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Man Without a Gun : One Diplomat's Secret Struggle to Free the Hostages, Fight Terrorism, and End a War
Can an unarmed man triumph in a land of terror and violence?
Man Without a Gun is the true story of a single UN diplomat's astonishing high-wire struggle for peace in the Middle East. UN secretary-general Javier Pérez de Cuéllar called the author "more of a soldier than a diplomat." And, indeed, his life is the stuff of John le Carré thrillers. But Man Without a Gun is more than a It is a real-life voyage through the maze of the secretive Middle East, the inside account of the political maneuverings that continue to dominate today's headlines, and the moving story of one man's struggle to bring some hope to a violent land.
In more than two decades, Giandomenico Picco negotiated an end to wars in Afghanistan and between Iran and Iraq with the force of his decency and the strength of the UN. But little could prepare Picco for the danger he would face in resolving the Lebanon hostage crisis. Negotiating with terrorists was not a matter of meeting gray men in gray suits in well-appointed offices. Picco worked on the ground, alone. He was taken to meet the hostage takers themselves many times, shrouded in a black hood, racing through the darkened streets of Lebanon as masked gunmen barked orders.
His life was at risk, but he was well aware that the lives of dozens of hostages, including Terry Anderson and Terry Waite, were at greater risk. And saving them meant negotiating face-to-face--Picco first had to win the trust of the Islamic mili-
tant leader who had taken them, a well-spoken, hooded man known to Picco only by the nom de guerre "Abdullah."
The details of Picco's secret negotiations have never before been revealed; until now, it was barely even known who the kidnappers were. As the chief UN hostage negotiator, Picco often had to make split-second, life-or-death decisions based on the promise of a masked informant or an anonymous official. Yet on the strength of his own word, he managed to forge an unlikely coalition among Iran, Syria, Israel, and the Lebanese groups to win the release of the captives.
"History does not kill," writes Picco. "Religion does not rape women, the purity of blood does not destroy buildings, and institutions do not fail. Only individuals do these things." Man Without a Gun is this remarkable diplomat's powerful testimony to the ability of individuals also to bring some peace to a troubled world.
Man Without a Gun is the true story of a single UN diplomat's astonishing high-wire struggle for peace in the Middle East. UN secretary-general Javier Pérez de Cuéllar called the author "more of a soldier than a diplomat." And, indeed, his life is the stuff of John le Carré thrillers. But Man Without a Gun is more than a It is a real-life voyage through the maze of the secretive Middle East, the inside account of the political maneuverings that continue to dominate today's headlines, and the moving story of one man's struggle to bring some hope to a violent land.
In more than two decades, Giandomenico Picco negotiated an end to wars in Afghanistan and between Iran and Iraq with the force of his decency and the strength of the UN. But little could prepare Picco for the danger he would face in resolving the Lebanon hostage crisis. Negotiating with terrorists was not a matter of meeting gray men in gray suits in well-appointed offices. Picco worked on the ground, alone. He was taken to meet the hostage takers themselves many times, shrouded in a black hood, racing through the darkened streets of Lebanon as masked gunmen barked orders.
His life was at risk, but he was well aware that the lives of dozens of hostages, including Terry Anderson and Terry Waite, were at greater risk. And saving them meant negotiating face-to-face--Picco first had to win the trust of the Islamic mili-
tant leader who had taken them, a well-spoken, hooded man known to Picco only by the nom de guerre "Abdullah."
The details of Picco's secret negotiations have never before been revealed; until now, it was barely even known who the kidnappers were. As the chief UN hostage negotiator, Picco often had to make split-second, life-or-death decisions based on the promise of a masked informant or an anonymous official. Yet on the strength of his own word, he managed to forge an unlikely coalition among Iran, Syria, Israel, and the Lebanese groups to win the release of the captives.
"History does not kill," writes Picco. "Religion does not rape women, the purity of blood does not destroy buildings, and institutions do not fail. Only individuals do these things." Man Without a Gun is this remarkable diplomat's powerful testimony to the ability of individuals also to bring some peace to a troubled world.
334 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1999
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329 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 10, 2009
International poitics is a tricky business. Is an anarchical world order even an order? Are international organizations at all relevant in this world (dis)order? When it comes to the United Nations, its proponents and crtics alike spend far more time justifying and attacking the purpose of its existence -- rather than having any meaningful discussion of what it actually does.
And then, there's Gianni Picco -- an eloquent defender of the U.N., somewhat of an idealist, but a true believer of institutionalism. Retired after two productive decades at the U.N., Picco writes a convincing personal narrative/memoir of his day-to-day fights for world peace, which makes one wonder whether the question of the relevance of the U.N is even relevant.
And then, there's Gianni Picco -- an eloquent defender of the U.N., somewhat of an idealist, but a true believer of institutionalism. Retired after two productive decades at the U.N., Picco writes a convincing personal narrative/memoir of his day-to-day fights for world peace, which makes one wonder whether the question of the relevance of the U.N is even relevant.
September 9, 2013
I read the book many years ago and was wowed. Mr. Picco is one of the coolest people I've interviewed. What I admired most about him was the fact that after so many years in this difficult space/at the UN, he had not become jaded and was still idealistic.
February 12, 2021
تقریبا نود درصد کتاب درباره ایران هست و به شدت کمک میکنه تا جنس رابطه ایران با آمریکا - ایران با حزبالله و کشورهای اروپایی و آمریکا با سازمان ملل رو درک کنیم.
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March 11, 2023Chris Voss interview by Lex Fridman
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews