Allah's Angels: Chechen Women in War
Few Western studies more accurately portray the suffering of women during wartime than Paul Murphy s Allah s Angels. His moving account shows the political and military aspects of this violent conflict while also underscoring its especially devastating impact on women. By the end of this valuable book, the picture that emerges is not a pretty one. --STEPHEN R. BOWERS, Professor, Helms School of Government at Liberty UniversityDr. Murphy provides a strikingly poignant view of the Chechen woman in Allah's Angels. It is a thoroughly documented portrait of the traditional, cultural, historical, religious, political, and geographical influencers that have challenged and changed the face of Russia, the Caucasus, Chechnya, the Chechen family, and the Chechen woman. Personal interviews, documented reports from human rights organizations, and police, military, and news sources focus on extremism from all sides, proving the changing gender roles and responsibilities for the Chechen woman. Dr. Murphy has profiled not only a culture but the individual women, the names, the faces, the families, the stories that have marked a tragedy in geopolitical reconstruction at the turn of the 21st century. --L. MITCHELL, former Communications Director, Russia-Eurasia Terror WatchPaul Murphy's work exposes the nuances of how fragments of Islam, tribalism, and the responses to heavy-handed Russian tactics weave together a new regional militant Islamist narrative. The book discusses the complexity of recruiting female suicide bombers by Chechen militant Islamist groups. It highlights an amalgam of family honor, sexual exploitation, and revenge that is given the veneer of Militant Islamist narrative to compel direct action. Murphy's book is critical of Russia's handling of Chechnya and offers lessons on what not to do in countering an insurgency. This book can only enhance the debate on countering Militant Islamist groups in this troubled region and offers clarity of thought. --CDR. YOUSSEF ABOUL-ENEIN, MSC, USN, author of Militant Islamist Ideology