War crimes Books

Book SynopsisThis is a riveting and disturbing account of the medical atrocities performed in and around Japan during WWII.

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"[Stearns] makes a convincing case that the violence has been sustained by a ‘military bourgeoisie’ that benefits from instability by plundering natural resources and foreign aid."---Nicolas van de Walle, Foreign Affairs"There should be more conceptual books on this topic, and this is one of them. Haven’t you wondered why this war drags on for decades, without resolution? Start your quest for an answer here."---Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution

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Book SynopsisBased on exclusive and unrestricted access to more than 5,000 pages of personal writings and family photos, this definitive biography of German physician and SS-Hauptsturmfuhrer Josef Mengele (1911-1979) probes the personality and motivations of Auschwitz''s Angel of Death. From May 1943 through January 1945, Mengele selected who would be gassed immediately, who would be worked to death, and who would serve as involuntary guinea pigs for his spurious and ghastly human experiments (twins were Mengele''s particular obsession). With authority and insight, Mengele examines the entire life of the world''s most infamous doctor.Trade ReviewWell researched and wonderfully free of all the customary fantasy and exaggeration.... Fascinating. * The New York Review Of Books *It's a pity that the official search for him did not match the vigor with which Posner and Ware stalk their subject in print. * The San Francisco Chronicle *The fullest account yet published.... Posner and Ware examine the efforts to bring the doctor to trial, separate fact from legend, account for the false trails that enticed Israeli agents and self-appointed Nazi hunters, and explain why he was never caught. ... Mengele is filled with startling touches. The book is an exciting chronicle of escape, evasion, and close calls. * Publishers Weekly *[A] welcome addition to the study of the Holocaust.... Mengele offers us insight into one of the most infamous perpetrators of the holocaust. -- Michael Berenbaum, director, Sigi Ziering Institute, American Jewish UniversityStudents of the Holocaust are fortunate to have this book in print once again. Posner and Ware have aptly titled their book; this is the complete story. The authors bring flair to the telling. It is a riveting tale. * The Historian *

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Book SynopsisA real-life detective story, tracking down the man responsible for some of the worst atrocities of the killing fieldsTrade Review'Nic Dunlop's remarkable journey into the dark, suffering heart of Cambodia is a revelation' John Pilger 'Nic Dunlop's search for the holy grail - the understanding of how (rather than why) good men become evil - makes this into a harrowing book' Gitta Sereny 'Nic Dunlop's book, a vivid, highly personalised account of his quest for comrade Duch, the Khmer Rouge's chief jailer, interrogator and butcher, leads us deep into this ideological heart of darkness' Sunday Telegraph 'His book vividly depicts the war, the meticulous records kept by the KR of their victims, their horrible tortures and the effect of the tragedy on Cambodians today. It is a tough and brilliant read' Irish Times

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"[Stearns] makes a convincing case that the violence has been sustained by a ‘military bourgeoisie’ that benefits from instability by plundering natural resources and foreign aid."---Nicolas van de Walle, Foreign Affairs"There should be more conceptual books on this topic, and this is one of them. Haven’t you wondered why this war drags on for decades, without resolution? Start your quest for an answer here."---Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution

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Book SynopsisIn The Beekeeper of Sinjar, the acclaimed poet and journalist Dunya Mikhail tells the harrowing stories of women from across Iraq who have managed to escape the clutches of ISIS. Since 2014, ISIS has been persecuting the Yazidi people, killing or enslaving those who won't convert to Islam. These women have lost their families and loved ones, along with everything they've ever known. Dunya Mikhail weaves together the women's tales of endurance and near-impossible escape with the story of her own exile and her dreams for the future of Iraq. In the midst of ISIS's reign of terror and hatred, an unlikely hero has emerged: the Beekeeper. Once a trader selling his mountain honey across the region, when ISIS came to Sinjar he turned his knowledge of the local terrain to another, more dangerous use. Along with a secret network of transporters, helpers, and former bootleggers, Abdullah Shrem smuggles brutalised Yazidi women to safety through the war-torn landscapes of Iraq, Syria, and Eastern Turkey. This powerful work of literary nonfiction offers a counterpoint to ISIS's genocidal extremism: hope, as ordinary people risk torture and death to save the lives of others.Trade ReviewIt is not for the faint-hearted, but they should read it anyway. We should all read it. -- Peter Stanford * Observer *Remarkable ... With this short book, the tragedies and the heroism of this time of horror will survive intact. -- Louise Callaghan * Sunday Times *Rare and powerful ... Mikhail has created a searing portrait of courage, humanity and savagery, told in a mosaic of voices. ... [her] gifts as a poet infuse these narratives with unexpected beauty * The New York Times *Mikhail bears witness to women in war-torn Iraq, women who have scarcely known peace throughout their lives. That she is a poet is clear on each page. * Kirkus Reviews *

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Book SynopsisTHE CLASSIC LOST THRILLER FROM THE ICONIC NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER''Shockingly good'' The Sun''A prescient, high-octane thriller'' Daily Express''Totally on the money - and ripe for this republication'' i Newspaper * * * * *It always starts with a small lie. That''s how you stop noticing the bigger ones.After his friend suspects something strange going on at the satellite facility where they both work - and then goes missing - Martin Hepton doesn''t believe the official line of long-term sick leave...Refusing to stop asking questions, he leaves his old life behind, aware that someone is shadowing his every move. But why?The only hope he has is his ex-girlfriend Jill Watson - the only journalist who will believe his story.But neither of them can believe the puzzle they''re piecing together - or just how shocking the secret is that everybody wants to stay hidden...Trade ReviewThe King of crime fiction * SUNDAY EXPRESS *Rankin is a master storyteller * GUARDIAN *Ian Rankin is perhaps the best and most complex thriller writer in Britain today * DAILY TELEGRAPH *Ian Rankin is a genius -- Lee Child

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Book Synopsis'Every so often, a new work emerges of such immense scholarship and weight that it really does add a significant difference to our understanding of the Second World War and its consequences. Judgement in Tokyo is one such, a monumental work in both scale and detail, beautifully constructed and written, leaving the reader not only moved but disturbed as well.' – James Holland, The Sunday Telegraph'A work of singular importance . . . balanced, original, human, accessible, and riveting' – Philippe Sands, author of East-West Street'Always engrossing . . . a breathtakingly ambitious and well-executed piece of history, unlikely to be bettered as a portrait of the trials and their place in postwar global history' – History TodayA landmark, magisterial history of the postwar trial of Japan’s leaders as war criminals, and their impact on the modern history of Asia and the world.In the weeks after Japan finally surrendered to the Allies to end World War II, the victorious powers turned to the question of how to move on from years of carnage and destruction. For the Allied powers, the trials were an opportunity both to render judgment on their vanquished foes and to create a legal framework to prosecute war crimes and prohibit the use of aggressive war. For the Japanese leaders on trial, it was their chance to argue that their war had been waged to liberate Asia from Western imperialism and that the court was no more than victors’ justice.Gary J. Bass' Judgement at Tokyo is a magnificent, riveting story of wartime action, dramatic courtroom battles, and the epic formative years that set the stage for the postwar era in the Asia–Pacific.'A comprehensive, landmark and riveting book' – The Washington Post, 'The 10 Best Books of 2023'Trade ReviewThis important book . . . Magisterial' -- Max Hastings, The Sunday TimesEvery so often, a new work emerges of such immense scholarship and weight that it really does add a significant difference to our understanding of the Second World War and its consequences. Judgement in Tokyo is one such, a monumental work in both scale and detail, beautifully constructed and written, leaving the reader not only moved but disturbed as well. -- James Holland, The Sunday TelegraphA work of singular importance – balanced, original, human, accessible, and riveting. It is of huge relevance to our times. -- Philippe Sands, author of East-West StreetMagisterial . . . A well-crafted, warts-and-all account from which almost no one emerges unscathed. * Financial Times *A meticulously researched and authoritative account -- The Economist, 'The Best Books of 2023'Bass has written a massively long and detailed book, always lively and judgmental. He brings out not only the legal arguments, but the colour of the great tribunal itself. * The Observer *This magisterial account – long but never sprawling; thick with detail yet always engrossing . . . This is a breathtakingly ambitious and well-executed piece of history, unlikely to be bettered as a portrait of the trials and their place in postwar global history. -- Christopher Harding, History TodayFascinating -- The New Yorker, 'Best Books of 2023'Comprehensive, landmark and riveting. . . . Bass employs the complexities of the trial as a fulcrum to sketch a wide canvas. . . . Fascinating * The Washington Post, 'The 10 Best Books of 2023' *Immersive -- The New York Times, 'Notable Books of 2023'Magnificent . . . Vivid . . . Profound * Foreign Affairs *Magisterial . . . Bass is a marvelous writer. * Air Mail *In this superb work of transnational history, Gary Bass uses the Tokyo trial to illuminate the making of the modern world. -- Ramachandra Guha, author of India After GandhiTo understand the dynamics of post-World War II Asia, Gary Bass’s Judgement at Tokyo is fascinating, essential reading. -- Barbara Demick, Baillie Gifford prize-winning author of Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North KoreaGary Bass has written nothing less than a masterpiece. With epic research and mesmerizing narrative power, Judgement at Tokyo has the makings of an instant classic. -- Evan Osnos, US National Book Award-winning author of Age of Ambition: Chasing Fortune, Truth, and Faith in the New ChinaA vivid and meticulously crafted account, rich in detail, fair-minded, superbly nuanced. -- Fredrik Logevall, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Embers of War: The Fall of an Empire and the Making of America’s VietnamDestined to become a classic, Judgement at Tokyo is meticulously researched and elegantly written: it is also a necessary book. -- Anna Sherman, author of The Bells of Old Tokyo

