In the Line of Fire

Pervez Musharraf

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK
• Year: 2008
• eBook ISBN:
  9781847395962
• Print ISBN:
  9781416527787

It is almost unprecedented for a head of state to publish a memoir while still in office. But Pervez Musharraf is no ordinary head of state. As President of Pakistan since 1999, his is one of the most dangerous jobs in the world, and he continues to play a crucial role in the global war on terror. A one-time supporter of the Taliban, a general who fought in several wars, President Musharraf took a decisive turn against militant Islam in 2001. Since then he has survived two assassination attempts; rooted out militants in his own government; helped direct countless raids against al-Qaeda both in his cities and in the mountains; and tracked Osama bin Laden with technical and human intelligence.

IN THE LINE OF FIRE is astonishingly revealing and honest about dozens of topics of intense interest to the world. Among its many revelations: exactly how Pakistani authorities tracked down and smashed three major al-Qaeda control centres in the mountains; how al-Qaeda's many-layered structure was revealed after the assassination attempts; Bin Laden's current position within the al-Qaeda hierarchy; what it has been like to deal with Bush and Blair; how Pakistan and India have avoided nuclear confrontation; and much more.

The terrible earthquake of 2005, killing nearly 40,000 Pakistanis, is just one chapter in a life and career that has been filled with danger and drama. The worldwide launch of President Musharraf's memoir promises to be a sensation.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Copyright
• CONTENTS
• Preface
• Prologue: Face-to-Face with Terror
• PART ONE
• Chapter 1: Train to Pakistan
• Chapter 2: Settling in Karachi
• Chapter 3: Turkey: The Formative Years
• Chapter 4: Home
• Chapter 5: Leaving the Nest
• PART TWO
• Chapter 6: The Potter’s Wheel
• Chapter 7: Into the Fire
• Chapter 8: Life in the Fire
• Chapter 9: Living Through the Dreadful Decade
• Chapter 10: From Chief to Chief Executive
• Chapter 11: The Kargil Conflict
• PART THREE
• Chapter 12: Plane to Pakistan
• Chapter 13: The Conspiracy
• Chapter 14: The Countercoup
• Chapter 15: Anatomy of Suicide
• PART FOUR
• Chapter 16: Pakistan First
• Chapter 17: The Quest for Democracy
• Chapter 18: Putting the System Right
• Chapter 19: Kick-Starting the Economy
• PART FIVE
• Chapter 20: One Day That Changed the World
• Chapter 21: Omar and Osama
• Chapter 22: The War Comes to Pakistan
• Chapter 23: Manhunt
• Chapter 24: Tightening the Noose
• Chapter 25: al Qaeda in the Mountains
• Chapter 26: The Symbiosis of Terrorism and Religion
• PART SIX
• Chapter 27: Nuclear Proliferation
• Chapter 28: International Diplomacy
• Chapter 29: The Social Sector
• Chapter 30: The Emancipation of Women
• Chapter 31: The Soft Image of Pakistan
• Chapter 32: Leadership on Trial: The Earthquake
• Epilogue: Reflections
• Index
• Photographic Insert