August 28, 2014
Stopping a New Class of Militants
Technological improvements are changing the power relationships between non-state and state actors. At War on the Rocks, TX Hammes made this argument with an eye toward Israel and Hamas. One of his key takeaways is that technological advances have afforded Hamas the opportunity to become a more capable and deadly military force and thereby blunt technological advantages Israel has traditionally enjoyed. This insight is not only relevant for Israel-Hamas interactions, but is indicative of a larger regional trend involving an array of militant groups currently in the news from Hezbollah to the Islamic State of Syria and the Levant (ISIL). The implications for state actors seeking to roll back these groups are severe, and will require a new approach to irregular conflicts characterized by greater interaction between tactics, strategy, and technology.
Militant groups have displayed an increased capability across a range of warfighting functions such as fires, maneuver and communications. Augmented by new technologies, these developments indicate that militants are growing in their lethality and capacity to launch fires at state actors, as opposed to indiscriminate attacks. As General Robert Scales (ret) and WOTR’s Douglas Ollivant argued in The Washington Post a few weeks ago, “terrorist armies are fighting smarter and deadlier than ever.” For example, militants used to engage in sporadic hit-and-run attacks characterized by ineffective AK-47 fire or an RPG launch. Now they are skilled soldiers, demonstrating their ability to successfully utilize indirect fire support and maneuver effectively. A seasoned military official recently told ABC News that ISIL fighters are “incredible” and “use special operations TTPs [tactics, techniques, and procedures].”
More from CNAS
-
When your data is held hostage
Podcast
Technology and security expert Kara Frederick explains how and why U.S. local governments and electoral rolls are vulnerable to ransomware and what can be done about it. List...
By Kara Frederick
-
Setting the Stage for U.S. Leadership in 6G
Commentary
Every day there are more headlines about China’s rise in 5G, the next generation of wireless communications technologies, and the economic and national security risksto the Un...
By Martijn Rasser
-
China’s Quantum Future
Commentary
China should be a “global leader in innovation” by 2035, President Xi Jinping declared during the Chinese Communist Party’s 19th National Congress last October. His remarks re...
By Elsa B. Kania
-
Technology and Innovation in an Era of U.S.-China Strategic Competition
Podcast
China has taken significant steps to implement national strategies and encourage investment aimed at surpassing the U.S. in high-tech fields like artificial intelligence. In t...
By Elsa B. Kania
