Tripoli, Lebanon's 'Sunni City' is often presented as an Islamist or even Jihadi city. However, this misleading label conceals a much deeper history of resistance and collaboration with the state and the wider region. Based on more than a decade of fieldwork and using a broad array of primary sources, Tine Gade analyses the modern history of Tripoli, exploring the city's contentious politics, its fluid political identity, and the relations between Islamist and sectarian groups. Offering an alternative explanation for Tripoli's decades of political troubles – rather than emphasizing Islamic radicalism as the principal explanation – she argues that it is Lebanese clientelism and the decay of the state that produced the rise of violent Islamist movements in Tripoli. By providing a corrective to previous assumptions, this book not only expands our understanding of Lebanese politics, but of the wider religious and political dynamics in the Middle East.

‘The story of Tripoli is rich and fascinating, and Gade tells it with deep insight and sympathy. Based on years of meticulous research, the book provides a new vantage point to evaluate Lebanese politics: the country’s second metropolis, where citizens both resist and reshape the state.’

Hannes Baumann - University of Liverpool

‘An impressive and captivating deep dive into the political history of Tripoli, a city whose significance extends far beyond the city gates.’

Thomas Hegghammer - Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI)

‘Tine Gade provides a masterfully crafted history of Tripoli’s politics over the last century. Her nuanced account of the complex interplays between the city’s radical and mainstream political and religious actors is particularly impressive. This book is an invaluable contribution to our understanding of intercommunal Sunni dynamics in Lebanon and beyond.’

Thomas Pierret - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique & Aix-Marseille Université

‘Tine Gade provides us with a remarkably detailed and in-depth field study which highlights the ‘Sunni city’ of Tripoli as a world in itself. However, the book goes beyond this case story: it shows also how this Sunni city mirrors the complexity of Lebanese politics and identity, and the long, complex history of Arab Sunni radicalism in the Middle East.’

Olivier Roy - European University Institute