The Al-Qaeda Accelerant in Boko Haram’s Rise

(IWS/01 - Irregular Warfare Studies, book 1) Using primary source materials, Jacob Zenn’s case study, The Al-Qaeda Accelerant in Boko Haram’s Rise, maps the group’s many factions, loyalties, splinterings, and re-formations. Zenn supplies deep insight into the seams and gaps that exist, and how strategic and tactical motivations have propelled an armed group to regional importance. He also dissects how the group’s evolution has taken place under the watchful eye, and often directing hand, of both al-Qaeda and the Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham and highlights its starring role in a new international rivalry: the uncivil war between al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/ciwag-case-studies/1011/thumbnail.jp

Revolutionary Risks: Cyber Technology and Threats in the 2011 Libyan Revolution

(IWS/03 - Irregular Warfare Studies, book 3) The 2011 Libyan revolution was marked by the intensive use of cyber technology. Using decentralized ways of connecting, such as two-way satellite Internet, the Libyan opposition almost completely bypassed the government\u27s sophisticated Internet monitoring equipment and effectively ended the ability of the Gaddafi regime to control Internet access. Still, electronic actors working on behalf of the regime attacked opposition computers by exploiting key human vulnerabilities.https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/ciwag-case-studies/1012/thumbnail.jp

Wildlife Trafficking and Poaching: Contemporary Context and Dynamics for Security Cooperation and Military Assistance

Wildlife Trafficking and Poaching: Contemporary Context and Dynamics for Security Cooperation and Military Assistance, by Dr. Christopher Jasparro, examines the impact wildlife crime has played on exacerbating the delicate security situation in Africa, and the effectiveness of the security cooperation and assistance programs that have formed as a result. Wildlife crime has become a significant international security issue as poaching is used to fund terrorism, drug trades, and other illicit activities that destabilize local African governments and endanger vulnerable species. Wildlife crime is complex and varied with no individual solution. To combat this growing issue, plans and programs carefully crafted to address the context of each unique threat and the strategic environment is required to prevent creating unintended negative consequences.https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/ciwag-case-studies/1016/thumbnail.jp

Water Wars: The Brahmaputra River and Sino-Indian Relations

(MIWS/07 - Maritime Irregular Warfare Studies, book 7) Although we most often think of water conflicts in terms of access to drinking water, the reality is that most water is needed for industrial and agricultural purposes; when rivers run dry, crops fail and communities face famine and starvation even in some of the world\u27s dampest places. Moreover, in some countries, internal conflicts exacerbate the issue of who has access to water and, in others, state-to-state friction over dams and irrigation water has spilt over into armed clashes. The issue of access to and control of water becomes even more acute in states in which there is an ongoing conflict or in states that are trying to transition from conflict to stability.https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/ciwag-case-studies/1007/thumbnail.jp

Operationalizing Intelligence Dominance

Newer, fragile states often lack the police, administrative, and economic resources needed to govern effectively, and many cannot provide basic goods and services to significant sectors of their population. The vacuum inside these states is being filled by armed groups and political movements that are growing in both numbers and capability. The global competition for power, influence, and legitimacy leads to struggles for control of populations, territory, and resources.https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/ciwag-case-studies/1005/thumbnail.jp

Organizational Learning and the Marine Corps: The Counterinsurgency Campaign in Iraq

Organizational Learning and the Marine Corps: The Counterinsurgency Campaign in Iraq examines how the U.S. Marine Corps was able to learn from and adapt to conditions on the ground in Anbar province from 2006–2008 and develop a three-dimensional strategy that resulted in stability. Dr. Richard Shultz views this success through the lens of organizational theory, arguing that the Marine Corps’ organizational culture underscores learning and embeds lessons from its history into the Corps memory.https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/ciwag-case-studies/1000/thumbnail.jp

ISIS: The Terrorist Group That Would Be a State

(IWS/02 - Irregular Warfare Studies, book 2) This case study presents a historical net assessment of ISIS, and its strengths and weaknesses at its zenith. Its military and policy recommendations for degrading ISIS are useful conclusions for confronting similar ideological territorial based groups in the future. This case study represents historical research current as of August 2015.https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/ciwag-case-studies/1010/thumbnail.jp

Taliban Networks in Afghanistan

Dr. Antonio Giustozzi relies on his extensive experience as a researcher in Afghanistan to create an insightful analysis of a wide range of topics including assessments of the Taliban’s strengths and weaknesses, their ability to reassess and adapt, and their operational and strategic successes and failures. He has presented a balanced treatment of the subject matter; however, balance does not mean that the case study will be uncontroversial. In fact, Giustozzi’s analysis contains some rather blunt appraisals of many of the major actors in this conflict; including both ISAF and the Taliban.https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/ciwag-case-studies/1006/thumbnail.jp

Influence Operations and the Human Domain

As the nature of contemporary warfare continues to evolve geographically, demographically, and politically, it is increasingly crucial for commanders and staffs conducting full-spectrum counterinsurgency operations to truly understand the complexity of the operating environment and to employ forces and assets in a predictive and multispectral manner. In wars that are irregular in character, in which armed groups recruit from, hide among, and are willing to attack communities, the nature of the conflict is a fight for the population.5 In these environments, the preponderance of effort must be focused on influencing the population more effectively than the adversary.6 This is the fight for the human domain.https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/ciwag-case-studies/1013/thumbnail.jp

Defeating ISIS and Al-Qaeda on the Ideological Battlefield: The Case for the Corporation Against Ideological Violence

Defeating ISIS and Al-Qaeda on the Ideological Battlefield: The Case for the Corporation Against Ideological Violence, by Dr. Michael W.S. Ryan, explores the radicalization process and the strategies employed by ISIS and al-Qaeda to recruit jihadists. In order to more effectively combat violent extremism and adversarial propaganda, a new federal agency with dedicated resources in the form of a public-private corporation should be created with the primary goal of subduing violent ideologies and countering the spread of violent extremism.https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/ciwag-case-studies/1015/thumbnail.jp