This is the second volume in the Operativo Independencia series that outlines Argentinian history since the overthrow of General Juan Domingo Perón in 1955 through the 1976 coup d'état. Operativo Independencia, Volume 1 - Armed Insurgency in Argentina 1955-1974 was well reviewed by Dave Morrissette (Operativo Indepndencia, Volume 1 - Armed Insurgency in Argentina 1955-1974 | IPMS/USA Reviews), and covers the period of 1955 through 1974. Volume 2: Guerilla War, the 1976 Coup D'Etat, and the Dirty War in Argentina continues the story of the government forces’ successful fight against communism from 1975-1976, codenamed “Operativo Independencia”, the military junta that replaced the democratically elected president, Juan Domingo Perón’s wife Isabela, and the aftermath of the “Dirty War”.

Operativo Independencia, Volume 2: Guerilla War, the 1976 Coup D'Etat, and the Dirty War in Argentina is a part of Helion and Latin America@ War No. 42 (HEL1881). The 110-page book is complete with extensive photographs, technical details and specifications, and detailed illustrations, composing the following three chapters:

• Acronyms and Abbreviations
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction
  1. Operativo Independencia 1975-1976
  2. The 1976 coup d'état and the Military Junta
  3. The military defeat of the guerillas
• Epilogue
• Appendices
• Sources
• Notes
• About the Author

The book is a fascinating look at a country trying to maintain its identity, largely through its armed forces and police fighting an insurgency formed of dedicated Marxists who recruited impressionable, well off young people under the banners of “dependency, imperialism, subjugation, colonialism and dictatorship”, despite a vast majority of Argentinians who were supportive of the government and their lifestyle. This was a crucial time for Latin America, set during the post-colonial and Cold War decades where communism got a foothold in Cuba and spread throughout Latin America. Argentina had two primary subversive, terrorist groups formed during this timeframe: the People's Revolutionary Army (ERP- Ejército Revolucionario del Pueblo) and the Montoneros. As a bulwark against the Cuban brand of communism, it had an ally in the United States.

Following the death of Juan Domingo Perón in 1974 (the 29^th (1946-1955) and 40^th (1973-1974) President), the presidency of Argentina was assumed by his widow, Isabel Martínez de Perón (Isabel was his third wife: his first Aurelia died in 1938, his second was Eva “Evita” who died in 1952; he married Isabel in 1961). Isabel continued the Peronist tradition, which is a unique Argentinian political model, and used the well-trained and armed military and police to crush the Marxist insurgency. She held to the values of democracy and refused to yield power to the military.

The book is full of detail and can be confusing and hard to keep up with. I found myself looking up words and terms, and a summary of Volume 1 would have been beneficial, along with maps of Argentina and South America to complement the well-detailed localized maps, particularly of the main theater of operations in the Province of Tucumán.

The Guerilla War in Argentina deserves attention, and the author, Antonio Luis Sapienza Fracchia, does an amazingly detailed job outlining the events and personalities. While President Isabel Perón did use the assets at Argentina’s disposal well, she met resistance from her military and opponents in the government as they felt she needed to give them more leeway to do their jobs. She refused to violate human rights and due process and held them to the same standard. The results were irrefutable as the guerillas were all but eliminated as a military force during the two-year campaign. Their success led to her downfall in a bloodless coup in 1976 that was backed by her opposition, the Argentinian Catholic Church and the United States. Once she was removed from office, Western countries recognized the new military government.

With President Isabel Perón removed (she was placed under house arrest for five years before being exiled to Spain in 1981), the military crushed the guerillas and their support using techniques hitherto forbidden. Terms such as the “dirty war” and “disappeared” found their beginning here and were warranted. “Disappeared” meant that the targeted person disappeared, usually ending up in an unmarked grave, with some of the most dangerous terrorists “sedated, taken aboard military aircraft and dumped into the Atlantic Ocean, far offshore.” The absence of due process and military zones set up under a military-lead government led to some abuses. But, as the author notes, the guerillas were effectively destroyed, with the overwhelming support of the Argentinian people who were tired of the wanton acts of violence, often against innocent civilians, perpetrated by the guerillas. Communism would not take hold in Argentina, and it proved it well by hosting the 1978 World Cup.

The author did an amazing job of correcting the often-misaligned alternative history showing the guerillas as victims of an oppressive government. He has included photos and details of the guerillas receiving support from Cuba, Russia, Eastern Europe, and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) under Yasser Arafat. Time has a way of concealing history that is unpleasant and changing perception of what happened, often inflating the oppression the perpetrator received because of their actions. The parallels between Argentina during these tumultuous times and America’s recent experience with terrorist organizations is scary and there is much to be learned.

Modelers will appreciate the plethora of black and white period photographs of the Argentinian military, particularly small arms and aircraft that formed the backbone of the military fight against the guerillas. The color profile section, for which Helion’s @War series is known, is replete with images of the Aerolíneas Argentinas Boeing 737-200, Presidential Aircraft Fokker F.28Mk. 1000 Fellowship, Sikorsky S-58T, Piper L-21B, Aeritalia G.222, Bell UH-1D/H Hueys, Hughes 369HM, Beechcraft B80 Queen Air, Beechcraft B45/T-24 Mentor, FMA IA.58 Pucara, and Douglas A-4B Skyhawk. Black and white photographs also show the previous vehicles and equipment, and M113 APCs, Sherman Firefly, Unimog 404s, Jeep, Canberra, HU-16 Albatrosses, SA.316 Alouette III, Grumman Albatross, Morane Saulnier MS. 760, C-130s, Mirage IIIs, and other equipment. The author and illustrators have provided a fantastic reference source for modelers, vignettes, and dioramas for an often neglected, yet interesting South American military, particularly American, British, French and German military vehicles and equipment in different markings.

While I enjoyed this book, it is not a casual perusal and demands time and patience to read and understand. The reader will be rewarded. Questions that popped up were often answered in photographs pages later in the book. An editor could have spent more time linking the photographs to the text to make it easier. The author is prolific and knowledgeable, with over 25 books published (this is his 12^th with Helion). This is his fifth book reviewed by the IPMS/USA Review Corps. The former are listed here:

• Revolución Libertadora, Volume 1: The 1955 Coup D’état in Argentina
• Revolución Libertadora, Volume 2 - The 1955 Coup that Overthrew President Perón
• The Beagle Conflict Volume 1 - Argentina and Chile on the Brink of War in 1978

The Beagle Conflict review by Frank Landrus remarked on the same comment as I - using the book in conjunction with the internet will pay dividends. I sincerely hope that Antonio Fracchia writes a book about the Argentinian perspective of the Falkland Islands/Malvinas War that is briefly mentioned at the end of this book.

Profuse thanks to Casemate and IPMS/USA for providing the review sample.