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Black Widow White Widow

De Wet Potgieter

When in 2013 he first published a report on the active presence of Al-Qaeda in South Africa, all hell broke loose for investigative reporter De Wet Potgieter. He was forced to retract before a second, substantiating article could be published. Then the massacre at Westgate Mall hit Nairobi, which made the involvement of the so-called White Widow - operating on a legitimate but illegally acquired South African passport - front-page news. Suddenly the world's media was beating a path to Potgieter's door. Now, for the first time, he tells the full unsettling story of Al-Qaeda's presence in this country. Not only is the veil lifted from this mysterious British woman, but the identity of another is disclosed: an Afrikaans-speaking counter-terrorist operative known as the Black Widow.The book shows how, taking advantage of corrupt state machinery, Al-Qaeda factions launch attacks in other countries. It discloses the location of a terrorist training camp in the Karoo and reveals disturbing details of the support they receive from various local extremist groups. Based on investigations spanning two years, <i>Black Widow White Widow</i> paints a frightening picture of the all too real possibility of future attacks from, or on, South African soil.

GenresSocial SciencesPolitical ScienceTerrorism

358 pages

English edition · First published 2014 by Penguin Random House South Africa · ISBN 9780143531371

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