The Resistance Network: The Armenian Genocide and Humanitarianism in Ottoman Syria, 1915–1918

Mouradian, Khatchig · 2021

Mouradian writes the history of an underground network of humanitarians, missionaries, and diplomats in Ottoman Syria who helped save thousands of Armenian lives during the genocide. The book directly challenges the conventional image of Armenians as passive victims, documenting instead how deportees and their allies organized relief, shelter, and rescue in the very region chosen for their annihilation. Drawing on extensive primary sources, Mouradian maps the system of concentration and transit camps across Ottoman Syria and follows how aid moved through and around them. He argues that unarmed, humanitarian resistance proved an important factor in saving countless lives, and that the genocide did not proceed unopposed even at its epicenter. The result is a social history of Der Zor and the Syrian deserts told from the perspective of those who organized survival. It reframes resistance during the genocide to include feeding, hiding, healing, and record-keeping alongside armed defense.

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