In Descent Into Chaos: Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Threat to Global Security Ahmed Rashid explores the most volatile and dangerous region in the world.

The war on terror is being lost - but not just in Iraq. As this devastating book shows, the real crisis zone now lies in central Asia. Veteran reporter Ahmed Rashid has unparalleled access to the region and knows its leading players, from presidents to warlords. Here he documents how closely Pakistan's US-backed regime is linked with extremists; how broken promises in Afghanistan have led to a resurgent Taliban fed by drugs money; and how the largest landmass in the world is now a breeding ground for terrorism.

In this story of squandered opportunities, misguided alliances and double-dealing, Rashid pinpoints with chilling accuracy where the true threat to our global security comes from.

'Compulsively readable'
Justin Marozzi, Evening Standard

Profound and lively ... it reads like a thriller ... graphic, detailed and worrying'
Michael Fathers, New Statesman

'Gripping ... a major contribution to understanding the region and the events of recent years ... thought-provoking and important'
Jason Burke, Observer

'His knowledge of events and people there is second to none and the information he has gathered, often at great personal risk, makes alarming reading'
Kim Sengupta, Independent

'A superbly researched account of post-9/11 Asia ... outstanding'
Sameer Rahim, Daily Telegraph

Ahmed Rashid is Pakistan's premiere journalist, an expert on Central Asia, on jihad and Muslim extremists movements, on the Taliban and Al Qaeda, on insurgency, and on the catastrophe of US policy in this region, on which he has reported for 25 years. Author of three books, his work Taliban was a huge international bestseller, widely recognized as the definitive account.