Factories of Death: Japanese Biological Warfare, 1932-45 and the American Cover-up

by Sheldon H. Harris

Factories of Death details the activities of the Japanese army scientists that conducted numerous horrifying experiments upon live human beings. It investigates who from the upper echelons of the Japanese military and political establishments knew of the experiments, also the question of whether or not Allied POWs were subjected to such tests, and the nature of the deal that was brokered with US authorities after the war. This new edition has been completely updated, and contains an entirely new chapter detailing the numerous revelations that have surfaced since the book's initial publication in 1994.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Japan, World War II, Asia, Science, War

424 pages, Paperback

First published March 22, 1993

Reviews

[Maziyar Yf · Rating 3 out of 5]

در میان تاریکی‌های جنگ جهانی دوم و انبوه جنایات هولناکی که در آن دوران به وقوع پیوست، داستان‌هایی وجود دارند که حتی پس از گذشت دهه‌ها نیز همچنان ناشناخته و تکان‌دهنده باقی مانده‌اند. یکی از این داستان‌های تلخ و هولناک، برنامه مخفیانه جنگ بیولوژیکی امپراتوری ژاپن است که در سایه‌ی سکوت و انکار، قربانیان بی‌شماری را کشت و میراثی از درد ، شکنجه و انکار به جا گذاشت . کتاب کارخانه‌های مرگ نوشته شلدون هریس ، مورخ آمریکایی به تفصیل به شرح فعالیت‌های واحد ۷۳۱ ارتش امپراتوری ژاپن پرداخته . این واحد مخفی در منچوری به انجام آزمایش‌های وحشتناک و غیرانسانی بر روی زندانیان جنگی و غیرنظامیان می‌پرداخت.
کارخانه‌های مرگ را باید تلاشی برای روشن کردن این فصل تاریک از تاریخ دانست. شلدون اچ. هریس نه تنها به تشریح چگونگی شکل‌گیری و عملکرد واحدهای کلیدی مانند واحد ۷۳۱ و واحد ۱۰۰ که در منچوری اشغالی به انجام آزمایش‌های وحشتناک بر روی انسان‌ها مشغول بودند، پرداخته ، بلکه تلاش کرده ماهیت غیرانسانی این آزمایش‌ها و رنج بی‌حد و حصر قربانیان را نیز نشان دهد .گرچه که این تلاش در حاشیه مانده .
هریس کتاب خود را به دو بخش کارخانه های مرگ و لاپوشانی تقسیم کرده و البته هر بخش را با انبوه جزئیات غنی و کامل کرده .
نویسنده با چگونگی شکل‌گیری ایده و برنامه جنگ بیولوژیکی در ارتش امپراتوری ژاپن کتاب خود را شروع کرده و به سرعت خواننده را با شیرو ایشی میکروبیولوژیست و ژنرال ارتش که رهبری واحد ۷۳۱ را بر عهده داشت، آشنا می کند. او نشان می‌دهد که این برنامه چگونه از تحقیقات پزشکی نظامی آغاز شد و به یک پروژه گسترده و مخفیانه برای توسعه سلاح‌های بیولوژیکی تبدیل شد. او سپس با دقت ، موقعیت مکانی (عمدتاً در منچوری اشغالی) و فعالیت‌های دو واحد اصلی جنگ بیولوژیکی ژاپن ( واحد ۷۳۱ و واحد ۱۰۰) و هم چنین تفاوت های این دو واحد ( واحد ۷۳۱ در نزدیکی شهر هاربین مستقر بود و به عنوان مرکز اصلی تحقیقات و آزمایش‌های انسانی عمل می‌کرد، در حالی که واحد ۱۰۰ بیشتر بر روی بیماری‌های دامی و کشاورزی متمرکز بود تا از آن‌ها به عنوان سلاح استفاده کند.) را شرح می‌دهد .
این واحد ها حمایت قوی دولت ژاپن و شاید هیرو هیتو ، امپراتور را داشته . آنها منابع مالی و انسانی گسترده‌ای از دولت ژاپن دریافت می‌کردند و شبکه وسیعی از دانشمندان، پزشکان و پرسنل نظامی در این پروژه‌ها مشارکت داشتند. هریس همچنین به چگونگی تأمین مواد آزمایشی یا الوار یعنی زندانیان و قربانیان این آزمایش‌ها پرداخته که اغلب از میان اسیران جنگی چینی، کره‌ای، روسی و حتی برخی از اسرای متفقین بودند.

