The Men Who Came Out of the Ground: A gripping account of Australia's first commando campaign

Paul Cleary

Jul 2011 · Hachette UK

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'This account . . . is breathtaking in its scope and riveting in its research' - Sydney Morning Herald


The gripping story of a small force of Australian Special Forces commandos that launched relentless hit and run raids on far superior Japanese forces in East Timor for most of 1942.

These Australians were the men of the 2/2nd Australian Independent Company - a special commando unit. Initially stranded without radio contact to Australia, the Japanese declared these bearded warriors ‘outlaws’ and warned they would be executed immediately if captured. The Australians drawn mainly from the bush, were chosen for their ability to operate independently and survive in hostile territory. As film-maker Damien Parer said after visiting in Timor in late 1942, ‘these men are writing an epic of guerrilla warfare’.

Expertly researched by Paul Cleary, who is fluent in Tetum, the main language of the indigenous group of East Timor, it also contains insightful black and white photos.


'A cracker of a read' - The Age

'Paul Cleary has brought to life one of the great success stories of World War II' - Daily Telegraph

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Paul Cleary is a senior writer with THE AUSTRALIAN newspaper and a researcher in Indigenous development at the Australian National University. His work on the Timor Sea resource negotiations led to his first non-fiction book, SHAKEDOWN: AUSTRALIA’S GRAB FOR TIMOR OIL. He speaks several languages, including Vietnamese and Tetum.