Hidden Atrocities is a meticulously sourced, very readable, and deeply disturbing blow-by-blow account of how Japanese military doctors first colluded to conceal their research, development, and field trials of germ warfare against people in China and were then recruited by U.S. Army counterparts eager to deny Japanese data to the Soviets while using it to build America’s own germ warfare capabilities. In combination, these cover-ups left the ill-prepared prosecutors at the incompetently organized Tokyo war crimes trials without the evidence they needed to bring charges, freed war criminals to pursue prestigious careers in medical business, education, and research in postwar Japan, and denied closure to the victims of Japanese aggression. Full of memorable personalities, Hidden Atrocities is a documentary “whodunit” that brings a disgraceful moment in history long erased by a shocking obstruction of justice back to vivid life.
Ambassador Chas W. Freeman Jr., former U.S. assistant secretary of defense