Killing Civilians: Method, Madness and Morality in War

by Hugo Slim

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 analyses the main anti-civilian ideologies which insist upon such suffering. It also exposes the very real ambiguity in much civilian identity which is used to justify extreme hostility. But this is also, above all, a book about why civilians should be protected. Throughout its pages, "Killing Civilians" argues for a morality of limited warfare in which tolerance, mercy and restraint are used to draw boundaries to violence. At the heart of the book are important new frameworks for understanding patterns of civilian suffering, ideologies of violence and strategies for promoting the protection of civilians.This is the first major treatment of the hard questions of civilian identity and protection in war for many years. Written by one of the humanitarian world's leading thinkers and former aid worker, it provides a unique and accessible text on the subject for professional and public readerships alike.

300 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2008

Reviews

[Felix Lambert · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was drawn to this book as it offered some interesting insight into the anti-civilian ideologies which are promoted by governments engaged in massacres and genocide. Its broad historical scope revealed that the same reasonings and justifications used for the genocide in Gaza have been rolled out in conflicts since antiquity making for some interesting historical comparisons.

My issue with the book is that the vast majority of the examples are drawn from conflicts in Africa and the Middle East, which gets me onto the barely hidden racism/islamaphobia throughout this book

Regarding conflicts on the African continent the author labels extreme levels of violence there as ‘deeply traditional’ and try’s to argue that sexual violence in wartime is more common in countries where ‘loose sexual cultures’ and ‘promiscuous coupling is already a peacetime norm’.

Regarding Islam and the Middle East he states that the killing of civilians is an ‘Islamic code of warfare’ and that there is a ‘blood based reciprocity’ in Islamic culture. He argues ‘The blood feud imposes an enduring tradition of violence which is deeply respected and normal to the region’. Classic orientalist bullshit completely disregarding the impact of 100 years of colonial oppression and conflict in the region and the violence that brought with it.

Other special mentions include the multiple comparisons between Islamism and Nazism (a tired neo-con conspiracy theory about ‘Islamo-fascism fabricated in the wake of 9/11 and used to justify war in Iraq and Afghanistan )
Laughable comment on the coalitions attempts at the ‘democratisation of Iraq’ and the credit given to American armed forces for engaging in a ‘moral campaign’

Actually just taken this from a 3 to a 2 star in the process of writing this

[Mary Kate Adgie · Rating 4 out of 5]

mk adgie as President: required reading for all military commanders and political leaders.

Even though it took me 5ever to read this because of the tough subject matter, it was an excellent book. Everything about this book was ~more~ than I expected - more multifaceted discussion of how civilians suffer, more recognition of the ambiguity of civilian identity, more genuine acknowledgement of the difficulties and barriers to limited war, and more steadfast commitment to there still being a way forward to protect civilians.

Slim did a great job writing about how to understand and reach people who disagree with him while holding firm on his moral and ethical views - king 👑

[Emily Gean]

Didn’t read all chapters. Was for a failed dissertation topic (ha).

[Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a terrible book.

And by that I mean it is about a terrible subject, the terrible things that people do to eachother with the excuse of war. I found this book very hard to read as the subject is so unsettling and unnerving. I had to take a couple of goes to get through it with some lighter literature in the middle.

The first section is about the many ways of killing, maiming and destroying of lives. The next section is all about the reasons, justifications and downright bullshit reasons people use to explain why the killing is necessary. So if you are not feeling disturbed after the first hundred pages you should be greatly effected by the next hundred. In an effort to end on a positive note the last section is about arguements and persuasive techniques that can be used to talk people/armies/countries out of killing. And even that is hard to swallow; firstly because it accepts that war is inevitable and this is just about trying to reduce the effects. Secondly is because (as the author himslef points out) this is bloody difficult.

So why should you read this book? You need to face the facts (and lots of facts there are) as denial of events is one way of guaranteeing that they are repeated in the future. Secondly, if you are more pro war that anti then reading this book should hopefully push you closer to the anti side which is part of the effort of reducing mass killing. Finally, one particulalry awful fact is that perfectly normal and nice people are EASILY driven to doing terrible things (and it doesn't even take self defence, group pressure and strong leader will do it), bit by reading this book it might just help you resist these pressures and influences next time you get too close to a war. With the ratcheting up of anti terrorism legislation this might be closer than we would like to think.

[Laurie Garcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hugo Slim's Killing Civilians: Method, Madness and Morality in War is a thought-provoking book which tackles the issue of civilian mistreatment during war. Slim discusses the various theories of war along with historical accounts of civilians being murdered during war; details the various ways civilians suffer during war; examines the explanations used by government officials and institutions to justify killing civilians during war; analyzes how individuals are moved to commit atrocious acts and murder against civilian populations; and offers insight into how we can limited violence against civilians. I found Dr. Slim's book very interesting because it raised many great questions and caused me to re-evaluate many preconceived notions about what it means to be civilian.

What does it mean to be a "civilian"? What constitutes a legitimate target? What does "hostility" mean? What is considered a "military necessity"? As a Holocaust and Genocide Studies Master's student, all of these questions are very important because by investigating how governments and institutions have answered these questions in the past, we are able to see how they came to legitimize and conduct genocide and mass murder. When we examine their answers to these questions, we can begin to detect patterns of genocidal behavior and develop warning signs to let us know where genocide is likely to occur. The hope is that these warning signs will allow us to put an early end to genocide and save innocent lives. These questions are also important for us to ponder, debate and answer so that we can conduct limited-warfare with minimum civilian causalities.

I highly recommend this book.

[Zach Freeman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not a light read. I mean, look at the title. But Hugo Slim has made a very disturbing subject very readable. He describes some pretty grim circumstances, though he always prefaces these descriptions by saying that he's hoping to be tasteful while still getting across how destructive war is for the uninvolved civilian bystanders, and how they are often used (unfairly) in war strategy. It's an eye-opening book, but there's a lot of information on each page, so it's a bit of a slow read.

[Jared Donis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Slim says, "It is hard being human. Because it is hard, we should not kill each other easily." How very true! This book is probably the most well-written on civilian killing. It presents the horrors and complexities of the situation as honestly as possible. I found it very comprehensive, and brilliantly engaging. Professor Slim’s sober analysis of the realities of civilian suffering is remarkable. This book should be a must-read for every student interested in human services, politics and warfare.

In 2021, as part of a course requirement, I had the opportunity to interview Professor Slim with my group of classmates. I enjoyed his passionate discussion of our questions and his highly eloquent presentation. Afterwards, I decided to buy all of his books (I don’t think I missed any), including this one. It’s worth it. Excellent work.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I needed to read this for work and found that I couldn't put it down. It's absolutely devastating and heavy on philosophy, so maybe not for everyone. But eloquently written and gives a grand scheme overview of why civilians die (and often live through, in suffering) in wars.

[Will · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hugo Slim's book talks about how civilians are conceptualized in contemporary and recent warfare. Discusses the various logics behind the killing of civilians, as well as the manner in hich civilian-targeted violence is operated to achieve strategic aims.

[Cimuchowski]

Economist

[Trevor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding examination of a difficult topic, full of cogent examples from all times and places. Key reading for any study of war in any period.