Agents of Atrocity : Leaders, Followers, and the Violation of Human Rights in Civil War

by Mitchell, Neil J.

• ISBN13: 9781403962744
• ISBN10: 140396274X
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2004-08-07
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Summary

Who is responsible for the terror, atrocities, and violations of human rights that occur in civil wars? Blame can be directly attributed to the actual perpetrators of the massacres, rapes, and pillaging--but it can also be placed on the leaders who often hide behind their ambivalent orders. Placing responsibility clearly in the hands of political leadership, Mitchell explores the interaction of leaders, their management practices and repressive policies, using the Arab-Israeli conflict and the English and Russian civil wars to shed light on when leaders are more or less likely to turn to atrocities to achieve their goals. With civil wars continuing to rage around the world, Agents of Atrocity provides a timely history of atrocities and the leaders and henchmen who carried them out, while providing a new context for understanding why they occur and how they can be prevented in the future.

Author Biography

Neil J. Mitchell is professsor of political science and former department chair at the University of New Mexico.

Table of Contents

Machiavelli, the Grand Inquisitor, and Count Tilly's Reward

The Principals and the Agents of Political Violence

The Arab-Israeli 20,000-Day War

The Russian Civil War

The English Civil War

The Three Horsemen of Political Violence

Machiavelli, the Grand Inquisitor, and Count Tilly's Reward

The Principals and the Agents of Political Violence

The Arab-Israeli 20,000-Day War

The Russian Civil War

The English Civil War

The Three Horsemen of Political Violence

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