Londonistan: How Britain is Creating a Terror State Within

Londonistan: How Britain is Creating a Terror State Within
Author(s)	Melanie Phillips
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Subject(s)	Islamic terrorism Politics
Publisher	Encounter books
Publication date	2006
Media type	Print (Hardcover)
Pages	212
ISBN	ISBN 1-59403-144-4
OCLC Number	64595883
Dewey Decimal	363.3250941 22
LC Classification	HV6433.G7 P55 2006

Londonistan: How Britain is Creating a Terror State Within is a 2006 best-selling book by British journalist Melanie Phillips about the spread of Islamism in the United Kingdom over the past twenty years. The book is published in London by Encounter books.

Describing the book in The American Conservative magazine, writer Theodore Dalrymple wrote "the British journalist Melanie Phillips documents not only the establishment and growth of Muslim extremist groups in London but the administrative incompetence and cultural weakness that permitted it to happen. Some pusillanimity that she records would be funny if it were not so deeply disturbing."

Overview

The book encompasses a critique of multiculturalism, alleged weak policing, cultural relativism, and what Phillips calls a 'victim culture'. She argues that these forces combined to create an ideal breeding ground for Islamic terrorists. She points to the centrality of London based individuals and groups to many terror plots around the world, which she argues were enabled by a semi-formal "covenant of security" between Islamists and the British authorities. Zacharias Moussaoui and shoebomber Richard Reid are two of many such examples she points to in the book.^{[citation needed]}

Critical reception

Writing for the Canadian magazine Maclean's, Mark Steyn described it as an "indispensable" read. Steyn continued "Melanie Phillips makes a point that applies to Britain, Canada and beyond." Asia Times also described the book as "indispensable".

"Londonistan is a last-minute warning for Britain and for much of the free world...the book is powerful and frightening, but also courageous." Nathan Sharansky "In this groundbreaking study, Melanie Phillips shows how Britain’s imperial policy of “benign neglect” towards radical Islamist groups in the 1980s and 1990s came close to malign complicity in the activities of some of the most determined terrorist organizations ever to emerge in Europe." Amir Taheri

Writing for The Daily Telegraph, historian and writer Michael Burleigh decided that the book could not be more "timely" and praised her "sensible suggestions".

David Smith writing for The Observer compared her to "a crazed boxer" who"comes out swinging wildly and some of her punches land. ... But her shrill, hectoring tone does her no favours."

The historian William Dalrymple was critical of the book, describing it as written by someone who shows "no evidence of having spent any time in Muslim company, or of having set foot within the Muslim world".

See also

• Criticism of multiculturalism
• Eurabia
• Islamism in London
• The Islamist
• Islamist demonstration outside Danish Embassy in London in 2006
• Islamophobia
• Londonistan (term)
• Londonstani
• Undercover Mosque

External links

• "Losing the plot", Book review by Brendan O'Neill, New Statesman, June 12, 2006
• "Londonistan", Book review by Fahad Zafar, DAWN, August 9, 2009
• Interview at Madrid11.net
• Interview at The Guardian
• Video of Phillips discussing the book at the Heritage Foundation
• Library Reverses Rejection of ‘Potentially Incendiary' Book NY Sun article