A Test Case for Counterinsurgency Theory
Unrest in Iran:
A Test Case for Counterinsurgency Theory
by Dr. Dan G. Cox
Download the full article: A Test Case for Counterinsurgency Theory
Recent events in Iran involving the questionable election results that placed Mahmoud Ahmadinejad into his second term as president have raised the levels of public outcry and consternation both inside Iran and internationally. The political pundits and policymakers are speculating on what this means for the future of Iran and how this situation will end. The debate is premature and largely facile at this point, but what is interesting is that the initial Iranian government reaction to the potential insurgency bubbling up from disgruntled Moussavi supporters provides a well-suited test case for some of the commonly accepted counterinsurgency (COIN) tenants. An embryonic insurgent movement borne of deep resentment against the Iranian government and the de facto rulers of Iran, the Supreme Council, coupled with an extremely harsh COIN reaction creates an experimental situation which allows scholars, practitioners, and policymakers a rare opportunity to analyze, in real time, COIN theory.
Download the full article: A Test Case for Counterinsurgency Theory
Dr. Dan G. Cox is an Associate Professor of Political Science, U.S. Army, Command and General Staff College, School of Advanced Military Studies. His most recent book is Terrorism, Instability, and Democracy in Asia and Africa published in July 2009 by the University Press of New England.
