Assassination
is the
murder
of an important or popular person, usually, a
political
leader, like the head of a
country
or of a
political party
. Assassinations are usually done for political reasons or
for payment
.
[1]
A person who
assassinates
someone is called an
assassin
.
Throughout history, assassinations have happened for many different reasons. Sometimes, assassinations have been used to
take over governments
. Other times, assassinations have been used to kill
military
leaders during
wars
, or for
religious
reasons. Some assassins want
revenge
, or just want to be
famous
.
Assassinations have happened ever since people started living in group
societies
.
[2]
The
Old Testament
of the
Bible
mentions assassinations in the Books of
Judith
,
Kings
,
Samuel
and
Chronicles
.
[3]
An
ancient Indian
writer, Chanakya, who lived from about 350 to 283
BC
, wrote much about assassinations in a book called
Arthashastra
. One of his students later assassinated some of his
enemies
, including two of
Alexander the Great
's
generals
.
[4]
Famous victims of assassinations include
Philip II of Macedon
(336 BC), who was Alexander's father, and
Julius Caesar
(44 BC). There is evidence that Alexander was assassinated by poisoning. Several
emperors
of the
Roman Empire
were assassinated so that a different leader could take their place.
[5]
In the
Middle Ages
, many emperors in the
Byzntine Empire
were murdered so that new emperors could take power.
[6]
In the 12th and the 13th centuries, the Shia Order of Assassins in
Persia
and
Syria
fought their Sunni and Christian enemies by killing their leaders. That is when the term "assassination" started.
During the
Renaissance
, assassinations happened in
Western Europe
.
Kings
William the Silent
of the
Netherlands
(1584),
[7]
Henry III of France
(1589),
[8]
and
Henry IV of France
(1610)
[9]
were all assassinated.
An early use of state assassination in the area which later became the United States, happened in 1620. It happened in
Plymouth
in the
Massachusetts Bay Colony
, where the
Pilgrims
had landed.
Native Americans
already lived there, but the Pilgrims wanted the land to themselves.
Myles Standish
invited a local Native American
tribal chief
, the chief's 18-year-old brother, and two other Native Americans to a
feast
. They locked the door, killed the three older men and
hanged
the
teenager
in public as a warning to the other Native Americans to stay away.
[5]
Assassinations have been common in modern history. This section does not list every assassination that has happened in modern history. It lists some examples of world leaders who were assassinated, and explains some of the reasons why these assassinations happened.
In
Imperial Russia
, two emperors were assassinated within 80 years:
Paul I
(1801)
[10]
pp. 16?17
and
Alexander II
(1881).
[10]
p. 419
In the United States, four
presidents
were assassinated within 100 years. They were Presidents
Abraham Lincoln
(1865),
James Garfield
(1881),
William McKinley
(1901), and
John F. Kennedy
(1963).
[11]
After Abraham Lincoln was killed,
Andrew Johnson
became president for four years. During that time, 12 people who held important political jobs were assassinated.
[5]
The next president,
Ulysses S. Grant
, led the United States from 1869 to 1877 During that time, 11 government leaders were assassinated; another 9 were attacked, but survived.
[5]
Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria
was assassinated in 1914. Some
historians
say this assassination started
World War I
.
[12]
In the 1930s and 1940s,
Joseph Stalin
's
NKVD
assassinated some people outside of the
Soviet Union
, including
Leon Trotsky
. They were mostly people who Stalin thought were against him or could take power from him. Stalin wanted to make sure to keep the power he had and so he killed many of his
opponents
, mostly within the Soviet Union.
[13]
Between 1934 and 1944, different individuals and groups tried 27 different times to assassinate
Adolf Hitler
, the leader of
Nazi Germany
during the
Holocaust
and
World War II
. Objection to anti-Jewish policy and gaining better terms with the Allies were among the various motives for assassination. None of the attempts were successful.
[14]
[15]
During
World War II
, the
Allies
used assassinations to kill important
Nazi
and
Japanese
leaders:
Some famous
human rights
activists
were also assassinated in the next few
decades
. They were assassinated by people who did not like the things they were doing to work for human rights. The most famous activists who were assassinated include:
[19]
Central Intelligence Agency (1960 ? 1970)
[
change
|
change source
]
Between 1960 and 1965, the
Central Intelligence Agency
(CIA) tried at least eight times to assassinate
Cuban
leader
Fidel Castro
.
[20]
p. 71
Around this time, the CIA also made plans to assassinate
Patrice Lumumba
, the only
democratically
-
elected
leader of the
Democratic Republic of the Congo
.
