Sacred Justice: The Voices and Lagacy of the Armenian Operation Nemesis- Armenian Studies Series by Marian Mescrobian MacCurdy

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Sacred Justice: The Voices and Lagacy of the Armenian Operation Nemesis- Armenian Studies Series by Marian Mescrobian MacCurdy

Page Length: 363

ISBN: 978-1412855037

Source: Publisher (e-copy)

Publisher: Transaction Publishers (30 March, 2015)

SYNOPSIS:

Sacred Justice is a cross-genre book that uses narrative, memoir, unpublished letters, and other primary and secondary sources to tell the story of a group of Armenian men who organized Operation Nemesis, a covert operation created to assassinate the Turkish architects of the Armenian Genocide. The leaders of Operation Nemesis took it upon themselves to seek justice for their murdered families, friends, and compatriots.

This book includes a large collection of previously unpublished letters that show the strategies, personalities, plans, and dedication of Soghomon Tehlirian, who killed Talaat Pasha, a genocide leader; Shahan Natalie, the agent on the ground in Europe; Armen Garo, the center of Operation Nemesis; Aaron Sachaklian, the logistics and finance officer; and others involved with Nemesis.

The author tells a story that has been either hidden by the necessity of silence or ignored in spite of victims’ narratives. This is the story of those who attempted to seek justice for the victims and the effect this effort had on them and on their families. The book shows how the narratives of resistance and trauma can play out in the next generation and how resistance can promote resilience. Little has been written about Operation Nemesis. As we approach the centennial anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, it is time.

MY THOUGHTS: Sacred Justice

On the death of her mother, Marian Mesrobian MacCurdy became the custodian of the private  and correspondence of her grandfather Aaron Sachaklian.  It is from this collection of  previously unpublished and original source material that Marian compiled her book.

Through the private letters between Aaron and his wife Elisa we are privy to an intimate account of their relationship.  What it must have been like for them during Aaron's long absences while he secretly helped to mastermind 'Operation Nemesis' and Elisa's struggle to cope alone in a strange new country, during her pregnancies and births of their children.

Marian shares memories of her grandfather, a happy, jovial family man and it is hard to imagine that this personable man who took great pride in himself and who took pleasure in his children, was also at the same time able to distance himself to coordinate and organise retributional killings. Additional letters found show us that Sachaklian and the assassins suffered tremendously, first for the loss of family and compatriots and then for their part in the assassinations. They suffered in silence to deliver justice to the killers, the only retribution the Armenians have seen to date.

'Sacred Justice' reads like a taut spy thriller and invokes vivid images of the people and what they endured.

Eric Bogosian, author of 'Operation Nemesis', said of 'Sacred Justice', “There are rare revelations in this book that cannot be found anywhere else.”

I highly recommend 'Sacred Justice' for anyone interested in the subject, and because of the wealth of new source material valuable to students studying the history of genocide.

Sacred Justice is one of three books to be published this year with Operation Nemesis by Eric Bogosian  being the second.  The final being a graphic novel by Josh Blaylock called Operation Nemesis: A Story of Genocide & Revenge is due to be published in April 2015.