Description

The Guerrilha do Araguaia (Araguaia Guerrilla) was an armed conflict that took place in Brazil between 1967 and 1974 in the Araguaia River basin, spanning the states of Maranhão, Pará, and Goiás, deep in the Amazon region in an area known as Bico do Papagaio (‘Parrot’s Beak’). The movement was founded by militants of the Communist Party of Brazil (PCdoB) – then the Maoist faction of the Brazilian Communist Party (PCB) – with the goal of establishing a rural stronghold from which to launch a ‘people’s war’ against the military regime that had ruled Brazil since the 1964 coup d’état. Its strategy was inspired by the successful tactics of the 26th of July Movement during the Cuban Revolution and the Chinese Communist Party during the final phase of the Chinese Civil War in 1949.

Volume 2 of this mini-series is divided into two chapters. Chapter 1 examines the armed insurgency and the counterinsurgency operations carried out by the Brazilian Armed Forces against the guerrillas. Chapter 2 focuses on the events that followed the insurgency’s defeat. The appendices include, among other materials, an in-depth interview with Colonel Pedro Corrêa Cabral, a pilot who flew Cessna O-1 Bird Dog observation aircraft and Bell UH-1D and UH-1H helicopters during the campaign. As is standard for the Latin America@War series, this book is richly illustrated with authentic photographs, maps, and custom-drawn colour profiles.