Musab al Zarqawi, America's Most Dangerous Enemy in Terrorism Thriller

Musab al Zarqawi, Al-Qaeda's mastermind behind the insurgency against U.S. forces in Iraq, has now emerged as the world's deadliest terrorist in the world of fiction. Author Sheldon Filger based the lead antagonist in his chilling novel about nuclear terrorism, "King of Bombs," on Zarqawi.

"Musab al Zarqawi has proven to be a uniquely effective, utterly ruthless and totally dedicated enemy of America and adherent of Osama bin Laden. In my novel about nuclear terrorism, I wanted to explore how this personality, should he survive the insurgency in Iraq, may possibly puruse his war against America, by spearheading a plot involving the ultimate form of terrorism," Sheldon Filger said.

Though presented in "King of Bombs" with a different name and nationality, the fanatical Al-Qaeda operative plotting an appocalyptic act of nuclear terrorism on American soil is clearly inspired by the real-life Musab al Zarqawi. Operating under the "nom de guerre" of "The Lion," he is the architect of a diabolical and brilliant scheme to inflict a future 9/11 attack on the United States, with nuclear weapons of unparalleled power. Many of his trusted operatives in the U.S. received their initiation in the global jihad while fighting American troops in
Iraq.

"One of the disturbing issues I explore in 'King of Bombs' is that the war in Iraq is serving as a training ground for Al-Qaeda's jihadist warrriors, in preparation for conducting far more deadly attacks within the United States," Filger indicated in commenting on his book. "Though this is a theory expounded in my novel, we know that many of the attackers on September 11, 2001 received their original training and indoctrination while fighting in Afghanistan in the 1980's. My novel raises a disturbing future possibility which, though terrifying, should not be dismissed out of hand. Otherwise, we risk repeating history, with dire consequences."