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Book Synopsis'Every so often, a new work emerges of such immense scholarship and weight that it really does add a significant difference to our understanding of the Second World War and its consequences. Judgement in Tokyo is one such, a monumental work in both scale and detail, beautifully constructed and written, leaving the reader not only moved but disturbed as well.' – James Holland, The Sunday Telegraph'A work of singular importance . . . balanced, original, human, accessible, and riveting' – Philippe Sands, author of East-West Street'Always engrossing . . . a breathtakingly ambitious and well-executed piece of history, unlikely to be bettered as a portrait of the trials and their place in postwar global history' – History TodayA landmark, magisterial history of the postwar trial of Japan’s leaders as war criminals, and their impact on the modern history of Asia and the world.In the weeks after Japan finally surrendered to the Allies to end World War II, the victorious powers turned to the question of how to move on from years of carnage and destruction. For the Allied powers, the trials were an opportunity both to render judgment on their vanquished foes and to create a legal framework to prosecute war crimes and prohibit the use of aggressive war. For the Japanese leaders on trial, it was their chance to argue that their war had been waged to liberate Asia from Western imperialism and that the court was no more than victors’ justice.Gary J. Bass' Judgement at Tokyo is a magnificent, riveting story of wartime action, dramatic courtroom battles, and the epic formative years that set the stage for the postwar era in the Asia–Pacific.'A comprehensive, landmark and riveting book' – The Washington Post, 'The 10 Best Books of 2023'Trade ReviewThis important book . . . Magisterial' -- Max Hastings, The Sunday TimesEvery so often, a new work emerges of such immense scholarship and weight that it really does add a significant difference to our understanding of the Second World War and its consequences. Judgement in Tokyo is one such, a monumental work in both scale and detail, beautifully constructed and written, leaving the reader not only moved but disturbed as well. -- James Holland, The Sunday TelegraphA work of singular importance – balanced, original, human, accessible, and riveting. It is of huge relevance to our times. -- Philippe Sands, author of East-West StreetMagisterial . . . A well-crafted, warts-and-all account from which almost no one emerges unscathed. * Financial Times *A meticulously researched and authoritative account -- The Economist, 'The Best Books of 2023'Bass has written a massively long and detailed book, always lively and judgmental. He brings out not only the legal arguments, but the colour of the great tribunal itself. * The Observer *This magisterial account – long but never sprawling; thick with detail yet always engrossing . . . This is a breathtakingly ambitious and well-executed piece of history, unlikely to be bettered as a portrait of the trials and their place in postwar global history. -- Christopher Harding, History TodayFascinating -- The New Yorker, 'Best Books of 2023'Comprehensive, landmark and riveting. . . . Bass employs the complexities of the trial as a fulcrum to sketch a wide canvas. . . . Fascinating * The Washington Post, 'The 10 Best Books of 2023' *Immersive -- The New York Times, 'Notable Books of 2023'Magnificent . . . Vivid . . . Profound * Foreign Affairs *Magisterial . . . Bass is a marvelous writer. * Air Mail *In this superb work of transnational history, Gary Bass uses the Tokyo trial to illuminate the making of the modern world. -- Ramachandra Guha, author of India After GandhiTo understand the dynamics of post-World War II Asia, Gary Bass’s Judgement at Tokyo is fascinating, essential reading. -- Barbara Demick, Baillie Gifford prize-winning author of Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North KoreaGary Bass has written nothing less than a masterpiece. With epic research and mesmerizing narrative power, Judgement at Tokyo has the makings of an instant classic. -- Evan Osnos, US National Book Award-winning author of Age of Ambition: Chasing Fortune, Truth, and Faith in the New ChinaA vivid and meticulously crafted account, rich in detail, fair-minded, superbly nuanced. -- Fredrik Logevall, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Embers of War: The Fall of an Empire and the Making of America’s VietnamDestined to become a classic, Judgement at Tokyo is meticulously researched and elegantly written: it is also a necessary book. -- Anna Sherman, author of The Bells of Old Tokyo

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Book SynopsisHow can we comprehend the socio-political processes that give rise to extreme violence, ethnic cleansing or genocide? A major breakthrough in comparative analysis, Purify and Destroy demonstrates that it is indeed possible to compare the Holocaust, the Rwandan genocide and ethnic cleansing in Bosnia-Hercegovina while respecting the specificities of each. Based on the essential distinction between massacre and genocide, Purify and Destroy identifies the main steps of a general process of destruction, rational and irrational, born of what Semelin terms 'delusional rationality', responding to fears, resentments and utopias, and re-modelling the social body by eliminating 'the enemy'. The main stages that can lead to a genocidal process, with ordinary people becoming perpetrators, are also identified.Trade Review'This book is a major accomplishment in the study of genocide. Semelin explores the deep cause, specific triggers, political and international context, dynamics of implementation, nature of killing, and political uses of genocide as a modern phenomenon.' * Omer Bartov, Brown University, and author of Mirrors of Destruction: War, Genocide, and Modern Identity *'[An] outstanding contribution to the field of genocide studies.' * International Affairs *'[A] must-read for those who want to seriously engage the problem of genocide and massacre in rigorous and systematic fashion.' * Political Science Quarterly *'This important study is well worth the effort.' * Holocaust and Genocide Studies *Table of ContentsForeward by Stanley Hoffmann Acknowledgements introduction: Understand? I. The Imaginary Constructs of Social Destructiveness Unpromising Avenues The power of imaginary constructs From the identity narrative to the figure of Traitor From the quest for purity to the figure of the Other in excess From the security dilemma to the destruction of the enemy II. From Inflammatory Discourse to Sacrificial Violence The intellectual springboard Reaching political legitimacy From the religious to the sacrificial Societies torn between adhesion, consent and resistance III. International Context, War and the Media A structure of political opportunities Spilling into war Telling the world: a last resort? IV. The Dynamics of Mass Murder The decision-making process and the deision-makers The organisation of mass murder and the actors involved From collective indifference to popular participation Morphologies of extreme violence V. The Vertigo of Impunity Crossing the threshold into violence The tipping mechanism The dual learning process of massacre The killers' profiles: revisiting 'the banality of evil' Sexual violence and other atrocities VI. The Political Uses of Massacre and Genocide Instrumentalisations of a word that is impossible to define? Distancing genocide studies from the frame of law Destroying to subjugate Destroying to eradicate Destroying to revolt Conclusion: The 'Never Again" Refrain Crisis prevention: arguments and illusions An ethics of responsibility 'The revenge of passions' Appendices A. Investigating a massacre B. Comparing massacres Bibliography Notes Name Index Subject Index