انواع آزمایش ها :
اصل کتاب و عمق وحشی گری ژاپن را باید در آزمایش هایی دانست که ژاپنی ها روی اسیران جنگی و غیر نظامی ها انجام میدادند . گرچه هریس به برخی از این آزمایش ها پرداخته ، اما برخی از آزمایش ها شاید به سبب خشونت بیش از اندازه چندان بررسی نشده . این آزمایش ها عبارتند از
تزریق مستقیم باکتری‌ها و ویروس‌های بیماری‌زا مانند طاعون، وبا، تیفوس، سیاه‌زخم و غیره به بدن زندانیان. قرار دادن زندانیان در معرض بمب‌ها و مواد منفجره حامل عوامل بیماری‌زا برای بررسی میزان کشندگی و اثربخشی آن‌ها ، قرار دادن افراد در معرض دمای شدید، فشار بالا یا پایین، و کمبود آب و غذا برای بررسی تحمل بدن انسان. آلوده کردن آب و غیره .

آزمایش یخ زدگی :
در میان این آزمایشها ، وحشیانه ترین و فجیع ترین آزمایش ، یخ زدگی بوده . هدف اصلی این آزمایش‌ها، بررسی چگونگی تأثیر سرمای شدید بر بدن انسان و تعیین بهترین روش‌ها برای درمان یخ‌زدگی در شرایط جنگی بود. زندانیان را در دمای بسیار پایین، اغلب در هوای آزاد در زمستان‌های سرد منچوری، قرار می‌دادند. گاهی اوقات آن‌ها را مجبور می‌کردند تا دست‌ها یا پاهای خود را در آب سرد فرو ببرند تا روند یخ‌زدگی تسریع شود. برای فهمیدن اینکه عضو مورد نظر یخ زده یا نه ، با چوب به آن ضربه می زدند ، اگر صدای چوب می داد ، نشانه یخ زدگی عضو بود .
سپس محققان به طور دقیق مراحل مختلف یخ‌زدگی را در بدن قربانیان مشاهده و ثبت می‌کردند. آن‌ها تغییرات رنگ پوست، از دست دادن حس، و در نهایت، مرگ را ثبت می‌کردند .
پس از رسیدن به مراحل مختلف یخ‌زدگی، روش‌های مختلفی برای احیای قربانیان امتحان می‌شد. این روش‌ها شامل غوطه‌ور کردن اندام‌های یخ‌زده در آب با دماهای مختلف، استفاده از گرما، ماساژ و حتی شوک الکتریکی بود. نکته وحشتناک این است که این تلاش‌های احیا اغلب بسیار دردناک بودند و به منظور بررسی اثربخشی روش‌های مختلف انجام می‌شد، نه برای نجات جان قربانیان.
اما هریس به تشریح زنده یا زنده شکافی ، انتقال سفلیس به زنان و کودکان از طریق تجاوز جنسی نپرداخته .

