakistan? 172

Muslims among Non-Muslims in Pakistan 185

Christians Among Muslims 188

Friends with Benefits: Symbiosis with the Deep State 189

Conclusions and Implications 193

7 Dealing with LeT and Escaping Pakistan's Nuclear Coercion 197

Option 1 Maintain the Status Quo: American Cupidity and Indian "Strategic Restraint" 198

Option 2 Leadership Decapitation: What Happens if LeT Heads Roll? 204

Option 3 Escaping Pakistan's Coercion Strategy 207

There Are No Good Options. Just "Less Bad" Options 213

Appendix 1 Notes on Transliteration and Translation 215

Appendix 2 List of Acronyms 219

Appendix 3 Glossary of Non-English Words 221

Notes 227

Select Bibliography 291

Index 301

Editorial Reviews

"One of the 'five books that explain Kashmir's decades long crisis' — Financial Times

"This book is a very readable, engaging, in-depth, and critical analysis of one of the most lethal jihadi organisations in the world, and its role in the broader security, regional and domestic framework of Pakistan, which makes this work a must read for years to come."— Asian Affairs

"Christine Fair has written the definitive volume for understanding Pakistan's most dangerous militant group. Using the group's own publications, she brings us into the world of its operatives and illuminates the strategic thinking of its leaders. Her history is precise and encompassing, her methodology ingenious, her conclusions groundbreaking." — Jacob Shapiro, Professor of Politics and International Affairs, Princeton University

"Christine Fair has been following Lashkar-e-Taiba for many years, and her familiarity with its literature and history is evident in this finely grained account. Leveraging LeT's multitude of publications and her own knowledge of its operations, she provides new insights into the organization, the people it recruits, and their families." — Stephen Tankel, Associate Professor, American University, and author of Storming the World Stage: The Story of Lashkar-e-Taiba

"Leveraging Lashkar-e-Tayyaba's own writings, Fair sheds light on the domestic politics that render it the Pakistan Army's most valuable tool of proxy warfare. Indispensable for understanding one of the world's most potent terrorist groups." — Walter C. Ladwig III, Senior Lecturer in International Relations, King's College London; author of The Forgotten Front: Patron-Client Relationships in Counterinsurgency

"Navigating the complexities of one of the world's most ambitious modern Muslim states, Fair brings an impressive thoroughness of research to unpacking the internal doctrines, recruitment strategies, and objectives of Lashkar-e-Tayyaba. With unflinching verve, Fair shows why conflict resolution focusing on bilateral negotiations between India and Pakistan or on de-radicalizing militant networks of young men ignore deeper causes of violence." — Flagg Miller, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, University of California, Davis, and author of The Audacious Ascetic: What the Bin Laden Tapes Reveal About Al-Qa'ida

"No one has done more than Christine Fair to educate the international community about terrorism in Pakistan. Now she opens a window into the mind of Lashkar-e-Tayyaba, providing penetrating, even if disconcerting, insights into a terrorist group that is likely to thrive for a long time to come. This is essential reading for anyone who cares about Pakistan or peace and stability in South Asia." — Ashley Tellis, Tata Chair for Strategic Affairs, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

"This book is a very welcome academic treatment of an important 'security' institution in Pakistan."— Commonwealth & Comparative Politics

"Fair gives a detailed account of the LeT's ideological roots, organisational structure and its evolution as a hydra-headed social and militant outfit."— The Hindu

"A detailed and academic text, [In Their Own Words] draws on an impressive array of primary texts. [...] Given LeT's continuing importance, such insightful work is to be welcomed and shows the complex and diverse array of extremist groups that the world continues to face."— The RUSI Journal

"Fair's rich experience of the region and her flair for language make her an exceptional author. . . . [Her] well-written book, an excellent addition to the corpus of security studies in South Asia, fills a significant gap in the existing literature."— South Asia Research

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