Islam and Sectarian Violence in Pakistan

This book analyses the growth of sectarian-based terrorist violence in Pakistan, one of the Muslim majority states most affected by sectarian violence, ever since it was established in 1947. Sectarian violence among Muslims has emerged as a major global security problem in recent years. The author argues that the upsurge in sectarian violence in Pakistan, particularly since the late 1970s, has had less to do with theological differences between the various sects of Islam, but is a consequence of the specific political, social, economic, demographic and cultural changes that have taken place in Pakistan since it was established as an independent state. A major theme of the book is the increasing violence, extent and expressions of sectarian conflict which have emerged as new forms of sectarian terrorism. The volume provides an in-depth empirical case study which addresses some major theoretical questions raised by Critical Terrorism Studies researchers in respect of the links between religion and sectarian terrorism in Pakistan and more widely. This book will be of much interest to students of critical terrorism studies, Asian politics and history, religious studies and International Relations in general.

Eamon Murphy is Adjunct Professor in the School of Media, Creative Arts and Social Inquiry at Curtin University in Western Australia. His publications include The Making of Terrorism in Pakistan (Routledge, 2013) and Contemporary State Terrorism (co-edited with Richard Jackson and Scott Poynting, Routledge, 2010).

Foreword Preface Introduction 1 Islamic sects in contemporary Pakistan 2 Islam and sectarianism in the Indian sub-continent: an historical overview 3. Sectarianism, politics and the making of Pakistan, 1937-47 4. Sectarian conflict in the new state of Pakistan, 1947 - 1963 5. The Islamisation of Pakistan and sectarian conflict, 1963-1988 6. Sectarianism, proxy wars and global jihad: the Afghan-Soviet War, 1979-1989 7. Regional and local dimensions of sectarian conflicts in Pakistan 8. Contemporary sectarian violence in Pakistan: Islam in crisis 9. The future of sectarian conflict and prospects for peace Conclusion