[20]
pp. 19?24
Between 1960 and 1970, the CIA also encouraged and in some cases helped with assassinations of the following:
[20]
p. 256
In 1979, the
Iranian Revolution
turned
Iran
into an
Islamic Republic
. A group called Iran Human Rights Documentation Center says that between 1979 and the 1990s, leaders of the Iranian government had 162 people assassinated, in 19 different countries.
[21]
The group says Iran stopped the assassinations because a
German
court
put out an
arrest
warrant
for the head of Iranian
military intelligence
.
[22]
Anwar Sadat
, the President of
Egypt
, was assassinated in 1981 at a
parade
.
[23]
He was killed by people who wanted to take over the country and make it into an
Islamic Republic
.
[24]
In 1983,
Benigno Aquino, Jr.
was assassinated. Aquino was against
Ferdinand Marcos
, the
dictator
who ruled the
Philippines
. The people of the Philippines were so upset that they started the non-violent People Power Revolution, which led to the end of Marcos's government. Aquino's
widow
,
Corazon Aquino
, became President of the Philippines.
[25]
In India,
Prime Minister
Indira Gandhi
was assassinated in 1984.
[26]
Her son
Rajiv Gandhi
became the next Prime Minister. He was assassinated in 1991.
[27]
(They were not related to Mohandas Gandhi.)
Israeli Prime Minister
Yitzhak Rabin
was assassinated in 1995. The Israelis and
Palestinians
were working on a
peace
agreement. Rabin was killed by an
Orthodox Jew
who did not agree with
the peace treaty
.
[28]
Many historians think Rabin's murder is one of the main reasons the peace talks fell apart.
[2]
In
Pakistan
,
Benazir Bhutto
was
assassinated in 2007
. Bhutto had been the first woman who was ever
elected
to lead a
Muslim
country.
[29]
An
Al-Qaeda
leader said that Al-Qaeda assassins had killed Bhutto. He said that it did so because Bhutto was trying to get rid of violent
Jihadist
militia
groups in
Pakistan
. He said this made her important to the United States, so Al-Qaeda killed her.
[30]
In the 2020s,
President of Haiti
Jovenel Moise
was
assassinated in 2021
and former
Prime Minister of Japan
Shinzo Abe
was
assassinated in 2022
.
One
research
study looked at assassinations of national leaders (leaders of countries, like presidents or prime ministers). The study showed that:
[12]
- Since 1895, assassins have tried to kill national leaders 298 different times. 59 of those world leaders were killed.
- Since 1950, a national leader has been assassinated in nearly two out of every three years.
Another study looked at all assassinations between 1946 and 2013. It included not just national leaders, but also other members of government (including
local governments
), and people who were against the government. This study found that between 1946 and 2013, a total of 954 people were assassinated in 758 different attacks.
[2]
This study also looked at who was most likely to be assassinated. Of the 954 people who were assassinated:
[2]
- ↑
"What is Assassination?"
.
The Law Dictionary
. Black’s Law Dictionary Free 2nd Ed. 4 November 2011
. Retrieved
March 9,
2016
.
- ↑
2.0
2.1
2.2
2.3
Perliger, Arie (January 20, 2015).
"The Causes and Impact of Political Assassinations"
.
Combating Terrorism Center
. United States Military Academy: West Point. Archived from
the original
on August 29, 2016
. Retrieved
March 9,
2016
.
- ↑
2 Kings 12:19?21
;
2 Samuel 3:26?28
RSV;
2 Chronicles 32:21
- ↑
Boesche, Roger (January 2003).
"Kautilya's
Artha??stra
on War and Diplomacy in Ancient India"
(PDF)
.
The Journal of Military History
.
67
(1): 9?37.
doi
:
10.1353/jmh.2003.0006
.
S2CID
154243517
.
- ↑
5.0
5.1
5.2
5.3
Sifakis, Carl (December 13, 2013).
Encyclopedia of Assassinations: more than 400 infamous attacks that changed the course of history
. Skyhorse Publishing. pp.
1
?4.
ISBN
978-1626363250
.
- ↑
Norwich, John Julius (1998).
A Short History of Byzantium
. Ringwood,
Victoria
: Penguin. pp.
294
?295.
ISBN
978-0-14-025960-5
.
- ↑
The States-General (July 10, 1854).
Minutes of the States-General of 10 July 1584
(in Dutch). Quoted in van der Sprinkle, J.W. Berkelbach (1941). De Vader des Vaderlands. Haarlem. p.29.
- ↑
Durant, Will; Durant, Ariel (1961).
The Age of Reason Begins.
Simon and Schuster, 1961. p. 361.
