State of Siege by Tom Clancy, Steve Pieczenik

The sixth volume in the fast-selling series of high-tech, high-action thrillers created by Tom Clancy and Steve Pieczenik. Tom Clancy's Op-Centre, the series of international thrillers centred on the National Crisis Management Centre in Washington, is now firmly established as a bestselling phenomenon - a must for technothriller fans around the world. The previous volume in the series, Balance of Power, was yet another Sunday Times top-ten bestseller. Now that remarkable record is set to continue, with a spectacular new story - State of Siege. After years of handling some of the world's most dangerous international crises, Paul Hood is about to step down from his position as Director of the Op-Centre - only for the latest crisis to erupt much too close to home. A disgruntled group of ex-members of the UN peackeeping force have banded together and pulled off a series of daring robberies. Now they have devised a plan to make $100,000,000. Armed with nerve gas, they enter the UN building in New York and take ten ambassadors hostage, threatening to kill one every half-hour. The international crisis that ensues is beyond anything that Paul Hood has ever faced before...