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Reviews
Operation Nemesis: The Assassination Plot that Avenged the Armenian Genocide by Eric Bogosian
ps2's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
3.75
tessisreading2's review against another edition
3.0
Fascinating read, but, while most of the middle of the book focused on Operation Nemesis - and was incredibly gripping - it was surrounded by a history of Armenia and the Armenians, with digressions into the nature of nationalism, etc., starting in ancient times and coming forward to the present day. Those sections sometimes read a little glib and over-simplified - which, on the one hand, I know nothing about what they're discussing; on the other hand, if I want to learn more about e.g. medieval Armenia or the Turkish denial of the Armenian genocide, I'd probably want to read something that covered them more in-depth.
emsharples's review against another edition
5.0
This was an excellently written account. Anyone interested in learning more about our current geopolitical state with respect to the Middle East would find this very interesting I think.
moreau's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
4.0
really informative and a great read. taught me a lot. would totally recommend, a lot of history books are wordy and hard to comprehend but this isnt. honestly want to reread already
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, War, Murder, and Gun violence
Moderate: Antisemitism
xxstefaniereadsxx's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
4.0
For context, the Armenian Genocide was the mass murder of approximately one million Armenian peoples during 1915-1917. Armenians were sent on death marches into the Syrian desert. There were massacres of Armenian men. There were also mass deportations, where Armenians were removed from certain areas and relocated to less desirable areas. Additionally, Armenian language, culture, and religious beliefs were systematically done away with through forced Islamization. The cause for the genocide was based on the fact that Armenians were Christians and Turks were not. Armenians wished to have more rights and less prejudices regarding rules and taxes. Turks implemented a genocidal policy to reduce the Armenian population to prevent them from creating their own autonomous region. This was also during World War I, so there were various other political and land issues associated with this. The genocide officially ended when the Ottoman Empire surrendered. Disgustingly, Turkish government and academia worldwide deny that a genocide occurred. They offer a lot of excuses and explanations, mostly the one of it being an unfortunate result of wartime. I have no respect for people who deny atrocities committed by them or their previous governments. (The United States is also guilty of this, so don't come at me for not taking ownership of what shenanagins we get into here. I am well aware, and also disgusted at the lack of admittance.)
Operation Nemesis was a program that aimed to assassinate those who were responsible for the genocide. The assassianations took place between 1920 and 1922. Fatali Khan Khoyski, Prime Minister of Azerbaijan, was the first assassination. He was accused of playing a major role in the massacre of Armenians in Baku in 1918. Talaat Pasha, Minister of the Interior and Grand Vizier, was the next to go. He was put on trial in absentia and was sentenced to death for his crimes against the Armenian people and other nonsense he got up to. He was shot as he stepped outside, and his family wished for his body to be buried in Anatolia. Unfortunately for him, nobody wanted it for the bad press. The third assassination was Minister of Internal Affairs of Azerbaijan, Behbud Khan Javanshir for his role in the murders at Baku. Next, Grand Vizier Said Halim Pasha was assassinated for his role in signing the deportation orders of Armenians. Bahaeddin Sakir was a Turkish nationalist who influenced genocidal policy, and for his trouble, he was shot in the head. Cemal Azmi, next to be assassinated, was responsible for the liquidation of Armenians and their assets in Trebizond Vilayet. He earned himself the nickname The Butcher Of Trebizond. Sickeningly, there was a school named in his honor in 2003. The final assassination was Minister Of The Navy Djemal Pasha, who was in favor of forced assimilation to Islamic practices of the Armenians. While his policies allowed Armenians to survive, he was still a key player in the genocide of a people, as well as one of the three ruling Pashas of the Ottoman Empire. He was just as dirty and guilty as the rest. He even earned himself the nickname Bloodthirsty for his treatment of Syrians. The operation effectively ended when the government made it known that the offspring of these genocidal miscreants would receive property and money and never want for anything, thus the assassinations would be futile. All of that makes it even more revolting that these countries and governments refuse to acknowledge the sins of their fathers. Even if restitution is not made in some way, presenting the truth, bringing the dark to the light, and issuing a sincere apology would go a long way toward healing generational wounds and increasing their view in the worldwide community.
I picked this book up with my Audible credits, and have been listening to it over the past several nights. I have several books on various genocides and hundreds on the Holocaust, but I have nearly nothing on the Armenian genocide. I thought this would be a great book to learn from, and it certainly was. I hate to say that I enjoyed the book because of the grim subject matter, but I did enjoy it. I love to learn, so this was not a waste of my time at all. If you are interested in World War I or genocide in general, this would be a good book for you to pick up.
Operation Nemesis was a program that aimed to assassinate those who were responsible for the genocide. The assassianations took place between 1920 and 1922. Fatali Khan Khoyski, Prime Minister of Azerbaijan, was the first assassination. He was accused of playing a major role in the massacre of Armenians in Baku in 1918. Talaat Pasha, Minister of the Interior and Grand Vizier, was the next to go. He was put on trial in absentia and was sentenced to death for his crimes against the Armenian people and other nonsense he got up to. He was shot as he stepped outside, and his family wished for his body to be buried in Anatolia. Unfortunately for him, nobody wanted it for the bad press. The third assassination was Minister of Internal Affairs of Azerbaijan, Behbud Khan Javanshir for his role in the murders at Baku. Next, Grand Vizier Said Halim Pasha was assassinated for his role in signing the deportation orders of Armenians. Bahaeddin Sakir was a Turkish nationalist who influenced genocidal policy, and for his trouble, he was shot in the head. Cemal Azmi, next to be assassinated, was responsible for the liquidation of Armenians and their assets in Trebizond Vilayet. He earned himself the nickname The Butcher Of Trebizond. Sickeningly, there was a school named in his honor in 2003. The final assassination was Minister Of The Navy Djemal Pasha, who was in favor of forced assimilation to Islamic practices of the Armenians. While his policies allowed Armenians to survive, he was still a key player in the genocide of a people, as well as one of the three ruling Pashas of the Ottoman Empire. He was just as dirty and guilty as the rest. He even earned himself the nickname Bloodthirsty for his treatment of Syrians. The operation effectively ended when the government made it known that the offspring of these genocidal miscreants would receive property and money and never want for anything, thus the assassinations would be futile. All of that makes it even more revolting that these countries and governments refuse to acknowledge the sins of their fathers. Even if restitution is not made in some way, presenting the truth, bringing the dark to the light, and issuing a sincere apology would go a long way toward healing generational wounds and increasing their view in the worldwide community.
I picked this book up with my Audible credits, and have been listening to it over the past several nights. I have several books on various genocides and hundreds on the Holocaust, but I have nearly nothing on the Armenian genocide. I thought this would be a great book to learn from, and it certainly was. I hate to say that I enjoyed the book because of the grim subject matter, but I did enjoy it. I love to learn, so this was not a waste of my time at all. If you are interested in World War I or genocide in general, this would be a good book for you to pick up.
drwozniak's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
4.25
I heard about this from the Throughline podcast episode of the same name. Truly a fascinating story. This book was definitely well researched and presented in a thoughtful, accessible, and reflective manner. I personally enjoyed the connections the author made to both Germany and United States and how their politics influenced the outcome of the trial and the fallout of the initial assassination. I also appreciated the background on the history of the Ottoman Empire and Armenians.
All in all, a great and informative read about an atrocity that many are still fighting to recognize. It raised many questions of what it means to get justice and I highly recommend it.
All in all, a great and informative read about an atrocity that many are still fighting to recognize. It raised many questions of what it means to get justice and I highly recommend it.