Small Wars Journal

Army Intelligence Views Kidnapping and Terrorism

Mon, 10/13/2008 - 3:40pm
Army Intelligence Views Kidnapping and Terrorism - Secrecy News (Federation of American Scientists) blog

Kidnapping and other forms of terrorist violence have developed into a significant form of asymmetric conflict, according to a new US Army manual (pdf) that describes the theory and practice of kidnapping with numerous case studies from recent years.

"This document promotes an improved understanding of terrorist objectives, motivation, and behaviors in the conduct of kidnapping," the 168 page manual states...

Manual Has Terrorist Kidnapping Theories - United Press International

A US Army manual has incorporated evidence from case studies on terrorist organizations that use kidnapping as a threat tactic.

The Army counter-terrorism instructional series titled "A Military Guide to Terrorism in the Twenty-First Century" now features theories on kidnapping and other asymmetric warfare tactics deployed by terrorists and other militants, Secrecy News reported.

The section of the manual titled "Kidnapping and Terror in the Contemporary Operational Environment" is written for official use only. However, officials at Secrecy News, a Federation of American Scientists project on government secrecy, obtained a copy....