Dukakis Center hosts author and diplomat Brady Kiesling

The Dukakis Center hosted a presentation of former US diplomat Brady Kiesling's new book on «17 November», on March 2 at Ianos Bookstore in downtown Thessaloniki.

The book, entitled "Urban Greek Warriors," chronicles and analyzes the long history of militant revolutionary groups active in Greece during the second half of the twentieth century. The principal focus of the book is 17 November, who conducted terrorist attacks against government and foreign targets -- including assassinations -- from 1967 until 2002, when several members were arrested and eventually put on trial.

Brady Kiesling, a frequent visitor to the Dukakis Center who resigned from his position as Political Affairs Officer at the US Embassy in Athens in 2003 to register his disagreement with US policy toward Iraq, spent five years examining masses of original documents and interviewing several people directly involved in terrorist and anti-terrorist activities in Greece, in an attempt to correct the inaccurate account that emerged from the 2003 trials of members of 17 November.

During his presentation, which was moderated by Dukakis Center Director Dr. David Wisner, Kiesling elucidated certain key elements of this important contribution to the history of contemporary Greek political and social history. What motivated leftist militants beyond an initial hatred for the junta or for the USA? Why did Greek authorities never catch the terrorists of 17 November? What was the role of foreign diplomats in the eventual demise of this group? How might the Greek case shed light on the more general phenomenon of urban militant violence?

This was the third book presentation the Dukakis Center has hosted at Ianos. Brady Kiesling's book is published by Lycubettus Press.