CIA plots, coups and a gold-capped molar in Congo
A new book traces the rise and demise of Patrice Lumumba
Patrice Lumumba was prime minister of newly independent Congo for less than three months in 1960, before he was murdered at the age of 35. Yet his tumultuous life—and gruesome death—set a pattern for coups and post-colonial interference that shaped Congo’s torrid path, as well as the gameplan for CIA interventions and assassinations worldwide.
“The Lumumba Plot” by Stuart Reid, an editor at Foreign Affairs, is many things at once: a biography, a history of Congo’s chaotic independence, a dissection of the UN’s first big peacekeeping mission and a thriller about plots to kill Lumumba. There are villains of every stripe, from rogue Belgian pilots to shamelessly scheming UN officials and racist ambassadors. This is a tragic tale but also a rollicking read.
This article appeared in the Culture section of the print edition under the headline "The conspiracy against Congo"
From the October 28th 2023 edition
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