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewA Financial Times Summer Books 2015 selection Winner of the 2016 Wayne S. Vucinich Book Prize, Association for Slavic, East European, & Eurasian Studies One of Financial Times (FT.com) Best Books in History 2015, chosen Tony Barber "In recent years scholars of Ottoman history have published a number of path-breaking, award-winning academic studies documenting the annihilation of the Armenians in 1915. Published on the one hundredth anniversary of that horrible event, Ronald Grigor Suny's monograph stands out as another superb work, in this case the best narrative account explaining 'why, when, and how' the Armenian genocide occurred."--Marc David Baer, H-Nationalism "An authoritative examination of unspeakable horrors... [D]eeply researched, fair-minded... Suny creates a compelling narrative of vengeance and terror."--Kirkus, starred review "The centenary [of the Armenian Genocide] has raised the diplomatic temperature and precipitated many books. Ronald Suny's is the best of them: Balanced, scholarly, and harrowing, it should be read by all serious students of modern history."--Dominic Green, Weekly Standard "Suny is admirably dispassionate in explaining the particular circumstances that led the Ottoman government to embark on a policy of mass extermination."--Dominic Lawson, Sunday Times "[W]hat distinguishes Suny's scholarship is a scrupulous attention to context and the genuine imperial anxiety of the Young Turks. They Can Live in the Desert but Nowhere Else (a title taken from another Talat diktat) is a fair-minded account. Unsparing in depicting the viciousness of the killing, forced conversions and kidnapping of children and young women, it is rigorous in its choice of language and nuance, generous in its empathy but implacable in its conclusions."--David Gardner, Financial Times "A tremendously powerful, scrupulously balanced, rigorous and humane account of a tragedy that still casts a shadow over the modern state of Turkey. It is likely to become the definitive reference book on the subject for years to come."--Justin Marozzi, Spectator "They Can Live in the Desert but Nowhere Else will very likely be the standard account in English for the 21st Century of the Armenian Genocide and its broader setting. The event itself was the first major genocide in what was to be an entire century of genocides, and Suny is keenly aware of the lessons it can teach about the horrors it initiated. The book is strongly recommended."--Steve Donoghue, Open Letters Monthly "Magisterial."--Brian Bethune, Macleans "[A]n excellent source for readers wishing to learn the history [of the Armenian Genocide]. Suny has provided an exhaustive, dispassionate treatment, situating the Genocide in the centuries-long relationship between Armenian Christians and their Turkish Muslim rulers ... readable and thorough."--Mark Movsesian, First Things "An authoritative, comprehensive study of political, religious, and cultural factors around the terrible events of 1915-16, and an account which avoids the propagandism of both Turkish and Armenian advocates, yet does not flinch from their appalling reality."--Mainstream "[A] fine scholarly study."--Christopher Allmand, The Tablet "Suny weaves this complex story into a nuanced, meticulously researched, and compellingly argued book."--Choice "A remarkable work of history."--Howard Eissenstat, Current History "If you read one book about the 1915 genocide, make this it. Suny is one of the western world's most renowned scholars of the Caucasus region. His account of the fate that befell the Armenians at Ottoman Turkish hands is harrowingly detailed and scrupulously objective."--Tony Barber, Financial Times "A historical masterpiece and a significant benchmark in the study of the Genocide, which will surely become the definitive textbook on the subject... Comprehensive and compelling."--Sossie Kasbarian & Kerem Oktem, Caucasus Survey "The book under review should be of an interest to graduate and postgraduate research students, genocide scholars and historians interested to gaining fresh understandings of the historical dynamics leading to the Armenian genocide, and the connections between imperialism, nationalism and the Armenian genocide during the twentieth century. Additionally, the book provides the groundwork for further debate on how to integrate the Armenian genocide more completely within an understanding of the historical trends of its period."--Eldad Ben-Aharon, H-Soz-Kult "[A] superb work, in this case the best narrative account explaining 'why, when, and how' the Armenian genocide occurred."--Marc David Baer, H-Net Reviews "They Can Live in the Desert but Nowhere Else will no doubt become the definitive account of this contested history... This book provides a sophisticated synthesis of recent research without sacrificing depth, nuance or narrative clarity. The fate of the Armenians is situated firmly within wider historiographies of imperial competition and decline, total war and the rise of nation-states... Suny's approach therefore powerfully demonstrates for non-specialists the salience of the fate of the Armenians for understanding much broader historical processes at work at the end of the 'long' nineteenth century."--Jo Laycock, Patterns of Prejudice "They Can Live in the Desert but Nowhere Else stands out as a superbly researched, carefully balanced and compelling account... This remarkable book shows how seeking deeper historical truths does not detract from justice: Suny's brilliant, careful and seemingly detached analysis makes the book all the more powerful in this respect."--Gilles Andreani, Survival "A transitional text... Accessible and concise, while still complex enough to do justice to the relationships between Armenians, their rulers and their neighbours over the centuries."--Susan Pattie, Chartist "This stunning book makes a significant contribution to genocide studies but also to Armenian, Russian, European, and international history... Suny's masterful narrative is proof that in great scholarship, empathy and analytical rigor work together."--Doris L. Bergen, Russian ReviewTable of ContentsAcknowledgments ix Introduction xi Sources, Notes, and Transliteration xxiii 1 Empire 1 2 Armenians 31 3 Nation 64 4 Great Powers 91 5 Revolution 141 6 Counterrevolution 174 7 War 208 8 Removal 246 9 Genocide 281 10 Orphaned Nation 328 Conclusion: Thinking about the Unthinkable: Genocide 350 Historians Look at the Armenian Genocide: A Bibliographical Discussion 367 Notes 375 Index 463

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Book SynopsisPolitical theorist, philosopher, and feminist thinker Hannah Arendt''s On Violence is an analysis of the nature, causes, and significance of violence in the second half of the twentieth century. The public revulsion against violence and nonviolent philosophies continues to diminish in the twenty-first century. In this classic and still all too resonant work, Hannah Arendt puts her theories about violence into historical perspective, examining the relationships between war and politics, violence and power. Questioning the nature of violent behavior, she reveals the causes of its many manifestations, and ulitmately argues against Mao Zedong''s dictum power grows out of the barrel of a gun, proposing instead that power and violence are opposites; where one rules absolutely, the other is absent.“Incisive, deeply probing, written with clarity and grace, it provides an ideal framework for understanding the turbulence of our times.”—The Nation

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewGroundbreaking. In the first detailed description of Stalin's mass terror, Vatlin unfolds the day-to-day working of the Soviet political police who carried out orders to select, arrest, interrogate, and often murder their fellow citizens. An absorbing, heartrending account."" - David Shearer, author of Policing Stalin's Socialism""A sensationally significant, detailed microhistory of Stalin's Great Terror, based on the criminal files of NKVD agents who were arrested as scapegoats at the end of the terror—what some historians have called the purge of the purgers."" - Lynne ViolaTable of ContentsList of Illustrations Foreword by Oleg Khlevniuk Preface to the English-Language Edition Introduction to the English-Language Edition by Seth Bernstein List of Abbreviations Introduction: Why Kuntsevo? Setting the Stage Part I. Executors of Terror Part II. Patterns of Victimization Epilogue: New Kuntsevo Forgets the Past Notes Index

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Book SynopsisNever before has such damning evidence of war crimes and crimes against humanity been revealed in the midst of a conflict. As civil war raged in Syria, we owe the disclosure of this evidence to one man. He goes under the codename of Caesar. This military police photographer was required to document the murder and torture of thousands of Syrian civilians in the custody of the Assad regime. Over the course of two years he used a police computer to copy the photos, and in 2013 he risked his life to smuggle out 53,000 photos and documents that show prisoners tortured, starved and burned to death. In January 2015, in the American magazine Foreign Affairs, President Bashar al-Assad claimed that this military photographer didn’t exist. “Who took the pictures? Who is he? Nobody knows. There is no verification of any of this evidence, so it’s all allegations without evidence.” Caesar exists. The author of this book has spent dozens of hours with him. His testimony is extraordinary, his photos shocking. The uncovering of the workings of the Syrian death machine that underpins his account is a descent into the unspeakable. In 2014 Caesar testified before the House Foreign Affairs Committee and his testimony provided crucial evidence for a bipartisan bill, the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act, that was presented to Congress in 2016. Caesar’s photos have also been shown in the United Nations Headquarters in New York and at the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington D.C. For the first time, this book tells Caesar’s story.Trade ReviewThe winner of the Geschwister Scholl Prize"The images conjure memories of some of history's worst atrocities."The New York Times"The Syrian defector known as 'Caesar'… helped expose some of the worst war crimes of our generation."The Washington Post"Shocking evidence of torture out of Assad's dungeons" The Guardian"Caesar has offered us a glimpse of another Holocaust, occurring today, right under our noses, and we looked away."The Times Table of Contents Prologue Locations where the witnesses of this book were detained List of Syrians who bear witness in this book Foreword – Steven Heydeman Preface 1. Revelation. Testimony. Accusation 2. Profession Corpse Photographer 3. The Routine Turns to Horror 4. The Archives of Death 5. Communities and Religions 6. Caught in the Crossfire 7. With the Families of the Disappeared 8. A Duty to Get Out Alive 9. The Failure of Gradual Diplomacy 10. Testimony in Washington Appendices Acknowledgements Select Bibliography

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Book SynopsisA tale of Nazi lives, mass murder, love, Cold War espionage, a mysterious death in the Vatican, and the Nazi escape route to Perón's Argentina,the Ratline—from the author of the internationally acclaimed, award-winning East West Street.Hypnotic, shocking, and unputdownable. —John le Carré, internationally renowned bestselling authorBaron Otto von Wächter, a lawyer, husband, and father, was also a senior SS officer and war criminal, indicted for the murder of more than a hundred thousand Poles and Jews. Although he was given a new identity and life via “the Ratline” to Argentina, the escape route taken by thousands of other Nazis, Wächter and his plan were cut short by his mysterious, shocking death in Rome.   In the midst of the burgeoning Cold War, was he being recruited by the Americans or by the Soviets—or perhaps both? Or was he poisoned by one side or the other, as his son believes—or by both? With the cooperation of Wächter’s son Horst, who believes his father to have been “a good man,” award-winning author Philippe Sands draws on a trove of family correspondence to piece together Wächter’s extraordinary life before and during the war, his years evading justice, and his sudden, puzzling death. A riveting work of history, The Ratline is part historical detective story, part love story, part family memoir, and part Cold War espionage thriller.