بخش پایانی کتاب هریس لاپوشانی جنایات انجام شده ژاپن ، توسط آمریکا ست . پس از پایان جنگ ، ایالات متحده به طور کامل از وجود واحد 731 و آزمایش‌های وحشتناک آن بر روی انسان‌ها آگاه شد. اما هدف اصلی آمریکا ، به دست آوردن اطلاعات مربوط به تحقیقات جنگ بیولوژیکی ژاپن بود. آن‌ها معتقد بودند که این اطلاعات، به ویژه در آستانه جنگ سرد و رقابت با اتحاد جماهیر شوروی، می‌تواند در توسعه برنامه دفاعی و تهاجمی بیولوژیکی خودشان بسیار ارزشمند باشد.
به گفته هریس ، مک‌آرتور، فرمانده نیروهای آمریکا در ژاپن، به طور مخفیانه با مقامات ارشد واحد 731، مانند شیرو ایشی معامله کرد. در این معامله، به آن‌ها مصونیت در برابر پیگرد قانونی به اتهام جنایات جنگی در دادگاه توکیو داده شد.
اما در مقابل این مصونیت، دانشمندان و رهبران واحد 731 موظف شدند تا تمام نتایج تحقیقات، داده‌ها و یافته‌های خود را در اختیار ارتش آمریکا قرار دهند. این گونه آمریکا اطلاعات مربوط به واحد 731 و جنایات آن را به عنوان اطلاعات محرمانه طبقه‌بندی کرد و از انتشار عمومی آن‌ها جلوگیری کرد. این امر باعث شد تا برای دهه‌ها، جزئیات این جنایات از دید عموم پنهان بماند.
مسئولان اصلی جنایات واحد 731، از جمله شیرو ایشی، هرگز به خاطر اعمال خود محاکمه نشدند و بسیاری از آن‌ها پس از جنگ به مشاغل مهمی در ژاپن دست یافتند.
در پایان کارخانه های مرگ را باید کتاب مهمی دانست که به تاریک ترین و وحشتناک ترین وجه جنگ پرداخته که آشکارا نادیده گرفته شده . اما این کتاب که توسط نشر گویا منتشر شده ، هیچ بهره ای از ویراستاری نبرده ، انبوه کلمات ناقص ، استفاده نکردن از نقطه و دیگر علائم نگارشی و مشکلات دیگر ، به ترجمه کتاب ضربه زده و کارخانه های مرگ را به کتابی نه چندان جذاب و گیرا تبدیل کرده است .

[Mahya danesh · Rating 5 out of 5]

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میتونم بگم به جرئت یکی از کتاب هایی که چهره چرک و زشت تعصب کورکورانه به میهن ، نظامی گری و عطش قدرت رو نشون میده همین کتابه .
یه جاهاییش اینقدر وحشتناک بود که ساعت ها ذهنم رو درگیر میکرد..چجوری یه پزشک میتونه اینقدر راحت جون ادم ها رو فدای ازمایشاتش کنه؟
داستان کتاب در ارتباط با جنگ بیولوژیکه ،همونطور که از اسمش پیداست شما با یه ازمایشگاه طرف نیستید با چند ازمایشگاه طرفید که نویسنده بهشون میگه کارخانه مرگ . زندانی های سیاسی ،جنایت کارها ،اسرای جنگی ، افراد بیمار و گمنام به این کارخانه های مرگ فرستاده میشدن و تبدیل میشدن به نمونه ازمایشگاهی . افرادی که فقط اسم پزشک رو یدک میکشیدن بدون هیچ عذاب وجدانی انواع و اقسام بیماری ها و واکسن ها رو روی این افراد انجام میدادن ، اونا رو زنده زنده تشریح میکردن و وقتی کارشون تموم میشد معدوم میشدن و توی کوره میسوزوندن .این ادم ها فقط حکم موش ازمایشگاهی رو داشتن و هیچکس براش مهم نبود چه حالی دارن؟
توی این کتاب از سه نفر که این برنامه رو جلو بردن بیشتر اسم برده شده ،مهم ترین شون فردی به نام ایشی هست . توی تمام این کتاب شما هرچیزی در این ادم میبینید غیر از ذره ای انسانیت که این بی ربط به سرخوردگی ،مشکلات روانی و جاه طلبی این فرد نیست .
در اخر هم فکر میکنید چه اتفاقی می افته؟ هیچی 🤷🏻‍♀️
فرماندهای امریکایی وقتی میفهمن همچین کاری کرده بهش مصونیت قضایی میدن تا در ازاش بهشون نتایج ازمایشات رو بده ، البته فقط امریکا لاپوشونی نمیکنه حتی رهبران چین هم تمایلی به اشکار کردن چهره کسی که بیشترین ازمایشات غیرانسانی رو روی مردمشون انجام داده نشون نمیدن و اینجاست که ذات اصلی سیاست و بازی قدرت خودش رو نشون میده .
کافیه یه سرچ بزنید تا عکس و مستند از این کارخانه های مرگ براتون بیاد یا اصلا سرچ کنید موزه ۷۳۱ ، درسته همه چیز رو از بین بردن ولی نگاه کردن بهشون نشون میده یه روزایی تو بحبوحه جنگ جهانی دوم اعمال پلیدی اینجا صورت گرفته.
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به نظرم فقط مختص ژاپنی ها نیست واسه هرجای دیگه ای هم میتونه این بی رحمی دیده بشه حالا به اشکال مختلف .

