Saudi Arabia and the politics of dissent

Few books on Saudi Arabia use primary sources to examine internal Saudi dissent. In contrast, Saudi Arabia and the Politics of Dissent relies on field work and the analysis of more than one hundred taped sermons by Saudi Islamic activists, examining their personal backgrounds, their rhetoric, and their strategies. Mamoun Fandy traces the evolution of Islamic opposition in Saudi Arabia, focusing on the Gulf War and its aftermath and scrutinizing the works of Safar al Hawali and Salman al-'Auda. He also documents the history of the Shi'a Reform Movement and its leader, Sheik Hassan al-Saffar, of Mohammed al-Mas'ari and his Committee for the Defense of Legitimate Rights; of Sa'd al-Faqih and the Movement of Islamic Reform in Arabia; and, finally, the radical Usama bin Laden and his organization.