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Book SynopsisFrom one of the most prominent nationalist voices in late twentieth-century Europe comes this controversial volume on the persistence of violence from past eras into present-day. Franjo Tudjman was once the face of Croatian democracy and sovereignty—a position complicated by his roles as general, president, and historian, and his role in the Bosnian War. Here he examines the Yugoslav Communist creation of a Croatian "black legend" and assesses the nature and scope of the crimes committed by the Ustasha puppet government, particularly at the Jasenovac death camp. He chronicles the systematic use by the Yugoslav regime of Jasenovac and the Ustasha terror as a tool in its attempt to eliminate Croatian aspirations towards independence. Readers of this book will have a candid insight into the mind of a notable and notorious player in contemporary European history. With this book—at once a memoir, a political document, and a broad historic philosophical survey—Tudjman proposes a foundation upon which to build a new creative framework of peace-oriented relationships for the twenty-first century. Horrors of War provides an unparalleled view on the history of national violence from the perspective of a man who played a key role in both the Croatian War of Independence and the later Bosnian War; a sometimes hero, sometimes villain.Table of ContentsEditor's Note Introduction Part I: History and Life's Destiny Part II: History as Crime and Mythical Appearance Part III: Philosophical and Historical Evil Part IV: Historical Fact and Unscientific Theories Notes

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Book SynopsisThe Armenian genocide of 1915 has been well documented. Much less known is the Turkish genocide of the Assyrian, Chaldean and Syriac peoples, which occurred simultaneously in their ancient homelands in and around ancient Mesopotamia -- now Turkey, Iran and Iraq. The advent of the First World War gave the Young Turks and the Ottoman government the opportunity to exterminate the Assyrians in a series of massacres and atrocities inflicted on a people whose culture dates back millennia and whose language, Aramaic, was spoken by Jesus. Systematic killings, looting, rape, kidnapping and deportations destroyed countless communities and created a vast refugee diaspora. As many as 300,000 Assyro-Chaldean- Syriac people were murdered and a larger number forced into exile. The 'Year of the Sword' (Seyfo) in 1915 was preceded over millennia by other attacks on the Assyrians and has been mirrored by recent events, not least the abuses committed by Islamic State. Joseph Yacoub, whose family was murdered and dispersed, has gathered together a compelling range of eye-witness accounts and reports which cast light on this 'hidden genocide.' Passionate and yet authoritative in its research, his book reveals a little-known human and cultural tragedy. A century after the Assyrian genocide, the fate of this Christian minority hangs in the balance.Trade Review'[An] important contribution to genocide studies.' -- Middle East Quarterly‘A significant and welcome contribution to the field of genocide studies . . . Yacoub’s book establishes a very strong foundation to the academic study of the Assyrian Genocide in English.''Yacoub's work is essential reading and sheds light on a dark chapter of twentieth century Middle Eastern history that has been deliberately silenced.' * Vicken Cheterian, Webster University, Geneva, author of Open Wounds: Armenians, Turks and a Century of Genocide *'This important and revelatory book tells of the biblical race which has suffered genocide twice within a century: over half were destroyed by the Ottoman atrocities of 1915, and now their descendants in Mosul and elsewhere are being put to the sword by ISIS. The Assyrians today deserve more than our pity – they need our protection.' * Geoffrey Robertson QC, human rights barrister, Doughty Street Chambers, and author of An Inconvenient Genocide *'Meticulous and moving, Year of the Sword documents the forgotten horrors that befell the Syriac-speaking Christians of the Ottoman Empire. This is a book for all times, but especially our own, when the Middle East's distinctive ethno-religious diversity is again under threat from violence and forced migration. Readers will be sobered and better informed thanks to Yacoub's efforts.' * Christian Sahner, Research Fellow in History, St. John's College, University of Cambridge, and author of Among the Ruins: Syria Past and Present *'Yacoub, whose family was murdered and dispersed, has gathered together a compelling range of eye-witness accounts and reports which cast light on this “hidden genocide.” Passionate and yet authoritative, his book reveals a little-known human and cultural tragedy.' * Pan Armenian Network *

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Book SynopsisBeginning with the negotiations that concluded with the unanimous adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide on December 9, 1948, and extending to the present day, the United States, Soviet Union/Russia, China, United Kingdom, and France have put forth great effort to ensure that they will not be implicated in the crime of genocide. If this were to fail, they have also ensured that holding any of them accountable for genocide will be practically impossible. By situating genocide prevention in a system of territorial jurisdiction; by excluding protection for political groups and acts constituting cultural genocide from the Genocide Convention; by controlling when genocide is meaningfully named at the Security Council; and by pointing the responsibility to protect in directions away from any of the P-5, they have achieved what can only be described as practical impunity for genocide. The Politics of Genocide is the first book to explicitly demonstrate how the permanent member nations have exploited the Genocide Convention to isolate themselves from the reach of the law, marking them as "outlaw states."Trade Review"In The Politics of Genocide, Jeffrey S. Bachman conducts an unsparing analysis of the United Nations (UN) Genocide Convention’s formulation in 1947-48 and subsequent selective application by the permanent members of the UN Security Council. Decrying the orchestrated 'culture of impunity for genocide,' this book is a necessary corrective to the view that the Genocide Convention has humanized world politics." -- Dirk Moses * author of The Problems of Genocide *A rigorous and revisionist study of how framings of genocide, and applications of the relevant international law, granted effective impunity to the world's most powerful state actors -- and still do. Bachman's book is readable and accessible. It serves as an excellent complement and counterweight to standard treatments of this vital subject. -- Adam Jones * author of Genocide: A Comprehensive Introduction *Table of ContentsIntroduction: Genocide and State Impunity 1. Territorializing Prevention of Genocide 2. Redefining the Crime of Genocide for Reasons of State 3. The ICJ as Enabler of State Impunity for Genocide 4. The P-5 and Discretionary Non-Application of the Genocide Convention 5. The Responsibility to Protect and P-5 Impunity Conclusion: The Persistent Outlaw, Perpetual Impunity, and the Field of Genocide StudiesAcknowledgments NotesBibliography Index

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Book SynopsisDuring Guatemala’s decades-long civil war, tens of thousands of children, many of them Indigenous Maya, were coerced or kidnapped from their homes. They became commodities in a booming private adoption business, and most wound up in the United States. Rachel Nolan explores the human toll of a global industry that thrives on exploitation.Trade ReviewA deeply reported, sobering history. -- Cora Currier * New Republic *The author has provided an essential history and analysis of forced adoption in Guatemala over a 40-year period and the socio-political dynamics that enabled this poor country to play such an infamous role in a tragic global story of human-trafficking. …Until I Find You is a hard-hitting and disturbing insight into a dark corner of global capitalism, the profoundly racist attitudes of the Global North, and the most despicable of human vices. -- Gavin O'Toole * Latin American Review of Books *A staggeringly brilliant work of the heart and the head. One can’t read Nolan’s story of forced adoptions in Guatemala and not come away both shaken and intellectually challenged. I’ve read many books on Cold War political violence—but never one that pulls you in, that makes you feel as well as think, as much as this tour de force. -- Greg Grandin, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The End of the Myth: From the Frontier to the Border Wall in the Mind of AmericaLike a dark historical fairy tale pulled from a bewitched archive, Until I Find You illuminates the Guatemalan international adoption trade’s cruel corruption and heartrending complexities in a boldly original way. Nolan’s meticulous research and her beautifully lucid, empathetic writing show how the seemingly benign event of the foreign adoption of an innocent child leaves behind an invisible trail of personal, economic, political, and essentially imperial horrors. -- Francisco Goldman, author of The Art of Political Murder and Monkey BoyImportant, compelling reading. Nolan has interviewed countless people, obtained access to adoption files, read the human rights reports, and sorted through the legal history. This will become a key, authoritative account of the deeply corrupt state of Guatemalan adoption from the 1970s to the 2000s. -- Laura Briggs, author of Taking Children: A History of American TerrorWith a historian’s eye and a journalist’s pen, Nolan delves into the dark heart of Guatemalan adoption, a powerful story of state genocide, brutal economic and racial inequality, and a privatized, unregulated adoption market. Revealing the fuzzy boundaries between coercion and consent, legality and illegality, markets and trafficking, facts and rumor, she shows how the extraordinary violence of war gave way to the everyday violence of peacetime—and how children, especially Indigenous children, have been victims of both. -- Nara Milanich, author of Paternity: The Elusive Quest for the FatherHugely ambitious. With painstaking research and deep sensitivity, Nolan addresses an important and little-studied topic, getting close to stories that are often shrouded in secrecy. -- Betsy Konefal, author of For Every Indio Who Falls: A History of Maya Activism in Guatemala, 1960–1990

