Assassinology

The Study of Assassination

Assassination is one of the most dramatic events that can shape the world, yet it remains a poorly understood phenomenom. At assassinology.org, Kris Hollington, investigative journalist, assassinologist and author of How to Kill examines assassination in detail - the facts, the figures, the conspiracies and scandals in an effort to achieve clarity in an area that generally attracts confusion.

Here you'll find everything you need to know about recent assassinations, breaking news, the latest assassination research, assassination facts and figures, assassination prevention as well as book reviews, exclusive book extracts and interviews with authors and investigators.

Breaking News, 31st October 08.00: As we near the 45th anniversary of the assassination of JFK, more threats emerge to Presidential hopeful Barack Obama Click here for details.

Click here to play video footage of the recent attack on the Pope

Assassination in the 20th Century

In December 1960, Socialist Party Chairman Inejiro Asanuma was speaking at a debate that would kick off campaigning for the following month's general election when Otoya Yamaguchi, a 17-year-old right-wing fanatic and son of an army colonel stabbed him twice with a Samurai sword. Read the full story in How to Kill II and watch the TV footage of the assassination by clicking on the link below.

Click here to play video footage (8MB) of the Asanuma assassination

What is Assassination?

The act of assassination occurs when someone important is murdered for one of three reasons:

Political beliefs: the selective killing of an individual enemy in the hope that their policies die with them.
Power: committed simply to take the place of a VIP, or to transfer their power to someone else. As international terrorist Carlos the Jackal put it: “To get anywhere, you have to walk over corpses”.
Notoriety: Disturbed individuals who want to achieve fame through the elimination of a VIP. Sirhan Sirhan told his interrogators: “They can gas me, but I am famous; I have achieved in one day what it took Robert Kennedy all his life to do”.

Sirhan Sirhan (below) managed to shoot several other people besides Robert F Kennedy before he was restrained.

UPI Corbis Bettmann

Assassination Prevention

In the above photo, President Ronald Reagan is waving to crowds in 1981. Seconds later he was shot by John Hinckley Jnr. Hinckley should never had made it this close. To find out more about assassination prevention, click here.

Assassination in the 21st Century

Click here to find out how assassination is shaping the modern world. See our investigations page for studies of assassinations that have occurred after the year 2000, including how George W. Bush was almost blown to bits in May 2005.

Latest Assassination News

For up-to-the-minute breaking news on assassination from all around the world, click here.

How to Kill

The creator of this website is also the author of the critically-acclaimed How to Kill: The Definitive History of the Assassin.

'Exciting, relentless...a remarkable piece of work' - The Sunday Telegraph

'Fascinating and surprisingly good fun' The Daily Sport

'A fascinating history' Arena

'Enthralling' - Sainsbury's Magazine

'The definitive book on assassination' - Zoo Magazine

Assassination Research

Many exclusive assassination facts put together from the detailed analysis of thousands of assassinations can be found here. For example, guns are by far the assassin's weapon of choice. They were used in 64.9% of high-profile assassinations (9% of these were snipers) carried out between 1950 and 2000 with a 68.3% success rate.

The next most favoured method was bombing at 11.2% followed by poisoning at 7.9% (source: How to Kill).

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