House of Spies (Gabriel Allon #17)(132)
Morocco exports more than just drugs to Europe; it also exports terrorists. Abdelhamid Abaaoud, Salah Abdeslam, and Ibrahim and Khalid El Bakraoui have more in common than a criminal past. All are of Moroccan ethnicity. More than thirteen hundred Moroccans have joined ISIS, along with several hundred ethnic Moroccans from Western Europe, mainly from France, Belgium, and the Netherlands. During a research trip to Morocco in the winter of 2017, I saw a country on high alert. And with good reason. The chief of Morocco’s counterterrorism service warned in April 2016 that his unit had broken up twenty-five ISIS plots in Morocco in the last year alone, one involving mustard gas. Morocco’s vital tourism industry, which draws thousands of Westerners to the country each year, is a primary target.
Presumably, the United States and its partners will prevail in their campaign against ISIS in Iraq and Syria. But will the loss of the caliphate mean the end of ISIS-inspired or -directed terrorism? The answer is likely to be no. Already, the physical caliphate is being replaced by a digital one where virtual plotters recruit and plan in the security and anonymity of cyberspace. But the blood will flow in the real world, in the rail stations, airports, cafés, and theaters of the West. The global jihadist movement has proven itself uncannily adaptable. The West must adapt, too. And quickly. Otherwise, it will be left to ISIS and its inevitable offspring to determine the quality and security of our lives in “the new normal.”
Acknowledgments
I am enormously grateful for the love and support of my wife, Jamie Gangel, who helped with the conception of House of Spies, contributed numerous plot points, and skillfully edited my manuscript, which was completed only minutes before its deadline. My children, Lily and Nicholas, were a constant source of love and inspiration, especially during my research trip to Morocco, where they helped me chart the twists and turns of the novel’s long climactic sequence.
I spoke to numerous spies, counterterrorism officials, and politicians involved in homeland security, and I will thank them now in anonymity, which is how they would prefer it. Louis Toscano, my dear friend and longtime editor, made countless improvements to the novel, large and small. Kathy Crosby, my eagle-eyed personal copy editor, made certain the text was free of typographical and grammatical errors. Any mistakes that slipped through their formidable gauntlet are mine, not theirs.
I consulted hundreds of books, newspaper and magazine articles, and Web sites while preparing this manuscript, far too many to name here. I would be remiss, however, if I did not mention The Caliph’s House by Tahir Shah and A House in Fez by Suzanna Clarke. A special thanks to Michael Gendler, Linda Rappaport, Michael Rudell, and Eric Brown for their support and wise counsel.
The staffs of the Four Seasons Hotel in Casablanca and the Palais Faraj in Fez took wonderful care of us during our stay in Morocco, and our guides, M and S, gave us a glimpse of their remarkable country we will never forget. Stories of their travails against the jinns, told during a daylong drive through the snowy cedar forests of the Middle Atlas Mountains, found their way into my manuscript. So, too, did their generosity and kindness.
I am forever indebted to David Bull for his expert advice on all matters related to art and restoration. Each year, David grants me several hours of his valuable time to make certain my novels are free of errors. And for his punishment, he is now known throughout the art world as “the real Gabriel Allon.” Finally, the inimitable Patrick Matthiesen took time out of a recent trip to America to regale me with stories of his experiences in a changing art market. Patrick’s extraordinary Old Master gallery shares an address with the perpetually troubled establishment owned by the fictitious Julian Isherwood. Otherwise, they have in common only their deep love and knowledge of art, their sense of humor, and their humanity.