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Book SynopsisThe No. 1 international bestseller, with a foreword by His Holiness Pope Francis, who made headlines in 2021 when he kissed Lidia's Auschwitz identification tattoo.The unforgettable, moving true story of the little girl who survived Auschwitz's 'Angel of Death', Dr Mengele. Lidia was just three years old when she arrived in Auschwitz-Birkenau with her mother, a member of the partisan resistance from Belarus. The bewildered little girl was picked out by Dr Josef Mengele for his sadistic experiments and sent to the infamous children’s block, where every day was a fight for survival. In eighteen months of hell she came close to death more than once.Her mother, who risked her life to visit Lidia, gave her strength. But when the camp was liberated, her mother was gone, presumed dead. Lidia, by now deeply traumatised, was adopted by a Polish woman. But then, in 1962, she discovered that her birth parents were still alive in the USSR, and Lidia was faced with an agonising choice . . .Lidia’s extraordinary story has touched hearts around the world, and she has made it her mission to bear witness to the Holocaust so that the truth may never be forgotten. This is a powerful and ultimately hopeful account by a remarkable woman who refuses to hate those who hurt her. She says, ‘Hate only brings more hate. Love, on the other hand, has the power to redeem.’'Unforgettable' - Daily MailPreviously published as The Little Girl Who Could Not Cry.Trade ReviewUnforgettable * Daily Mail *

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Book SynopsisThis book explores why there is a major war again in Europe. Putin's actions need to be understood if not forgiven. With the Ukraine conflict increasingly seen as a proxy war of NATO versus Russia, how likely is the fighting to spread?The author, a highly respected journalist and political commentator, explains why Russia invaded a sovereign neighbour. To what extent did NATO's expansion to Russia's borders in the aftermath of the Cold War provoke Putin? Did the West's recent humiliating defeats in the Middle East and South Asia encourage Putin to exploit what he saw as its decadent strategic weakness and lack of resolve? What were the reasons for Russia's savage behaviour in Ukraine? How might the Ukraine war end and what will the post-bellum world look like?The war in Ukraine has had worldwide impact with cost of living, food and energy crises and raised the risk of nuclear Armageddon by accident or intent so this book has universal appeal; not just to military buffs. It examines the

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Book SynopsisA hard-hitting exposé of SEAL Team 6, the US military's best-known brand, that reveals how the Navy SEALs were formed, then sacrificed, in service of American empire.The Navy SEALs are, in the eyes of many Americans, the ultimate heroes. When they killed Osama Bin Laden in 2011, it was celebrated as a massive victory. Former SEALs rake in cash as leadership consultants for corporations, and young military-bound men dream of serving in their ranks.But the SEALs have lost their bearings. Investigative journalist Matthew Cole tells the story of the most lauded unit, SEAL Team 6, revealing a troubling pattern of war crimes and the deep moral rot beneath authorized narratives. From their origins in World War II, the SEALs have trained to be specialized killers with short missions. As the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan became the endless War on Terror, their violence spiraled out of control.Code Over Country details the high-level decisions that unleashed the SEALs' carnage and the coverups that prevented their crimes from coming to light. It is a necessary and rigorous investigation of the unchecked power of the military-and the harms enacted by and upon soldiers in America's name.

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Book SynopsisA pathbreaking call to halt the intertwined crises of cultural heritage attacks and mass atrocities and mobilize international efforts to protect people and cultures. Intentional destruction of cultural heritage has a long history. Contemporary examples include the Bamiyan Buddhas in Afghanistan, mosques in Xinjiang, mausoleums in Timbuktu, and Greco-Roman remains in Syria. Cultural heritage destruction invariably accompanies assaults on civilians, making heritage attacks impossible to disentangle from the mass atrocities of genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing. Both seek to eliminate people and the heritage with which they identify. Cultural Heritage and Mass Atrocities assembles essays by thirty-eight experts from the heritage, social science, humanitarian, legal, and military communities. Focusing on immovable cultural heritage vulnerable to attack, the volume's guiding framework is the Responsibility to Protect (R2P), a United Nations resolution adopted unanimously in 2005 to permit international intervention against crimes of war or genocide. Based on the three pillars of prevent, react, and rebuild, R2P offers today's policymakers a set of existing laws and international norms that can and--as this book argues--must be extended to the protection of cultural heritage. Contributions consider the global value of cultural heritage and document recent attacks on people and sites in China, Guatemala, Iraq, Mali, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan, Syria, and Yemen. Comprehensive sections on vulnerable populations as well as the role of international law and the military offer readers critical insights and point toward research, policy, and action agendas to protect both people and cultural heritage. A concise abstract of each chapter is offered online in Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, and Spanish to facilitate robust, global dissemination of the strategies and tactics offered in this pathbreaking call to action. The free online edition of this publication is available at getty.edu/publications/cultural-heritage-mass-atrocities. Also available are free PDF, EPUB, and Kindle/MOBI downloads of the book.

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Book SynopsisHow did a powerful concept in international justice evolve into an inequitable response to mass suffering?For a term coined just seventy-five years ago, genocide has become a remarkably potent idea. But has it transformed from a truly novel vision for international justice into a conservative, even inaccessible term? The Politics of Annihilation traces how the concept of genocide came to acquire such significance on the global political stage. In doing so, it reveals how the concept has been politically contested and refashioned over time. It explores how these shifts implicitly impact what forms of mass violence are considered genocide and what forms are not. Benjamin Meiches argues that the limited conception of genocide, often rigidly understood as mass killing rooted in ethno-religious identity, has created legal and political institutions that do not adequately respond to the diversity of mass violence. In his insistence on the concept’s complexity, he does not undermine the need for clear condemnations of such violence. But neither does he allow genocide to become a static or timeless notion. Meiches argues that the discourse on genocide has implicitly excluded many forms of violence from popular attention including cases ranging from contemporary Botswana and the Democratic Republic of Congo, to the legacies of colonial politics in Haiti, Canada, and elsewhere, to the effects of climate change on small island nations. By mapping the multiplicity of forces that entangle the concept in larger assemblages of power, The Politics of Annihilation gives us a new understanding of how the language of genocide impacts contemporary political life, especially as a means of protesting the social conditions that produce mass violence.Trade Review"Concepts are always political—and perhaps never more so than when they classify and rank the evils that can befall human beings. Benjamin Meiches’s extraordinary genealogy of the notion of genocide since its coinage during World War II is especially welcome, blending empirical cases, historical perspectives, and theoretical considerations in an ideal fashion. Emphasizing the lability of this concept before it was fixed in our time, for better or worse, Meiches shows how talk of genocide has allowed for moralizing in a violent world, even as it obstructs other perspectives that the future will require." —Samuel Moyn, Yale Law School"A well-written, cogently argued, significant contribution to a nuanced understanding of how the idea of genocide has emerged and why it matters to world politics."—CHOICE"A far-reaching critique of mainstream presumptions in the field and beyond, Annihilation presents theoretically-sophisticated engagements with a vast array of genocide scholarship backed by numerous case studies."—PoLAR"The Politics of Annihilation is a valuable contribution to current scholarship on genocide, considerably expanding the scope of the field. Its originality is compounded by an extensive and demonstrable breadth of knowledge, and its critical appraisal makes it both a pertinent resource and a rich point of departure for future research."—H-Net Reviews"The Politics of Annihilation is a wide-ranging and insightful deep dive into the contested, often controversial, and complex discursive politics of genocide."—The Review of Politics "Meiches has successfully provided a deep dive into discursive tussles and contestations that have unfolded underneath the ‘stable’ assumptions of the concept of genocide as we know it, highlighting not only the fluid ground on which much of our understanding of the concept rests, but also how these assumptions shape action."—International Affairs Table of ContentsContentsIntroduction: Genocide as Political DiscoursePart I. The Concept and Its Powers1. Groups, Paradoxes of Identity, and the Racialization of Global Politics2. Parts, Wholes, and the Erasure of Indigenous Life3. Destruction and the Creativity of Violence4. Desire, International Law, and the Problem of Unintentional GenocidePart II. The Politics of Genocide5. The Logistics of Prevention and the Fantasy of Preemption6. Genocide as Politics and the Horror of Plasticity7. The Sense of Genocide and the Politics of the FutureAcknowledgmentsNotesIndex

