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New - 20% Discount -

KILLING CIVILIANS
Killing Method, Madness and Morality in War

Civilians
Method, Madness and Morality in War
Hugo Slim

‘The essential text on the hideous but important topic of why and how soldiers kill non-combatants. . .
HUGO SLIM Explores the moral reasoning behind both lethal violence against civilians and the traditions of mercy
and restraint that have sustained a small but precious space for humanity in warfare.’ —Alex de Waal,
program director, Social Science Research Council, New York

‘A remarkable book – rare to encounter such unflinching and thorough dissection of the brutality we
humans are capable of, recounted with such humanity. Surprisingly perhaps, Slim’s message is ultimate-
ly encouraging to those of us striving to protect the rights of children and their communities in today’s
conflicts, and should be applauded.’ — Jasmine Whitbread, Chief Executive, Save the Children UK

This is a book about how civilians suffer in war and why people decide that they should. Most civilian
suffering in war is deliberate and always has been. Massacres, rape, displacement, famine and disease
are usually designed. They are policies in war. In meetings or on mobile phones, political and military
leaders decide that civilians are appropriate or inevitable targets.

The principle that unarmed and innocent people should be protected in war is an ancient, precious but fragile idea. Today, the principle
of civilian immunity is enshrined in modern international law and cherished by many. But, in practice, leaders in most wars reject the
principle.

Using detailed historical and contemporary examples, Killing Civilians looks at the many ways in which civilians suffer in wars and analy-
ses the main anti-civilian ideologies which insist upon such suffering. It also exposes the very real ambiguity in defining who civilians are
and how this is used to justify extreme hostility towards them. But this is also, above all, a book about why civilians should be protected.

Hugo Slim is a leading commentator on international humanitarian action and the protection of civilians in war. He has worked for Save
the Children and the United Nations in Sudan, Ethiopia and the Palestinian Territories, been on the board of Oxfam GB and an
international adviser to the British Red Cross. He is currently Chief Scholar at the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue in Geneva, a
respected Swiss conflict resolution organization that mediates in civil wars and advises on peace processes.
October 2007, 320 pp, 216x138mm ISBN: 978-1-85065-881-8, £20 hb NOW £16 with this order form (please return to the above address: Attn, K. May)

Advance Praise ORDER FORM

‘An excellent book. ... I recommend it to the practitioner,
political, humanitarian and military, and in equal measure to
the general public in whose name they act.’ — General Sir
Rupert Smith, KCB, DSO, OBE, QGM, author, The Util-
ity of Force: The Art of War in the Modern World
‘This is a unique and important book. It addresses an issue
head on which is not sufficiently addressed in contemporary
political thought. It is extremely well written, very easy to
read, and promotes a clear and well-reasoned (but nuanced)
position.’ — John Sloboda, Executive Director, Oxford
Research Group and co-founder, Iraq Body-Count
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‘A compelling argument for a global movement for civilian PAYMENT

rights, a movement that can link concerned citizens every- • Cheques payable to C. Hurst & Co. (Publishers) Ltd
where, with the civilians who are threatened with violence
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one who still believes that the slaughter of civilians can be
stopped simply by legal and technocratic solutions alone.’ Exp: ......./.......
— Barbara Stocking, Director, Oxfam UK
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