Dirty War: Rhodesia and Chemical Biological Warfare 1975-1980

Dirty War: Rhodesia and Chemical Biological Warfare 1975-1980

Dirty War is the first comprehensive look at the Rhodesiaâ€™s top secret use of chemical and biological weapons (CBW) during their long counterinsurgency against native African nationalists.

Having declared its independence from Great Britain in 1965, the governmentâ€”made up of European settlers and their descendantsâ€”almost immediately faced a growing threat from native African nationalists. In the midst of this long and terrible conflict, Rhodesia resorted to chemical and biological weapons against an elusive guerrilla adversary. A small team made up of a few scientists and their students at a remote Rhodesian fort to produce lethal agents for use. Cloaked in the strictest secrecy, these efforts were overseen by a battle-hardened and ruthless officer of Rhodesiaâ€™s Special Branch and his select team of policemen. Answerable only to the head of Rhodesian intelligence and the Prime Minister, these men working alongside Rhodesiaâ€™s elite counterguerrilla military unit, the Selous Scouts, developed the ingenious means to deploy their poisons against the insurgents.

The effect of the poisons and disease agents devastated the insurgent groups both inside Rhodesia and at their base camps in neighboring countries. At times in the conflict, the Rhodesians thought that their poisons effort would bring the decisive blow against the guerrillas. For months at a time, the Rhodesian use of CBW accounted for higher casualty rates than conventional weapons. In the end, however, neither CBW use nor conventional battlefield successes could turn the tide. Lacking international political or economic support, Rhodesiaâ€™s fate from the outset was doomed. Eventually the conflict was settled by the ballot box and Rhodesia became independent Zimbabwe in April 1980.

Dirty War is the culmination of nearly two decades of painstaking research and interviews of dozens of former Rhodesian officers who either participated or were knowledgeable about the top secret development and use of CBW. The book also draws on the handful of remaining classified Rhodesian documents that tell the story of the CBW program. Dirty War combines all of the available evidence to provide a compelling account of how a small group of men prepared and used CBW to devastating effect against a largely unprepared and unwitting enemy.

Looking at the use of CBW in the context of the Rhodesian conflict, Dirty War provides unique insights into the motivation behind CBW development and use by states, especially by states combating internal insurgencies. As the norms against CBW use have seemingly eroded with CW use evident in Iraq and most recently in Syria, the lessons of the Rhodesian experience are all the more valid and timely.
Country USA
Brand Helion and Company
Manufacturer Helion and Company
Binding Paperback
ItemPartNumber Illustrated
ReleaseDate 2017-03-21
UnitCount 1
Format Illustrated
EANs 9781911512127

Country	USA
Brand	Helion and Company
Manufacturer	Helion and Company
Binding	Paperback
ItemPartNumber	Illustrated
ReleaseDate	2017-03-21
UnitCount	1
Format	Illustrated
EANs	9781911512127

Dirty War: Rhodesia and Chemical Biological Warfare 1975-1980

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