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Book SynopsisExploring the critical influences shaping the decisions made by Jews in Nazi-occupied eastern Europe, Finkel sheds new light on the dynamics of collective violence and genocide.Trade Review"Winner of the 2018 Alexander L. George Book Award, International Society of Political Psychology""Winner of the 2018 Joseph Rothschild Prize in Nationalism and Ethnic Studies, Association for the Study of Nationalities""Winner of the 2018 Bronislaw Malinowski Social Sciences Award, Polish Institute of Arts and Sciences""A political scientist turns fresh eyes on the problem of how European Jews responded to the Holocaust as it was unfolding. . . . Of much interest to students of modern history but also to those engaged in humanitarian relief efforts, refugee relocation, and the like." * Kirkus *"Instances of . . . mass hysteria have been appearing on a weekly basis, revealing an historical illiteracy so vast that it could contain 1,000 books on the Holocaust. If the ignorant could read only one of them . . . Ordinary Jews would be an excellent way to begin their education."---Stefan Kanfer, City Journal"Finkel provides a fresh and often fascinating analysis. . . . He makes a compelling case that the response of Jews was based in no small measure on their experiences before the war."---Glen Altschuler, Jerusalem Post"Finkel's book on an individual’s choice and survival during the Holocaust focuses on how victims from three Jewish ghettos--Minsk, Kraków, and Bialystok--reacted in response to danger from the Nazis and their allies. . . . This study is fascinating in how Finkel weaves personal narratives from the victims with social science foundations in order to reach some macro conclusions. . . . Finkel’s book is provocative and worth reading for scholars looking to understand the victims within these wretched ghettos." * Choice *"As more Holocaust works push through the barrier of the Holocaust as unknowable, restoring Jewish life and agency before, during--and after--the Shoah is essential. Finkel's work makes a solid contribution in this regard without losing sight of the people, actions, policies, and laws most responsible for creating the contexts of such life-or-death ‘choices.’"---Peter Admirand, Reading Religion"[A] most sensitive of investigations . . . Ordinary Jews is an ultimately important contribution toward the many writings on the subject of the Holocaust. Its complexity and deftness lies in Finkel's telling, which, if truth be told, resonates with all the clarity of subdued beauty."---David Marx, David Marx Book Reviews"[A] fine book. . . . This book is very carefully documented with endnotes distinguishing between primary and secondary sources. Finkel himself is of Eastern European Jewish extraction and that colors his study with a very personal and poignant aspect enriching the research but in no way detracting from its scientific approach. His writing is clear and very readable. . . . This book is recommended for all academic Judaica collections and for JCC libraries."---Marion M. Stein, Association of Jewish Libraries Reviews"The book’s persuasive theory, distinctive findings, specific real-life examples, and far-reaching policy options is amply rewarding. It models an ever-finer mode of scholarship, fills in major gaps in knowledge, and with its astute challenges to faulty conventional 'wisdom' makes a major contribution to Holocaust studies. Future discussion of survival decision-making in the ghettos will not be complete unless it draws on Finkel’s exemplary work."---Arthur Shostak, European Legacy"Ordinary Jews is an important book for two reasons. First, it offers one of the few sustained efforts to analyze how Jews in different places behaved in response to Nazi rule instead of simply describing how they experienced it. . . . It also notices aggregate patterns of behavior that varied from community to community, and it tries to account for them using methods and insights from the social sciences."---David Engel, Shofar Book Forum"Finkel’s ambitious study brings political science to Holocaust history, enriches our understanding of individual choices by the victims, sheds light on the conditions that influenced their decisions, and establishes patterns by comparative analysis of behavior in three ghettos." * Holocaust and Genocide Studies *"[Ordinary Jews] is not only brave, but opens up new avenues of research about the Holocaust and other processes of mass violence.—Laia Balcells and Daniel Soloman, Comparative Politics"

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Book SynopsisWhy do people participate in genocide? The Complexity of Evil responds to this fundamental question by drawing on political science, sociology, criminology, anthropology, social psychology, and history to develop a model which can explain perpetration across various different cases. Focusing in particular on the Holocaust, the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, and the Khmer Rouge genocide in Cambodia, The Complexity of Evil model draws on, systematically sorts, and causally orders a wealth of scholarly literature and supplements it with original field research data from interviews with former members of the Khmer Rouge. The model is systematic and abstract, as well as empirically grounded, providing a tool for understanding the micro-foundations of various cases of genocide. Ultimately this model highlights that the motivations for perpetrating genocide are both complex in their diversity and banal in their ordinariness and mundanity.Download the open access ebook here.Trade Review“Confronting the most challenging moral and historical questions in our field, The Complexity of Evil is exceptionally insightful and wise. Based upon extensive research and deep thought, this book is also remarkably accessible. Williams never loses sight of the human implications of his study, and has made a pathbreaking contribution.” -- John Cox * author of To Kill a People: Genocide in the Twentieth Century *"The Complexity of Evil is a thorough and systematic exploration of genocide perpetration that that marries conceptual precision with a nuanced exploration of the Cambodian Genocide and other case studies. In perhaps his greatest contribution, Williams avoids reproducing conventional wisdom by thoughtfully exploring the complexities of perpetrator motivations in each context." -- Kjell Anderson * author of Perpetrating Genocide: A Criminological Account *"This timely book—grounded in extensive qualitative fieldwork in Cambodia and comparison with the Holocaust and the 1994 Rwandan genocide—offers rich insights for the fields of perpetrator studies and genocide studies. Williams’s complexity of evil model helps us better understand the personal circumstances through which people become perpetrators, while acknowledging the potential for them to simultaneously be victims, bystanders, rescuers, and so on." -- Erin Jessee * author of Negotiating Genocide in Rwanda: The Politics of History *“Confronting the most challenging moral and historical questions in our field, The Complexity of Evil is exceptionally insightful and wise. Based upon extensive research and deep thought, this book is also remarkably accessible. Williams never loses sight of the human implications of his study, and has made a pathbreaking contribution.” -- John Cox * author of To Kill a People: Genocide in the Twentieth Century *"The Complexity of Evil is a thorough and systematic exploration of genocide perpetration that that marries conceptual precision with a nuanced exploration of the Cambodian Genocide and other case studies. In perhaps his greatest contribution, Williams avoids reproducing conventional wisdom by thoughtfully exploring the complexities of perpetrator motivations in each context." -- Kjell Anderson * author of Perpetrating Genocide: A Criminological Account *"This timely book—grounded in extensive qualitative fieldwork in Cambodia and comparison with the Holocaust and the 1994 Rwandan genocide—offers rich insights for the fields of perpetrator studies and genocide studies. Williams’s complexity of evil model helps us better understand the personal circumstances through which people become perpetrators, while acknowledging the potential for them to simultaneously be victims, bystanders, rescuers, and so on." -- Erin Jessee * author of Negotiating Genocide in Rwanda: The Politics of History *Table of ContentsContents List of Abbreviations Introduction Vignette 1 Chandara: a fearful volunteer enters the tiger zone 1 The complexity of evil – introducing the model Vignette 2 Sokong: a coerced killer with a conscience 2 Motivations Vignette 3 Sokphary: a female unit leader with a sense of responsibility for her subordinates 3 Facilitative factors Vignette 4 Sopheak: an interrogator searching to unearth enemy strings 4 Contextual conditions Vignette 5 Sokha: a child guard the regime turned on 5 Diversity, complexity, scope – discussing the model and its empirical application Vignette 6 Ramy: a garment worker participating in the evacuation of Phnom Penh Conclusion Appendix: List of interviewees Acknowledgments Glossary Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisAs international criminal courts and tribunals have proliferated and international criminal law is increasingly seen as a key tool for bringing the world''s worst perpetrators to account, the controversies surrounding the international trials of war criminals have grown. War crimes tribunals have to deal with accusations of victors'' justice, bad prosecutorial policy and case management, and of jeopardizing fragile peace in post-conflict situations. In this exceptional book, one of the leading writers in the field of international criminal law explores these controversial issues in a manner that is accessible both to lawyers and to general readers.Professor William Schabas begins by considering the discipline of international criminal law, outlining the differing approaches to the description of international crimes and examining the frequent claims relating to the retroactive application of these crimes. The book then discusses the relationship between genocide and crimes against humaTrade ReviewA great strength of this book is Schabas approach to providing a broad overview of the major international criminal law issues... Schabas ability to go beyond legal doctrine to discuss the foundational theories and political issues of international criminal law speaks to his broad expertise and versatility. The issues and arguments are consistently presented in an accessible, engaging style... He does not burden the reader with dense, legalistic prose. He makes the discussion relevant by drawing on a great deal of historical context and precedent, particularly from the Nuremburg trials. He does not, however, shy away from making reasoned legal arguments and grounding them in sources of international law. He frequently explains and refers to treaties, custom, case law, and works of pre-eminent international law scholars. * Nathan Kruger, Canadian Yearbook of International Law *Unimaginable Atrocities, Schabas has produced perhaps his greatest work in a prodigious collection of extraordinary contributions to the field... Schabas has long contributed to the development of effective world law. He has taken on the task and made it his own, standing shoulder to shoulder with the likes of Cherif Bassiouni, Antonio Cassese, Hans Corell, Michael Scharf and David Scheffer. His text is plainly intended to appeal to and inform, not only academics, but also those with less direct expertise in the field. This is not to suggest that it is somehow written at an introductory level, or that it can be passed over by those more familiar with the issues addressed in the book. Rather, it seeks to expand the audience, educating those interested in creating a safer and more tolerant world on key components within the field of international criminal law, while providing substantive arguments for discussion among academic circles. * Matthew Kane, International Affairs *Insightfully explain[s] the conceptual foundations and prospective paths for an international criminal judiciary. Schabas' book reveals once more that international criminal law is shaped by a complex relationship of policy and law, which unfortunately can only partly prevent war crimes while influencing how humanity confronts unimaginable atrocities. * Martin Wählisch, ASIL Cables *Table of ContentsIntroduction ; 1. 'Unimaginable Atrocities': Identifying International Crimes ; 2. Nullum Crimen Sine Lege ; 3. Victors' Justice? Selecting Targets for Prosecution ; 4. The Genocide Mystique ; 5. Mens Rea, Actus Reus, and the Role of the State ; 6. History, International Justice, and the Right to Truth ; 7. No Peace Without Justice? The Amnesty Quandary ; 8. Crimes Against Peace

