Praise for Invisible Martyrs
Distorting the teachings of religion is not unique to extreme Islam in our time. We find it everywhere, and we all need to address it if we are to mend our world, which is undergoing a deep moral crisis. This book focuses on women who are recruited by radical organizations that distort the teaching of Islam. I share the authors conclusion that, as we have always seen in the past, those who have no regard for human life cannot succeed. The teachings of compassion and justice shared by all the major faiths will continue to prevail.
Rabbi Mordecai Schreiber
Farhana Qazi continues to serve as an ambassador between religions and cultures in difficult and violent times. Her book is a must-read to separate the peaceful practice of Islam from violent extremism.
Ambassador Akbar Ahmed, Ibn Khaldun Chair of Islamic Studies, American University
Farhana Qazi focuses on the importance of going local as the foundation for countering and preventing violent extremism, understanding that Muslims are the front line in the global war on terrorism.
Stephen M. Apatow, President, Humanitarian Resource Institute
Farhana Qazi highlights the precious gift of Islam in this book, which is to bring the misguided female extremist closer to the truth and understand a religion of love and mercy.
Jennifer Sue Parker, senior commander, US military
Farhana Qazi takes the reader on a well-written and analytically sharp tour of the world of women who kill in the name of God.
Peter Bergen, Vice President, New America Foundation, and National Security Analyst, CNN
Farhana Qazis new book, Invisible Martyrs, is an authentic revelation of how Islam can be skewed by some, thus distorting the core fundamental goodness of the faith of Islam, and especially for gender issues. In this complex and volatile world, women reject terrorism and conflictthey search for peace, justice, and rights. Bravo to Farhana with this most important message in her new book.
Lois A. Herman, Coordinator, Womens UN Report Networkpagebreak
Informed by her own experience and personal encounters, Qazis book takes us inside the mindset of those who, contrary to their own religious beliefs and to societys perceptions of women as nurturers, instead become its murderous fanatics. While avoiding the alarmist prose and political agendas that color so much of the literature on terrorism, Invisible Martyrs offers a fascinating and harrowing story. Of all the recent books on this topic, this one is an essential read.
Brian Michael Jenkins, Senior Adviser, RAND Corporation
Qazi has given us a deeply personal yet acutely analytical journey into the minds of the women and girls who seek out violent extremism. Invisible Martyrs is an electrifying page-turner that should be read by everyone who wants to understand this disturbing phenomenon.
John Horgan, senior counterterrorism adviser to the United States and Professor, Georgia State University
Qazi gives us a book that is bold, brave, and brilliant. A must-read for everyone trying to unpack violent extremism from a peaceful religion.
Amanda Ohlke, Adult Education Director, International Spy Museum
Invisible Martyrs reflects Qazis personal spiritual journey as a Muslim American woman, mother, immigrant, and scholar trying to understand motives for terrorism that are so alien to her experiences with Islam. An antidote to complaints in the media that Muslims arent speaking up, the book demonstrates that many Muslim scholars continue to be doing their part to combat what the author characterizes as a disturbing trend of an uncompromising Islamic scholarship spreading in the Muslim and Western world. Qazi also suggests alternative narratives against extremism, in which struggling in the way of God means taking the path to love, not to war.
Barbara Sude, former senior counterterrorism analyst, US government
Through storytelling, Qazi takes a deeper look at what motivates women and girls to join a dangerous and radical movement. This book is essential for anyone hoping to understand the dark truth of violent extremism as well as the beauty of Islam.
Angelina Maldonado, world affairs instructor
Farhana Qazi has utilized a lifetime of studying Islam to craft a book that sheds light on a great mystery. She comes at the subject as a scholar and an American woman who spent time with Muslim women to understand their motivations. Her insights are unique. She draws on a tremendous amount of research and reflection. It is a valuable read to help understand what Islam really says and how we might prevent future violence.
Vicky Collins, television producer and journalistpagebreak
Compellingly written and hard to put down, Farhana Qazis first-person perspective asks difficult questions about faith and culture while shining a light on an often-unexpected and unseen side of radical Islam.
Eric Tipton, author and screenwriter
With Invisible Martyrs, Farhana Qazi turns conventional thinking upside down and forces us to ask new questions about who engages in political violence and why. A highly original, compelling, and very readable exploration of a side of terrorism we know very little about.
Peter Mandaville, Professor of International Affairs and Islamic Studies, George Mason University, and former Senior Adviser to Secretaries of State Hillary Clinton and John Kerry
In her book, Qazi fights violent extremists by trying to capture the true spirit of Islamic teachings while also understanding and offering solutions to vulnerable Muslims who need to reject such messages and once again embrace a religion of peace.
Anne Speckhard, Director, International Center for the Study of Violent Extremism, and Adjunct Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Georgetown University School of Medicine
Farhana Qazi tells the fascinating inside story of the women who are ready to die for radical Islam.
Deborah Scroggins, author of Wanted Women
Heartbreaking. The balance Qazi brings to a difficult storyextremism versus the teachings of peace and lovemakes for a powerful read. Telling the story through the eyes of women makes it memorable.
Betsy Ashton, author and former President, Virginia Writers Club
With her inimitable insights, compelling analysis, and clear-eyed stories, Farhana Qazi makes a world opaque to most all of us accessible and vivid. This book has much for those willing to be taught and should be read widely.
Eric Selbin, Chair of International Studies, Professor of Political Science, and Lucy King Brown Chair, Southwestern University
Gripping. Lyrical. With Invisible Martyrs, Qazi tells stories that need to be heard and penetrates minds that need to be understood.
Ajit Maan, President, Narrative Strategies, and author of Narrative Warfare
Qazi is a daring researcher who provides answers to why women and girls join extremism. With an open heart, she weaves in her own personal story to tell the world that ignorance of faith disempowers Muslim females. This is the only book by an American Muslim woman with a counterterrorism background that has the power to change hearts and minds.
Judit Maull, Producer, Happy Madison Productionspagebreak
Farhana Qazis courage and compassion inform this extraordinary book, which gives new and important insights into the radicalization of violent extremists. A beautifully crafted cri de coeur,