ISBN
978-1135700072
- ↑
Miquel, Pierre (1980).
Les Guerres de Religion
. Paris: Club France Loisirs. p.399.
ISBN
2-7242-0785-8
- ↑
10.0
10.1
Radzinsky, Edvard (2005).
Alexander II: The Last Great Tsar
. Free Press.
ISBN
978-0743273329
- ↑
"U.S. presidential assassinations and attempts"
.
Los Angeles Times Online
. January 22, 2012
. Retrieved
March 9,
2016
.
- ↑
12.0
12.1
Jones, Benjamin F.; Olken, Benjamin A. (May 2007).
Hit or Miss? The Effect of Assassinations on Institutions and War
(PDF)
(Report). National Bureau of Economic Research. pp. 1?2
. Retrieved
March 9,
2016
.
{{
cite report
}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link
)
- ↑
Ellman, Michael (2005). "
The role of leadership perceptions and of intent in the Soviet Famine of 1931?1934
Archived
2009-02-27 at the
Wayback Machine
."
Europe-Asia Studies
57
(6): 826.
- ↑
"The July 20, 1944, Plot to Assassinate Adolf Hitler"
.
encyclopedia.ushmm.org
. Retrieved
2024-01-17
.
- ↑
Zentner, Christian; Bedurftig, Friedemann (1991).
The Encyclopedia of the Third Reich
. New York: Macmillan. pp. 47-48.
ISBN
0-02-897502-2
- ↑
Burian, Michal; Kni?ek, Ale?; Rajlich, Ji?i; Stehlik, Eduard (2002).
Assassination: Operation Anthropoid, 1941-1942
(PDF)
(Report). Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic.
ISBN
80-7278-158-8
. Retrieved
March 9,
2016
.
{{
cite report
}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link
)
- ↑
Grant, Rebecca (March 2006).
"Magic and Lightning"
.
Air Force Magazine
.
89
(3). Arlington, Virginia: Air Force Association: 62.
- ↑
Strzembosz, Tomasz (1978) (in
Polish
).
Akcje zbrojne podziemnej Warszawy 1939?1944
. Warszawa: Panstwowy Instytut Wydawniczy. pp. 401-406.
ISBN
8306007174
.
- ↑
Douglass, James W. (2012).
Gandhi and the Unspeakable: His Final Experiment with Truth
. Orbis Books. p. ix.
ISBN
978-1608331079
.
- ↑
20.0
20.1
20.2
Senate Select Committee to Study Governmental Operations with Respect to Intelligence Activities (November 20, 1975).
Alleged Assassination Plots Involving Foreign Leaders: An Interim Report of the Select Committee to Study Governmental Operations with Respect to Intelligence Activities, United States Senate
(PDF)
(Report). United States Government Printing Office
. Retrieved
March 9,
2016
.
- ↑
"No Safe Haven: Iran's Global Assassination Campaign"
(PDF)
. p. 100. Archived from
the original
(PDF)
on June 2, 2010
. Retrieved
March 9,
2016
.
- ↑
"Murder at Mykonos: Anatomy of a Political Assassination"
(PDF)
. Archived from
the original
(PDF)
on June 2, 2010
. Retrieved
March 9,
2016
.
- ↑
Dickovick, J. Tyler (August 9, 2012).
Africa 2012
. Stryker Post. p.
41
.
ISBN
978-1-61048-882-2
. Retrieved
March 9,
2016
.
- ↑
Wright, Lawrence (2006).
The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11
. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. p.
49
.
ISBN
0-375-41486-X
.
- ↑
Skard, Torild (2014).
Women of Power: Half a Century of Female Presidents and Prime Ministers Worldwide
. Bristol: Policy Press. pp.162-172.
ISBN
978-1-44731-578-0
- ↑
Smith, William E. (November 12, 1984).
"Indira Gandhi: Death in the Garden"
.
TIME
. Archived from
the original
on March 10, 2016
. Retrieved
March 9,
2016
.
- ↑
Ahluwalia, Meenakshi (1991).
Assassination of Rajiv Gandhi
. Mittal Publications. p. 70.
ISBN
9788170993155
.
- ↑
"
"I have no regrets": Law student confesses to killing Rabin"
.
CNN World News
. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. November 5, 1995
. Retrieved
March 9,
2016
.
- ↑
"Benazir Bhutto killed in attack"
.
BBC News Online
.
British Broadcasting Corporation
. December 27, 2007
. Retrieved
March 9,
2016
.
- ↑
"Officials: Al Qaeda claims responsibility for Bhutto killing"
.
CNN
. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. December 28, 2007
. Retrieved
March 9,
2016
.