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Book SynopsisStarting with the French Revolution Massacres and Morality studies mass killing as perpetrated by states. In particular it examines the role that civilian immunity has played in shaping the behaviour of perpetrators and how international society has responded.Trade ReviewMassacres and Morality is a work of immense scholarship. The author, Alex Bellamy ... succeeds in weaving together histories and philosophies of civilian immunity across two centuries of war, terror, and destruction. * Tim Dunne, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, The University of Queensland, Australia *Table of ContentsIntroduction ; 1. Civilian Immunity and the Politics of Legitimacy ; 2. State Terror in the Long-Nineteenth Century ; 3. Totalitarian Mass Killing ; 4. Terror Bombing in the Second World War ; 5. The Cold War Struggle (1): Capitalist Atrocities ; 6. The Cold War Struggle (2): Communist Atrocities ; 7. Atrocities and the 'Golden Age' of Humanitarianism ; 8. Radical Islamism and the War on Terror ; Conclusion

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Book SynopsisIdeology and Mass Killing offers the first dedicated study of the role of radical ideologies in different kinds of 'mass killing', such as genocides, large-scale war crimes, and campaigns of state terror.Trade ReviewIn explaining why states or armed groups employ extreme violence, Jonathan Leader Maynard questions the sufficiency of dominant rationalist accounts and argues for ideology's central role. He rejects associations of ideology with revolutionary fanaticism, arguing that the key ideological foundations of mass killing are radical reinterpretations of conventional ideas about security. This ambitious and elegantly written book not only offers a fresh conceptualization of ideology, but also demonstrates through careful comparative historical analysis how ideologies shape the goals, organization, and legitimation of mass killing. It is essential reading for all those interested in understanding and preventing atrocity crimes. * Jennifer Welsh, Professor of Global Governance and Security, McGill University, and former Special Adviser to the UN Secretary General on the Responsibility to Protect *In this excellent book, Jonathan Leader Maynard develops a powerful argument about the centrality of ideology to the occurrence of mass killing and genocide. The book takes us farther than previous scholarship in showing how ideology drives the selection and perpetration of mass atrocity. A major contribution to the study of violence, the work should be read widely as a rigorous account of how and why ideas matter in shaping political outcomes * Scott Straus, Professor of Political Science at the University of California-Berkeley and author of Making and Unmaking Nations *Either dismissed as causally inconsequential or else overstated as the paramount factor, the role of ideology in mass killings has long been a bone of scholarly contention. Jonathan Leader Maynard brings a welcome fresh perspective to this debate and offers a new theory of how and why ideology matters in such violence. We should stop picking sides - strategic security objectives are entirely reconcilable with extremist beliefs. This book explains in legible English the various ways in which ideology operated for the architects and executioners of violence in places as disparate as the Soviet Union, Guatemala, and Rwanda. It will bring much-needed momentum to the debate and move it forward. * Omar McDoom, Associate Professor in Comparative Politics, London School of Economics and Political Science *Ideology and Mass Killing has a...typical social scientific structure...The writing anticipates questions one imagines the author has received many times and addresses them with genuine intellectual excitement. The text is clearly structured and easy to navigate. Readers with different backgrounds can read chapters in different orders. * Darius Rejali, Human Rights Review *The core thrust of Ideology and Mass Killing is that looking at the political ideology of the perpetrators can explain issues of genocide and mass murder. The argument continues that these ideologies provide the distinctive world view necessary for genocide or mass killing to occur. Leader Maynard (King's College London) does well to explain how ideologies work toward the commission of genocide or mass killing...This offers a new take on an important area of exploration for genocide and mass killing scholars. * Choice *Leader Maynard's multidisciplinary framework sheds light on the complex processes that leads to mass killing,...it can fill in the gaps of many important tools,...Historians too, will benefit from applying the book's 'ideological infrastructure'. * Thomas William Peak, Vilnius University, Lithuania, International Affairs *Table of Contents1: Introduction 2: Clarifying Ideology 3: How Does Ideology Explain Mass Killing? 4: The Hardline Justification of Mass Killing 5: Stalinist Repression 6: Allied Area Bombing in World War II 7: Mass Killing in Guatemala's Civil War 8: The Rwandan Genocide 9: Conclusion

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Book SynopsisIn the aftermath of the Second World War, the British military held 46 trials in Hong Kong in which 123 defendants, from Japan and Formosa (Taiwan), were tried for war crimes. This book provides the first comprehensive legal analysis of these trials. The subject matter of the trials spanned war crimes committed during the fall of Hong Kong, its occupation, and in the period after the capitulation following the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but before the formal surrender. They included killings of hors de combat, abuses in prisoner-of-war camps, abuse and murder of civilians during the military occupation, forced labour, and offences on the High Seas. The events adjudicated included those from Hong Kong, China, Japan, the High Seas, and Formosa (Taiwan). Taking place in the same historical period as the more famous Nuremberg and Tokyo trials, the Hong Kong war crimes trials provide key insights into events of the time, and the development of international criminal law and procedure in this period.A team of experts in international criminal law examine these trials in detail, placing them in their historical context, investigating how the courts conducted their proceedings and adjudicated acts alleged to be war crimes, and evaluating the extent to which the Hong Kong trials contributed to the development of contemporary issues, such as joint criminal enterprise and superior orders. There is also comparative analysis with contemporaneous proceedings, such as the Australian War Crimes trials, trials in China, and those conducted by the British in Singapore and Germany, placing them within the wider history of international justice. This book is essential reading for anyone interested in the development of international criminal law and procedure.Trade ReviewFrom a young Chinese lawyer's perspective, the book... represents a gift from the elder generation of international law scholars who demonstrated meticulous archival research, fine interdisciplinary methodology and lawyers' responsibility in the midst of highly emotional and politically driven debates... The publication of Hong Kongs War Crimes Trials marks not the end, but the beginning of a larger, ongoing process for subsequent academics and practitioners alike. * Guo Cai, Journal of International Criminal Justice *Hong Kong's War Crimes Trials looks at British war crimes prosecutions in its south China colony from 1946 to 1948, and is an important and unique contribution to the history of war crimes trials. This is an important book by outstanding scholars, and it deserves to reach a wide audience. Specialists in military history, law, and international affairs will want to read this fine book, which will also appeal to the general reader. * Frederic Borch III, Military Law Review *A major contribution to our knowledge of these events. * Colin Day, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Branch *Edited by Professor Suzannah Linton, Hong Kong's War Crimes Trials makes an outstanding contribution... We should not be surprised then if a new cohort of ICL historians, inspired by the superior scholarship and doctrinal insights of Hong Kong's War Crimes Trials, soon sets sail in those unchartered archival waters... Hong Kong's War Crimes Trials does an exemplary job of elucidating the history, context and law related to Britain's 1946-48 prosecutions of suspected Japanese war criminals in its south China coast colony. The structure and content of the book lend themselves to a well-organised and comprehensive analysis of the proceedings. * Gregory S Gordon, Melbourne Journal of International Law *The military courts working in Hong Kong between 1946 and 1948 sent out a message to the world that the rule of law should be based on reason and justice - and not on military force. That is why this collection of essays, examining the legal framework of those trials, remains of contemporary relevance. As Suzannah Linton observes, this is not just a question of compelling Japan to address the crimes that its army committed within living memory throughout Asia. It remains a critical issue because the punishment of war crimes is of continuing importance to the human race. * David Blake Knox, Dublin Review of Books *These authors' insights reflect their different disciplines and professional experiences. Although the assembled essays are meant chiefly for readers with an interest in international criminal law and procedure, historians of the aftermath of the Second World War will find that they throw light on a neglected area of their subject ... the book's thematic approach to studying the Hong Kong trials ensures that it will be of great interest to both historians and legal scholars ... It is an extremely useful addition to our growing understanding of the "B" and "C" class war crimes trials held after the Pacific War. * Georgina Fitzpatrick, Michigan War Studies Review *The book offers a clear, authoritative and comprehensive introduction to the subject of Hong Kong's War Crimes Trials. Although, such a book has been long awaited by scholars and practitioners, it can be noted that it was worth waiting for. The editor and contributors have invested a lot of research, time and patience in preparing the book. As a result, their efforts are worthwhile and make the book a very interesting read. In this way, the book is clearly a step forward and an original, valuable and authoritative contribution in the area of domestic prosecutions of war crimes...what is more, the book's editor should be commended for establishing an online database which includes scans of Hong Kong's War Crimes Database. * Professor Jernej Letnar Cernic, DIGNITAS *Table of ContentsForeword ; Foreword ; 1. Introduction ; 2. Major Murray Ormsby: Prosecutor and Judge of the Hong Kong Military Courts 1946-1948 ; 3. Trial Procedure at the British Military Courts, Hong Kong, 1946-1948 ; 4. The Prisoner of War Camp Trials ; 5. War Crimes ; 6. On Being "Concerned" in a Crime: Embryonic Joint Criminal Enterprise ; 7. The Plea of Superior Orders in the Hong Kong Trials ; 8. Concluding Analysis