[Mia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 🌟
ویراستاری افتضاح ولی مطالب خوبی داره. به زودی ازش می‌نویسم.

[Robert Beveridge · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sheldon Harris, Factories of Death: Japanese Biological Warfare 1932-45 and the American Cover-Up (Second Edition) (Routledge, 2002)

During the time of the Great Depression in America, and up through the end of World War II, the Japanese medical corps, operating through the imperialist Kwantung Army, conducted thousands of biological warfare experiments on live human subjects. These subjects were primarily Chinese peasants convicted of petty crimes, but also included, as WW2 wore on, prisoners of war and non-criminal Chinese. For over forty years, these facts were kept an almost complete secret from the general public; glancing references would surface now and again, or a slick TV documentary would pop up for a British of Korean version of the TV magazines that are those countries' parallels to something like 20-20 in America. No one treated the subject in depth; no one knew how to get enough proof. Even the Chinese government, when it attempted a full-length film documentary, was unable to come up with enough information (their aborted attempt was made into a fictional film, the notorious Men Behind the Sun).

Then came Williams and Wallace and their book Unit 731. Seven years later, Sheldon Harris expanded greatly on Williams and Wallace's knowledge with the definitive text on Unit 731's war crimes, Factories of Death. Another seven years has gone by since, and Harris and Routledge have released a second edition of Factories of Death that contains the updated information from documents that have been declassified since. As time goes on, the book gets even more horrifying.

Unlike Williams and Wallace or Hal Gold (whose book Unit 731: Testimony is a brilliant, if anecdotal, complement to this work), Harris keeps his feet rooted firmly on the ground, keeping any conjecture to the most logical conclusions to be drawn from the facts at hand. Gold, for example, speculates in Unit 731: Testimony that both MacArthur and Truman were fully aware of the American cover-up of Unit 731's activities; Harris refrains from even hinting at such a thing until all the evidence is completely laid out, and even then, he only glancingly makes reference to then-President Truman at all. Because of this loathness to speculate, when Harris does let the cork out and start ranting (which happens only very briefly, at the end of the penultimate chapter), some of the teeth are taken out of his vituperation; he's just not willing to go where he needs to go. One might cynically think that the stronger language that haunts the last third of the penultimate chapter is there simply because ranting sells and scholarship doesn't. (That said, those reviewers who have noted the book's dryness are right, to an extent, but anyone who considers this painfully dry should try reading any other book Routledge has ever released. This is a John Grisham novel in comparison, going by readability. I was surprised, and pleased, at how quickly the book flew by, given its imprint.)

That same failing is Harris' greatest sin here; not one of commission, but of omission. Other books on Unit 731 have raised a number of questioning specters that Harris doesn't touch on at all, including a few for which there is smoking-gun evidence (use of American biological warfare in North Korea in the 1950s that has Ishii Shiro's stamp on it, the biological munitions plant at Hiroshima that led to America's bombing of that city in 1945, etc.). It could reasonably be concluded that Harris didn't think the evidence was sufficient to warrant mentioning them in the text, but even the casual Unit 731 scholar is sure to have heard the allegations; better, if you're writing the definitive piece of scholarship, to address them rather than leave them twisting in the wind.

Still, an excellent piece of work, one that history buffs are well advised to seek out. Schoolchildren (for this material is definitely in need of dissemination) could do with an abridged version; those who seek this out because they loved Men Behind the Sun should probably stick with the film unless they're used to reading nonfiction. (The notion of Ishii as a two-dimensional villain will be shattered within the first few pages. Prepare yourselves.) ****

[Erik Graff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Guess what? Despite the Geneva Accords banning such activities, the Japanese conducted deadly biological and chemical warfare experiments on thousands of unwilling men, women, children (not to mention various nonhuman species) during 1932-1945, mostly in China, mostly to Chinese, but including other foreign nationals as well. Then, having been defeated by the United Nations, the scientists responsible for these activities went on without any prosecution whatsoever (except for the few captured by the Soviets), some of them running the Japanese medical and pharmaceutical establishments until dying out themselves in the eighties. Why no prosecution? The US Occupation forces and their bosses back home, also heavily invested in biological and chemical warfare research contrary to signed accords, were very interested in obtaining this useful knowledge for themselves--and keeping it from the Soviets. Throughout all of this, no one except Admiral William Leahy, Military Chief of Staff to President Roosevelt, is cited as voicing an objection on the American side.

