Fighting in the Streets: A Manual of Urban Guerilla Warfare [Paperback]

Urbano (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1992

The only available comprehensive manual on urban guerilla warfare. It describes proven methods of street combat that have been tested in countless struggles worldwide. It is a no-nonsense "how-to" manual for armed resistance in today's urbanized "cement jungles." Includes: Principles of Urban Guerilla Warfare The Urban Base of Operations Improvised Explosives and Chemicals Ambushes Security and Communications

Product Details

• Paperback: 129 pages
• Publisher: Barricade Books (April 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 094263747X
• ISBN-13: 978-0942637472
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,849,805 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Simplistic without ideology, January 8, 2001

By 

Charles W. Elliot (Poway, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fighting in the Streets: A Manual of Urban Guerilla Warfare (Paperback)

This book is a simplistic survival guide for the urban gurilla. It contains suggested tactics to be used against a conventional force. However, the author's attempt to provide an introduction is weak at best. He begins with a comparison and contrast between urban and rural guerillas which lacked any depth. It could have been improved with a greater explanation of his theories. Some actual examples would have improved his statements. For example; while Urbano mentions the importance of the general populas, he neglects to include the importance of any ideology to maintain and increase this support. Successful examples from the IRA and the Tupamaros would have at least added some substance to his vain attempt at an introduction.

This book is recommended for those who wish to own a manual on improvised weapons. For the students of political science who wish to study the idelogy of warfare, stick to Che, Mao, Sun Tsu, Clausewitz, etc. for there is none either added or included with this book.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A good introduction to improvised munitions., October 17, 1999

By 

Bernard Jones ([e-mail]) (Canberra, Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fighting in the Streets: A Manual of Urban Guerilla Warfare (Paperback)

This book was of interest to me as it dealt with the subject of improvised munitions. This is of professional interest to me, as I am a military engineer. It is worth reading from this perspective. As a handbook of urban warfare, I am rather less enthusiastic. I know how to set an ambush, for instance, and at least one of the suggested ambush layouts would result in large scale casualties from friendly fire . . .

By all means buy the book, but be aware of its limitations.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Not the book to learn urban guerrilla warfare from., March 20, 2006

By 

Jack Stone - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Fighting in the Streets: A Manual of Urban Guerilla Warfare (Paperback)

I do not like to unfairly criticize other people's works, but I am being completely fair here. This is a work for a basic introduction for somebody who knows absolutely nothing about the subject, like perhaps a young teenager still in high school.

What the author actually knows about urban guerrilla warfare could be placed on the back of a postage stamp. A lot of space was used to describe the technical creation of improvised explosives which requires at least some level of formal education in chemistry. How the author could believe the creation of improvised munitions was a fundamental element of urban guerrilla warfare as opposed to urban sniping, car bomb operations, IED ambushes, kidnappings/hostage taking, infrastructure attacks, information warfare, clandestine reconnaissance and surveillance methods, and infiltration techniques is beyond me.

This work appears hastily done as if just to get something into publication. This work would be better titled "Improvised explosive construction with some superficial ideas on other urban guerrilla warfare subjects."

I believe the inside work does not adequately support what is on the cover and the purchaser is bound to be disappointed as I was.