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Book Synopsis"Justice in the Balkans" re-creates how its chief prosecutor Louise Arbour worked with others to turn the tribunal's fortunes around. The Hague tribunal becomes an example of how individuals working with collective purpose can make a profound difference.

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Book SynopsisDescribes the effect on young Jews of Hitler's rise to power and recounts the experiences of those who attended an agricultural emigration training farm.

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Book SynopsisExamining the moral, ethical, legal, and political issues surrounding the Allied prosecution project, from the first investigations during the war to the final release of prisoners in 1958, Japanese War Criminals shows how a simple effort to punish the guilty evolved into a struggle that muddied the assignment of responsibility for war crimes.Trade ReviewThis exemplary work of collaborative scholarship represents a genuine breakthrough in our understanding of the processes behind, and consequences of, Allied efforts to prosecute Japanese war crimes in the aftermath of the Second World War. Drawing on archival sources gathered from all corners of the globe, it not only provides an impressive overview of the thousands of individual trials conducted by the Allies across the Asia-Pacific region, but also details the complex tangle of considerations that resulted in the release of all remaining prisoners by the end of 1958. Rejecting the simple opposition between politics and justice that has so often been used to frame discussions of the trials, it instead offers a deeply compelling account of the moral, legal and practical dilemmas that haunt every episode in this profoundly important history. -- Daniel Botsman, Yale University I cannot think of a similar work with such a broad scope...This book is a product of an enormous, novel, research effort and it shows. The authors illustrate the development of an Inter-Allied system of legal assistance for purposes ranging from the transfer of evidence to suspects and prisoners developed from 1946 and which worked until 1959. It makes for a fascinating account of international cooperation. -- Neil Boister, University of Waikato The Allied authorities meted out retributive justice to thousands of Japanese war criminals in the immediate aftermath of World War II. However, "the sentences were only the start of a new phase in applying justice to war criminals," so this book warns us, and compels us to consider the implications of the complex interplay of domestic politics and diplomacy that led to the eventual release of all convicted war criminals -- Yuma Totani, University of HawaiiTable of ContentsAcknowledgments Note on Names, Spelling, and Terminology List of Abbreviations Introduction 1. Defining War Crimes and Creating Courts 2. Investigation and Arrest 3. In Court: Indictment, Trial, and Sentencing 4. Dilemmas of Detention and the First Misgivings 5. Shifting Mood, Shifting Location 6. Peace and Article 11 7. Japanese Pressure Mounts 8. Finding a Formula for Release 9. The Race to Clear Sugamo Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisFROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE NAZI MIND AND PRESIDENT ZELENSKYY''S MOST-READ BOOK, HITLER AND STALIN''By far the clearest book ever written about the Holocaust, and also the best at explaining its origins and grotesque mentality, as well as its chaotic development'' Antony Beevor''Groundbreaking. You might have thought that we know everything there is to know about the Holocaust but this book proves there is much more'' Andrew Roberts, Mail on SundayTwo fundamental questions about the Holocaust must be asked:How did it happen? And why?More completely than any other single work of history yet published, Laurence Rees''s Holocaust definitively answers them.''Rees provides an exemplary account of how the greatest crime in modern history came about'' The Times''Rees has distilled 25 years of research into this compelling study, the finest single-volume account of the Holocaust . . . demands to be read'' Saul David, Telegraph''Anyone wanting a compelling, highly readable explanation of how and why the Holocaust happened, drawing on recent scholarship and impressively incorporating moving and harrowing interviews need look no further than Laurence Rees''s brilliant book'' Professor Ian Kershaw, bestselling author of HitlerTrade ReviewAnyone wanting a compelling, highly readable explanation of how and why the Holocaust happened, drawing on recent scholarship and impressively incorporating moving and harrowing interviews need look no further than Laurence Rees's brilliant book -- Professor Ian KershawYou might have thought that we know everything there is to know about the Holocaust but this book proves there is much more... * Daily Mail *Absorbing, heart-breaking...he has drawn skilfully on speeches, documents and diaries of the Third Reich, and on the vast library of secondary literature, to weave together a powerful, inevitably harrowing revelation of the 20th century's greatest crime * Sunday Times *This is by far the clearest book ever written about the Holocaust, but also the best in explaining both its origins and grotesque mentality, as well as its chaotic developmentA fine book. Rees is a gifted educator, who can tell a complex story with compassion and clarity, without sacrificing all nuances...it comes alive through the voices of victims, killers and bystanders. * Guardian *The interview material is largely compelling, always illuminating and on occasion, very moving . . . Like all of Rees's work, it is accurate and carefully researched * New Statesman *Rees has distilled 25 years of research into this compelling study, the finest single-volume account of the Holocaust. It is not a book for the faint-hearted. Some of the first-hand testimony is both shocking and heart-rending. Yet it has important things to say about human nature - what our species is capable of doing if not prevented by civilized laws - and demands to be read * Telegraph *A masterpiece. Laurence Rees's best book yet . . . In compelling prose, Rees tells the full story of the most shameful period in the story of MankindWith The Holocaust he has set himself the task of writing an accessible chronological account of the murder of six million Jews in conditions of scarcely imaginable horror. He's done it excellently. There is no shortage of books on the Holocaust but Rees's stands out as a readable and authoritative exposition of how and why it happened, and the barbarous methods by which it was pursued. The amount of ground it covers in 500 pages is remarkable - from the anti-Semitism of popular German literature of the 19th century to Hitler's suicide and the surrender of his regime. It's excellently written and skilfully interweaves narrative history, sound interpretation and the recollections (through interviews, listed in the notes as "previously unpublished testimony") of survivors. Rees provides an exemplary account of how the greatest crime in modern history came about. * The Times *

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Book SynopsisPersonal accounts of Japanese Americans kept in relocation camps during World War II express experiences with riots, unsanitary conditions, poor medical care, government inqueries, and divided families.

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Groundbreaking. In the first detailed description of Stalin’s mass terror, Vatlin unfolds the day-to-day working of the Soviet political police who carried out orders to select, arrest, interrogate, and often murder their fellow citizens. An absorbing, heartrending account.”—David Shearer, author of Policing Stalin’s Socialism“Although the literature on the Great Terror has improved markedly over the past twenty-five years, only a handful of case studies consider how the purges took place at the grassroots level. Thankfully, Alexander Vatlin’s pathbreaking work has now become available to English-speaking audiences. One can only hope that Agents of Terror will inspire more research on the purge’s perpetrators and victims as well as on the broader sociology of this brutal period.”—David Brandenberger, author of Propaganda State in Crisis“A sensationally significant, detailed microhistory of Stalin’s Great Terror, based on the criminal files of NKVD agents who were arrested as scapegoats at the end of the terror—what some historians have called the purge of the purgers.”—Lynne Viola, author of The Unknown Gulag"Make[s] a vital contribution to the growing literature on perpetrators under Stalin." - The Times Literary Supplement“A landmark work that introduces new dimensions to the study of Stalinist terror.” — Canadian Slavonic Papers

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