Although dryly written, this extremely well-researched and documented book by historian Harris (California State, Northridge) is a cautionary tale for those who might trust their governments or the medical establishment.

[Dina · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you thought the Germans were the big, bad boys not playing by the rules, then you should read this and learn something I'm sure you had no idea was happening. As a scientist, this book was interesting, but as a human with ethics, this was disgusting.

[Masoud · Rating 5 out of 5]

سوای روایت هولناکی که از شروع پروژه جنگ بیولوژیک ژاپن تا معامله پشت پرده با آمریکا روایت میشه، ویراستاری کتاب بسیار ضعیف، پر از غلطهای املایی، دستوری و.. هست که یجاهایی فهم حتی یک جمله رو هم برای خواننده دشوار میکنه.

[Geve_ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is extremely hard to review.

I was already relatively familiar with the japanese bio and chemical warfare units, and the experimentation done of pow and prisoners, but this included a LOT of information I wasn't familiar with. there was clearly a lot of research done by the author, and I greatly appreciated his in dpeth descriptions of the major players. It really helped me to think about how and why these crimes were allowed to happen, and how they were conducted. That said, the book itself was at times hard to get through. It is not a singular narrative, but more like separate essays in chapter form, although not entirely, so it felt even more disjointed when I wasn't sure which were through stories and which were flipping to something totally different when a new chapter came along. This is FINE, but it just requires some calibration before diving into.

Where my main crit comes in is actually in the source of the information. Since there are almost no records, because the japanese, unlike the germans, were pretty good about NOT leaving documentation, there was little to be had, and the americans seized a bunch of it, then gave it back without translating it (supposedly). So the author doesnt have a ton to work with, and he did his best, there's no doubt about that. Just like when reading about Nanjing, there is so much Japanese propaganda and information suppression about it all, that it's hard to get at what the truth really is.

So i am left with this new set of information, that i half believe and am half suspicious of that will now lead me to seeking out other sources for. So, I guess, success.

[Will · Rating 5 out of 5]

A gripping overview of the Japanese bioweapons program and the post-war American cover-up.

