Description

AN ECONOMIST BOOK OF THE YEAR

‘A gripping investigation of Israel’s assassination policy’ Sunday Times
‘Remarkable’ Observer
‘Riveting’ Daily Mail
‘Compelling’ John le Carre

Winner of 2018 National Jewish Book Award

Rise and Kill First is the definitive book to read on Israel’s military history.

From the very beginning of its statehood in 1948, the instinct to take every measure to defend the Jewish people has been hardwired into Israel’s DNA. This is the riveting inside account of the targeted assassinations that have been used countless times, on enemies large and small, sometimes in response to attacks against the Israeli people and sometimes pre-emptively.

Rise and Kill First counts their successes, failures and the moral and political price exacted on those who carried out the missions which have shaped the Israeli nation, the Middle East and the entire world.

‘Exciting, sometimes moving and always considered . . . a stunning feat of research and a riveting read’ Dominic Sandbrook, Sunday Times

Publisher Review

A gripping investigation of Israel's assassination policy * Sunday Times * Remarkable * Observer * Fascinating . . . In picturesque and gripping language, making use of careful, often ground-breaking research, Bergman presents a series of incidents from the history of the Mossad's assassination missions * Literary Review * Well-written and informative, Rise and Kill First is the best book so far written on this dramatic subject * Jewish Chronicle * Authoritative . . . a chilling portrait * The Washington Post * This remarkable account of Israel's targeted-killing programs is the product of nearly eight years of research into what is arguably the most secretive and impenetrable intelligence community in the world. * The New Yorker * An exceptional work, a humane book about an incendiary subject * New York Times * Terrific ... It's easy to understand why Bergman's book is already a bestseller. It moves at a torrid pace and tells stories that would make Jason Bourne sit up and say 'Wow!' It is smart, thoughtful and balanced. * The New York Times Book Review * You think the Krays were rough? Try the Mossad. This is an amalgam of the secret and often lethal special operations they carried out over the years. * Daily Express * The Israeli government did its best to prevent Bergman from writing this ...fascinating new book about the history of Israeli assassinations, published during Israel's seventieth anniversary year. Rise and Kill First not only sheds light on that most secretive of subjects, Israel's intelligence services, but also has wider significance: how and why a state uses extra-judicial killing, and the consequences of doing so. * TLS * With remarkable access to officials and reports, Ronen Bergman's revealing book lays bare Mossad's kill operations * Observer * Exciting, sometimes moving and always considered...Not only is Bergman's book a stunning feat of research and a riveting read, it is also testament to the author's personal courage -- Dominic Sandbrook * Sunday Times * A masterpiece! Only Ronen Bergman's extraordinary research could have achieved it * Christopher Andrew, author of 'The Defence of the Realm: The Authorised History of MI5' * Riveting...Based on 1,000 interviews and vast numbers of leaked documents, his book often reads like a John le Carre novel. But it took considerable courage for him to publish it. * Daily Mail * A gripping investigation of Israel's assassination policy * Sunday Times * Ronen Bergman has set out in incontestable detail the history and scale of Israel's use of extrajudicial killing as an instrument of defence and foreign policy. His material is stark and sensational, but he steers a steady course through it ... The result is a compelling read whatever your point of view. * John le Carre * A thrilling narrative of extreme bravery and compromised morality * Economist, Books of the Year 2018 *