This handbook comprises essays by leading scholars and practitioners on the topic of U.S. counterterrorism and irregular warfare campaigns and operations around the globe. Terrorist groups have evolved substantially since 9/11, with the Islamic State often described as a pseudo-state, a terrorist group, and insurgency all at the same time. While researchers', analysts', and policymakers’ understanding of terrorism has grown immensely over the past two decades, similar advancements in the understanding of counterterrorism lag. As such, this handbook explains why it is necessary to take a broader view of counterterrorism which can, and often does, include irregular warfare. The volume is divided into three thematic sections:
Part I examines modern terrorism in the Islamic world and gives an overview of the major terrorist groups from the past three decades;
Part II provides a wide variety of case studies of counterterrorism and irregular warfare operations, spanning from the 1980s to the irregular warfare campaign against the Islamic State in northern Syria in 2018;
Part III examines the government instruments used to combat terrorism and wage irregular warfare, such as drones, Theater Special Operations Commands, and Theater Commands.
The handbook fills a gap in the traditional counterterrorism literature by its inclusion of irregular warfare and by providing analyses from academic experts as well as practitioners. It will be of much interest to students of counterterrorism, counterinsurgency, U.S. national security, military affairs, and International Relations.
Author(s): Michael A. Sheehan, Erich Marquardt, Liam Collins
Series: Routledge Handbooks
Edition: 1
Publisher: Routledge | Taylor & Francis
Year: 2022
Language: English
Commentary: TruePDF
Pages: 537
Tags: Terrorism: United States: Prevention; Terrorism: Prevention; Irregular Warfare: United States; Military Policy: United States
Cover
Half Title
Title
Copyright
Dedication
Contents
Acknowledgment
Preface
List of figures
List of abbreviations
List of contributors
Introduction
Part I The threat and regional security issues
1 The evolution of Islamist terrorism in the 20th century
2 The ideology behind al-Qaida and the Islamic State
3 The evolution of al-Qaida: 1988 to present day
4 The history of the Islamic State: from Abu Musab al-Zarqawi to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi
5 Contemporary conflict and political violence in the Levant
6 Jihadi militancy and Houthi insurgency in Yemen
7 The roots of terrorism in North and West Africa: AQIM and Boko Haram
8 Al-Shabaab and the Horn of Africa
9 The history of terrorism in Southeast Asia
10 The Taliban and the modern history of Afghanistan
11 The modern history of Iran and the birth of the Shia proxy model
12 Terrorism, insurgency, and criminal insurgency in Latin America
Part II Operational case studies
13 El Salvador: Operations and Planning Assistance Training Teams and a minimalist approach to counterinsurgency
14 Plan Colombia and the U.S. Army’s 7th Special Forces Group
15 The story of the U.S. role in the killing of Pablo Escobar
16 The Iran-Contra Affair and the Afghan Task Force: lessons in covert action
17 The horse soldiers: lessons from expeditionary unconventional warfare
18 Special Operations Forces and Afghan Local Police programs
19 U.S. civilian architecture for stabilization and counterinsurgency in Northern Afghanistan (2012–2013)
20 Dismantling al-Qaida in Iraq
21 Operation Enduring Freedom–Philippines: lessons in special warfare
22 Operation Serval: a swift intervention with a small footprint in Mali
23 U.S. counterterrorism policy in Yemen from 2010–2020
24 Defeating the Islamic State: Special Operations Forces in Syria
Part III Government instruments in countering terrorism and waging irregular warfare
25 The Joint Terrorism Task Force: investigating to disrupt and prosecute terrorists
26 Creating the NYPD Counterterrorism Bureau
27 The inside story of how the NYPD’s Intelligence Division adapted in the wake of 9/11
28 Lessons learned from four high-casualty terrorist attacks in the United States since 9/11
29 Social media recruitment of Americans: a case study from the Islamic State
30 Countering extremist organizations in the information domain
31 Theater Special Operations Command: the operational employment of U.S. Special Operations Forces
32 Theater command in Afghanistan: taking charge of “The Other War” in 2003–2005
33 America’s drone wars outside of conventional war zones
34 The United Kingdom’s approach to counterterrorism
Conclusion
Index