Notes

- In USA, Japan, and Germany, the scientists pushed for using chemical and biological weapons, not necessarily military leaders.
- A bunch of the Japanese scientists implicated in the horrific bioweapons program / human experimentation were later head of the Japanese NIH, pharmaceutical companies, etc.
- In the retreat from Manchuria, Japan destroyed a ton of secret bases.
- The economic success of 1930's Hitler and Mussolini convinced Japanese ultra nationalists that was the right move.
- The conquest of Manchuria was "independent" of the emperor but in practice supported by him and his advisors. Manchuria becomes a testing ground for the new ideas, basically a lawless thug gangster state
- Major Ishii Shiro was most responsible for the Japanese bioweapons program. Very smart and energetic dude, good at ingratiating himself with superiors, leading subordinates, seems to have been entirely without scruples/remorse.
- Apparently Japanese medicine didn't teach a medical ethics course back then.
- Deeply ironic: a Japanese physician goes to the 1925 Geneva Convention where biological and chemical warfare was outlawed, writes a paper about it, and Ishii Shiro reads it and is deeply influenced by it, and decides to start the Japanese BW program as a result! infohazard concerns abound...
- How do Ishii end up doing human experiments? He was doing biological warfare research at home, ingratiated himself with his superiors, and worked hard, but knows he can't do human experimentation at home; so he gets assigned to Manchuria.
- part of the Japanese and US justification for studying BW was that they thought other countries were working on it too - deterrence!
- An early useful research result was hypothermia treatment - rapid rewarming.
- Ishii also made a water purification system with a patented filter and a bunch of money. "water purification bureau" ends up being the cover for a bunch of human BW research.
- After early BW experiments in Harbin, he leads the creation of the Ping Fan facility.
- The Ping Fan facility and surrounding environs get used for human experiments. They also experiment w/ different payload and bomb mechanisms.
- Human experiment results were published as working with "Taiwan monkeys" or "long-tailed monkeys"
- Lab leaks included a cholera epidemic from untreated factory water, plague epidemics, and after the war, Chinese digging up or being exposed to chemical weapons.
- Unit 731 was given permission to trial biological warfare against Soviets during the Nomonhan incident, and the Soviets might have used it too (!), but its unclear.
- Ishii caused a cholera outbreak in 1940 in the Manchukuon capital: told people there was going to be a Cholera outbreak and then injected people with cholera.
- Total casualty counts are difficult to know but probably several hundreds of thousands total: eg, perhaps 50k deaths from plague in Quzhou over 6 years, occasional plague outbreaks as late as 1959 in different regions. But poor record-keeping, intentional post-war destruction, general chaos of Civil War China, etc. all make it imposible to know.
- Running theme of civilian biological warfare being a cover for offensive biological warfare; similar equipment needs.
- Nongan county in China had periodic flareups of plague from 1940's onwards, which was very unusual for that region.
- "Changchun and environs experienced outbreaks of plague, glanders, and anthrax epidemics in 1946, 1947, and 1951...civil war was then raging in the region left medical facilities limited at best...parts of Changchun and the surrounding town remained uninhabitable until the mid 1950's. " (132)
- Nanking was ravaged by epidemics, but this blew back on Japanese troops as well - a running theme.
- WWII-era American POWS might have been experimented on, and later were supposedly required to sign a statement agreeing to not share this information (pg160), but possible they weren't. Even after being granted immunity, Ishii denied it, but admitted to experimenting on Soviet and Chinese POWs, and there's no clear evidence of this.
- After Japan's surrender, Japanese officials tried their hardest to conceal the BW program - interesting they realized the international community would hate it!
- In the US the offensive BW program began in ~1942, Fort Detrick is operational within 8 months (!), and by April 1945, at time of Japan's surrender, they've got 8,000 pounds of Anthrax agent - but never used (unless Korean war allegations are believed).
- Fear of German war prowess was key to starting the US BW program: Germany had led in submarine warfare in WWI, chemical weapons in WWI, and rumored 1917 German germ warfare in Bucharest, Romania. But Hitler hated BW, and issued edicts banning it which were mostly followed, or at least didn't allow for high-level funding allocation towards it.
- Americans covered up their knowledge of Japanese atrocities, initially for fear of damaging the home front efforts, later to stop Congressional oversight of the US bioweapons programs, later because they were allied with Japan, later because they feared Soviet acquisition of BW knowledge.
- During the American occupation, as in any wartime scenario, people want to take advantage of chaos to settle old grudges. But the BW accusations were quite accurate.
- Dr. Karl T Compton (MIT president) rightly doesn't believe Japanese denials of offensive bioweapons program development!
- Its interesting that Japanese solders knew to hide evidence of BW use - the taboo was known to them!
- US BW scientists were some of the ones who pushed for immunity for Japanese BW experts, but probably it was the Joint Chiefs of Staff, not General MacArthur, that made that decision. The immunity initially takes the form of not furnishing war crime prosecutors with relevant info, then by directly putting war crimes investigation under the jurisdiction of G-2 (military intelligence).
- Japanese scientists used the threat of cooperation with Soviets as a means to secure more concessions from the US, like immunity. Official post-WWII policy by the US was to give the Allies all relevant information except for scientific R&D that would be helpful to the Soviets.
- US BW was ahead of the Japanese program, not clear how much scientific value was actually obtained from Japanese BW program
- Jilin, Dunhua - areas in china that had abandoned chemical weapons depots from Japan;
- There are some unethical human experiments that Japanese researchers conducted in response to post-war American request (!), supposedly pg 338-339, and also post 1950's Japan had pretty bad medical ethics standards.
- "The Emperor's worth to Japanese special interests increased once the Occupation officially ended in 1952. Gradually and stealthily the old elites resumed power with the assistance of the wily Showa emperor and his coterie of palace followers. The zaibatasu, old-line politicians, and conservative intellectuals assumed control of Japanese society...the reality is that bureaucrats in the ministries are the real rulers in Japan." (349)

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too disjointed and repetitive (and opinionated). It felt like a series of papers smashed together, which is what I suspect it was.

[Attika · Rating 2 out of 5]

Two stars.

Although a historically important book (covering Biological Warfare (BW) research undertaken by the Japanese from 1930-1945, especially Unit 731 and Unit 100), this book rates only two stars. The primary reasons is that practically the entire book is based on recalled evidence that is sometimes/
many times secondhand or thirdhand. And why is this?

