Authors:ZFTWARNING Abstract: Rio’s bloody police campaign ZFTWARNINGFri, 05/07/2021 - 12:19am Small Wars Journal-El Centro Fellow Robert Muggah assesses the state of police practice in Rio de Janeiro in the aftermath of a civil police raid on a Comando Vermelho (Red Command) stronghold in the Jacarezinho favela in Rio de Janeiro. Dr. Muggah concludes that "A commission of inquiry and disciplinary action are mandatory, and a radical change of police culture is essential." Read more about Rio’s bloody police campaign Log in or register to post comments
Authors:ZFTWARNING Abstract: Antimafia Impasse: State-Driven Organized Crime & Organized Crime StatesZFTWARNINGTue, 05/04/2021 - 5:54pm This article reviews the reasons why some countries experience chronic and growing deterioration in their institutional performance in fighting and preventing transnational organized crime, even when plentiful national human and material antimafia resources are readily available. This piece also focuses on country case studies where the State sponsors or fosters organized crime, such as in China and in Mexico. Read more about Antimafia Impasse: State-Driven Organized Crime & Organized Crime StatesLog in or register to post comments
Authors:Dave Maxwell Abstract: Apex Predators: Why Few Security Institutions are Masters of their Environments, and How to Help the Afghan Security Forces Become Masters of TheirsDave MaxwellTue, 05/04/2021 - 9:05am This article seeks to answer what makes security institutions effective in poor security environments, and how these lessons can be applied in Afghanistan against the Taliban, Al Qaeda and the Islamic State. This paper explains why only specific institutions such as the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service and special Afghan units are noted successes, despite only a fraction of their parent forces’ funding and support, even though the massively better funded, more substantially supported Iraqi and Afghan army and police forces are proven failures. The central argument is that only a few security institutions have proven to be effective security organizations, due to their mastery of their complex environments, while larger, ineffective security institutions routinely prove inadequate in counterterrorism, counterinsurgency, and as basic security providers. This phenomenon seems at odds with logic as well as U.S. policy, yet almost two decades of U.S.-led counter-insurgency campaigns, multiple large-scale Middle Eastern wars, and countless U.S. and allied strategy changes, demonstrate the futility of clinging to the inherently flawed conceptualizations of the contemporary security institution model. Read more about Apex Predators: Why Few Security Institutions are Masters of their Environments, and How to Help the Afghan Security Forces Become Masters of TheirsLog in or register to post comments
Authors:ZFTWARNING Abstract: Mexican Cartel Tactical Note #49: Alleged CJNG Drone Attack in Aguililla, Michoacán Injures Two Police OfficersZFTWARNINGWed, 04/28/2021 - 9:17pm Two police officers in Aguililla, Michoacán were injured in a weaponized drone attack at approximately 0100 hours, (01:00 AM) Tuesday morning, 20 April 2021 on the highway between Aguililla and Apatzingán. The attack involving drones artillados (armed or ’gun’ drones) is the fifth documented incident involving aerial improvised explosive devices utilized by the cartels in Mexico and the first one in which injuries have resulted. Read more about Mexican Cartel Tactical Note #49: Alleged CJNG Drone Attack in Aguililla, Michoacán Injures Two Police OfficersLog in or register to post comments
Authors:ZFTWARNING Abstract: La Guerra de Propaganda del CJNG y AMLOZFTWARNINGSat, 04/24/2021 - 5:01pm Este ensayo del asociado de SWJ-El Centro, Daniel Weisz, examina la Guerra de Propaganda que se libra entre el Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) y el presidente de México, Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO). Este "concurso de información" destaca la importancia de las "operaciones de información" para ambas partes en el contexto de las guerras del crimen en México. Read more about La Guerra de Propaganda del CJNG y AMLOLog in or register to post comments
Authors:Dave Maxwell Abstract: The Authoritarians’ War: Assessing Russian Intervention in the Syrian Civil WarDave MaxwellFri, 04/23/2021 - 7:29am Russian intervention in the Syrian Civil War braced the regime during its nadir and helped reestablish President Bashar al-Assad’s political dominance over much of Syria just two years later. Despite its importance, Russian intervention did not change the character of the counterinsurgency campaign. Rather, the similarities in Russian and Syrian approaches to counterinsurgency preserved Assad’s strategy and optimized Russian intervention, integrating formidable capabilities into an already brutal campaign. Leaders in Moscow and Damascus were aligned in their approaches. Effective patron-client politics facilitated strategic and tactical cooperation and enabled counterinsurgent forces to strike the insurgencies’ center of gravity by targeting Syrian civilians. Read more about The Authoritarians’ War: Assessing Russian Intervention in the Syrian Civil War1 commentLog in or register to post comments
Authors:ZFTWARNING Abstract: The Propaganda War of the CJNG and AMLOZFTWARNINGThu, 04/22/2021 - 11:34pm This essay by SWJ-El Centro Associate Daniel Weisz examines the Propaganda War being waged among the Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) and Mexico's President Andres Manuel López Obrador (AMLO). This "information contest" highlights the importance of "information operations" to both parties within the context of Mexico's crime wars. Read more about The Propaganda War of the CJNG and AMLOLog in or register to post comments
Authors:Dave Maxwell Abstract: Book Review: Irregular Soldiers and Rebellious States: Small Scale U.S. Interventions AbroadDave MaxwellThu, 04/22/2021 - 4:11pm Michael Noonan provides us with the best contemporary treatment of unconventional warfare (UW) and foreign internal defense (FID) I have read. I begin this review with this statement at great risk because I know many people will not read further because of the antibodies surrounding UW and FID, but especially UW. If you do not want to read this review, fine. But I urge you to read the book because it goes well beyond UW and FID. Read more about Book Review: Irregular Soldiers and Rebellious States: Small Scale U.S. Interventions AbroadLog in or register to post comments
Authors:Dave Maxwell Abstract: Psychological Warfare: Principles for Global CompetitionDave MaxwellWed, 04/21/2021 - 12:15pm The US demand signal for psychological warfare and influence-based operations is indicating exponential growth, unseen since the 1950s. A thorough analysis of the influence-based profession indicates a crucial need to develop an overarching set of principles, especially during the era of Great Power Competition (GPC). Many US policy makers are unknowingly replicating the discussions of the 1940s and the 1950s without taking into account the successes and failures of our psychological warfare forefathers. This analysis provides a set of psychological warfare principles based on historical analysis and returns psychological warfare back to the forefront of discussions in the era of GPC. The US must use psychological warfare as the arrow of initial penetration if we are to compete with nations that maintain parity or overmatch in the influence fields. Read more about Psychological Warfare: Principles for Global CompetitionLog in or register to post comments
Authors:Dave Maxwell Abstract: Rethinking Army Special Operation Forces-Department of State Partnership in EuropeDave MaxwellSun, 04/18/2021 - 9:22pm To achieve its theater-strategic goals and counter Russian aggression despite ongoing fiscal constraints, the United States Government (USG) must consciously increase its U.S. interagency and whole-of-government efforts specifically by augmenting U.S. Army Special Operations Forces (ARSOF) and Department of State (DoS) collaboration in the European Command (EUCOM) area of responsibility. Both European Union (EU) and U.S. leadership recognize Russia as the greatest security threat confronting Europe and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). In response, NATO countries and the U.S. have increased defense spending, but capacity gaps will continue to remain in the near future. These gaps relate to both fiscal austerity and Russia’s recent unconventional approaches to warfare. Read more about Rethinking Army Special Operation Forces-Department of State Partnership in Europe1 commentLog in or register to post comments
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