#1.) At the end of the war the Japanese destroyed every building of every biological warfare factory using dynamite, explosive munitions, and fire. They were _extremely efficient_ at doing this, knowing that the slightest shred of evidence left behind could be used to implicate them if they're later brought to trial for war-crimes after the war is over. So almost NOTHING -- that they'll admit to -- still exists.

If an experiment is carried out but no data survives, how can you remark on it's content? It's a conundrum the author can't avoid and can't overcome.

(Those persons who were subjected to these BW experiments either did not survive them, or were "sacrificed and autopsied" afterwards if they did survive them.)

#2.) Because the Americans wanted the Japanese scientists to give them (and ONLY them) whatever scientific reports and papers they still had, these same scientists were never _compelled_ (under penalty of death, say, or extradition to Russia or China to go on trial) to be either truthful or thorough. So, since their lives were on the line, they'd simply give out information in dribs and drabs to their American captors, who gobbled it up and hid it from all other War Powers nations. (The Americans felt that this info would allow America to "catch up" in the biological warfare race all the other nations were engaged in, both during and after WW2.)

#3.) The Japanese scientists are being mostly interviewed 10-20 years AFTER all this has gone on, and they're relying on their ability to recall events, episodes, facts, data and results from those times. OF COURSE they're going to get a lot of it wrong! How good is _your_ recollection of jobs you did -- the planning, the building, or the execution of said task -- for something that happened 20 years ago? And if revealing your role in certain "questionable" activities (read: atrocities) could result in your being tried and executed for war crimes, don't you think you'd lie or conveniently forget certain information? Duh!

#4.) The actual written evidence that MAY have made its way into American hands is squandered.
A Dr. Hatcher, Ph.D, (Chief, Army Record Management, Department of the Army, and Archivist of the Army) states in a 1986 US Congressional Hearing that the US Army had captured Imperial Army records when it occupied Japan, these records are brought to the US, held for 13 years, are largely unread and untranslated due to difficulties with various Japanese dialects and alphabets (the American Army claims that they have no one who can actually translate the information!), and eventually ALL THESE DOCUMENTS ARE RETURNED TO JAPAN with NO COPIES being made and staying in American hands! None! When queried whether these records could have contained information regarding Japanese BW experimentation on American (prisoners of war) he replied, "It might have been . . . we really don't know the content of the materials that were repatriated," and, later "I'm sure it still exists. I mean, the Japanese are good record keepers."

Japan --as far as the world knows -- has chosen not to translate or release any of these documents, and only Japanese citizens (no "foreign powers") may request to view any of these documents! And the government of Japan can simply refuse to let their own citizens view them, which it seems to have done as no translations have been made/released by any Japanese citizens/reporters!

So for 1/3 of the book you get to read about hearsay of the Japanese Biological Warfare program, then 1/3 of the book is about the American cover-up at the war's end to gain BW info from Japan's scientists, and another 1/3 of the book goes over the start of the illegal American biological warfare effort that is created at the war's end.

Just SO not worth it.

Two stars.

[Dan Min · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sheldon Howard Harris' probing research into Japanese bacteriological/ biological warfare during the second world war is perhaps the most disciplined historical piece that explains the unusual dynamic relationship between United States and Japan military/ intelligence communities. The first part of the book details of what went on in Manchuria and Shiro Ishii's unit 731. There are also units under the same jurisdiction of the Imperial Japanese Army Medical Corps operating with similar objectives that are located in major cities like Chang-Chun, Mukden, Beijing, Nanking, and Ping fan. The men who were part of the units responsible for conducting unethical warfare and medical experiments on human beings comprised of scientists, professional students, physicians, nurses, and the like. The first part of the book also goes into details of what the Imperial Japanese military did in terms of what lethal microorganism they used to culture for biological warfare (BW), methods of delivery, the location to disseminate and infect civilians, and studies to prepare the next generation in the advent of war against the allies.

The second part of the book truly intrigued me because one could read with a grain of salt about America's conspiratorial involvement with Shiro Ishii and his colleagues. It is convincing enough after reading Harris's work that America did give immunity to the Japanese in exchange for information regarding biological warfare, many that involved human experimentation. Although much has been said about Fort Detrick and America's Chemical Corps as with the support from the brass on top (McArthur and his constituents, the War Dept, and SWNCC). Harris did not leave out the involvement of America's intelligence community which perhaps found Japanese methods of BW imperative to the extent of discovering what advantage (or disadvantage) that BW can have in the cold war era. Decades after Japan's surrender, the ones responsible for conducting BW went on to hold prominent positions in Japan's medical/ pharmaceutical industries, particularly the Ministry of Health and Welfare and JNIH (now known as NIID National Institute of Infectious Disease with its nomenclature changed due to multiple scandals dealing with profiteering of drugs and medicine, tainted blood products, unsafe inoculations). They were also responsible for continuing to establish BW research alongside with Americans even having access to restricted U.S. military bases.

I don't believe in conspiracy and all the rhetoric spewed from the deep recesses of the internet. However, in the last passage, comes a surprise reading with the ongoing pandemic that will tempt some readers to make connections. That America performed joint study/ testing program with China at Hubei Medical University using 'volunteers' back in the late 80s. Yes, Hubei. The province of Wuhan.

[Tricia Bolle · Rating 5 out of 5]

A difficult read if only because the horrors it covers is so awful to behold. Nevertheless, it is an important read for those who wish to understand the awfulness of the biological warfare brought upon the Chinese by the Japanese during the Japanese occupation of China during the Pacific War and why the US did little in response.

I was working in Japan when the first court victory recognizing the atrocities committed was awarded in a Japanese court. The author was still alive to see some amount of public justice being brought for these heinous crimes. There is still so much more to be done, including learning our history and how we are called to be more responsible in the future.

[Jelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Its obvious, based on the dearth of primary documentation available to American academics on the subject, that this must have been a difficult book to research and write. Unfortunately this fact also makes it an incredibly difficult book to read, with reiterations of the same information over and over; unnecessary tangents; and so many uses of terms like "probably", "possibly", "could be", and "may have" that most of the books seems to be superfluous conjecture anyway.

[Yoyocurt · Rating 5 out of 5]

well detailed book about the BW and CW crimes committed and conducted by imperial japanese troops. it was hard to research, so bravo to harris for being able to provide such a wonderful read. the book doesn't just focus on the atrocities committed upon the victims, it also touches on multiple topics such as the early career of ishii shiro, and other details abt the machines and equipment used in imperial japan's BW and CW research. highly recommend.

[Robin Burton · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars.

It was interesting at first to read a personal account of General Shirō Ishii’s career and how human experimentation began, but the information became increasingly dull as the pages went on. I wanted a history documentation that was as encompassing as The Rape of Nanking by Iris Chang, so perhaps it fell short based on my own expectations.

[Malihe63 · Rating 5 out of 5]

کتاب جالبی بود در خصوص آزمایش ساخت سلاح بیولوژیک روی انسان ها توسط ژاپن در جنگ جهانی دوم در کل کتاب خوبی بود فقط به خاطر تصویر سازی های ذهن کمی خوندنش سخته چون بعضی صحنه ها و رفتارها با انسان ها حتی در تصور هم سخته

[Maggie A · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ridiculous to think that there could be as swirl if intelligence archives worldwide are opened to researchers

[Jenny Chan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book on the subject. It is well researched and groundbreaking! Highly recommend.

[Mr. ToppDeck · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting Book. Visceral. These guys got away with it all. Sad. No reparations for Chinese and Allied victims. Sadder.

[Kat Dixon · Rating 2 out of 5]

It should be so interesting, but it isn't.

[Essien Allan · Rating 4 out of 5]

SHOCKING REVELATIONS. Geo politics and representation of interest at its peak

[سمر سيد · Rating 4 out of 5]

التاريخ البشري ممتلئ بفظاعات، أظن أن الشيطان نفسه لم يكن له القدرة على ارتكابها.

[Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-researched book about the biological warfare "research" at Unit 571 and other sites in China, as well as the aftermath. It also touches on the American biological weapons research during the same period and how the unethical Japanese research results were used by the United States.

This book goes into great detail about names and places, but if you're looking for something like "Philosophy of a Knife" in book format this is not it. It is an academic work and somewhat detached from the events.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Extremely difficult to read b/c of the subject matter

[Teasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love it!!!