Small Wars Journal
  • “With no other security forces on hand, U.S. military was left to confront, almost alone, an Iraqi insurgency and a crime rate that grew worse throughout the year, waged in part by soldiers of the disbanded army and in part by criminals who were released from prison.”
    -- John Spratt
  • "In 1991 the Gulf War showed everyone how not to fight us, but the 2003 invasion of Iraq showed everybody how to fight us."
    -- David Kilcullen
  • "Slow is smooth, smooth is fast."
    -- Old MOUT Adage
  • “For Dave Dilegge and Bill Nagle, founders and editors of Small Wars Journal. They gave the counterguerrilla underground a home, at a time when misguided leaders banned even the word ‘insurgency,’ though busily losing to one. Scholars, warriors, and agitators, Dave and Bill laid the foundation for battlefield success: our generation owes them a debt of gratitude.”
    -- David Kilcullen ('Counterinsugency' Dedication)
  • “It takes a brave man to be a coward in the Red Army.”
    -- Joseph Stalin

Home, Above Feeds, Annoucement

"Small wars are operations undertaken under executive authority, wherein military force is combined with diplomatic pressure in the internal or external affairs of another state whose government is unstable, inadequate, or unsatisfactory for the preservation of life and of such interests as are determined by the foreign policy of our Nation."

-- Small Wars Manual, 1940

Small Wars Journal publishes original works from authentic voices across the spectrum of stakeholders in small wars. We also link you to relevant goings on elsewhere.  Login with your SWJ Username to comment, or Register, it's free. You can start your own threads in the Small Wars Council discussion board, but note that the board requires a separate Council Username. Follow SWJ on Twitter @smallwars.

Journal

Third Generation Gangs Strategic Note No. 30: Traficante Evangélico (Evangelical Trafficker) Creates “Complexo de Israel” Using Confessional Violence to Consolidate Control in Five Rio Favelas
by John P. Sullivan, by Robert Bunker, by José de Arimatéia da Cruz | Tue, 08/04/2020 - 9:16pm | 0 comments
A facção (drug trafficking faction) in Rio de Janeiro led by Álvaro Malaquias Santa Rosa, known as Peixão (Big Fish), is exploiting the COVID-19 pandemic to consolidate control over a group of favelas (slums) in the Northern Zone of Rio de Janeiro. The result is a complex of five favelas: Cidade Alta, Vigário Geral, Parada de Lucas, Cinco Bocas, and Pica-Pau known as the "Complexo de Israel" (Israel Complex or Network of Israel). The favelas comprising the “Complexo de Israel” have a combined population of about 134,000 inhabitants. Peixão’s gang employs a mix of religious imagery and targeted confessional violence to exert territorial control and dominate the illicit market.
Sending Special Operations Forces into the Great-Power Competition
by Tim Nichols | Sun, 08/02/2020 - 5:53pm | 0 comments
This paper discusses how our special operations professionals should transition from two decades of counter-terrorist operations to emerging great-power threats. Nichols argues that there are some significant areas of mis-alignment in terms of training and resources, and that senior leaders should address this.
Third Generation Gangs Strategic Note No. 29: Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) Attacks Honduran Prison Guards with Grenades and Assault Rifles
by John P. Sullivan, by Robert Bunker, by Juan Ricardo Gómez Hecht | Fri, 07/31/2020 - 6:40pm | 0 comments
On Monday, 20 July 2020, suspected members of Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) attacked a military police guards at a prison—la Peniteciaría Nacional de Támara—north of Tegucigalpa, according to the Instituto Nacional Penitenciaro (INP – National Penitentiary Institute). The attack, by prison inmates, involved firearms (assault rifles and pistols, as well as grenades). One sergeant received firearms injuries.
Insurgency in the North Caucasus: Lessons of the First Chechen War
by Elina Driscoll | Sun, 07/26/2020 - 12:37pm | 0 comments
This paper explores the 1994-1996 Chechen War, which was the first large-scale military conflict involving post-Soviet Russia and played a crucial role in reshaping Russia's military and political strategy. The war, also known as the First Chechen War, resulted in the unexpected victory of Chechen insurgents, who managed to defeat the better equipped Russians due to their skillful use of guerrilla tactics, clever use of geography and urban warfare, and deep understanding of Russia's political and military vulnerabilities.
Pakistani Counterinsurgency in the FATA: Repeating Past Mistakes
by Daniel Harris | Sat, 07/25/2020 - 10:06am | 0 comments
Although since 2009 the Pakistani military has partially shifted from its conventional force posture to a modern COIN approach in its conflict with the TTP insurgency, coercive tactics are still employed today. As a result of their initial tactics and current human rights abuses, the military succeeded in routing TTP strongholds but failed to address the insurgency’s root-grievances, alienating the population and ensuring post-conflict regional insecurity.
Waking up to the Chinese Incursion
by Allyson Christy | Mon, 07/20/2020 - 9:07am | 2 comments
This paper analyses the timeframe of American manufacturing decline matched to China's rapid power gains against US economic and national interests and security vulnerabilities.
The Battle of Debaltseve: a Hybrid Army in a Classic Battle of Encirclement
by Randy Noorman | Fri, 07/17/2020 - 10:29am | 0 comments
The battle of Debaltseve is the largest battle of encirclement in contemporary European military history. This article focuses on the composition of the Russian backed separatist forces, the units and equipment deployed, and subsequent proof of Russia’s military involvement in the conflict.
Venezuela’s Missions: Mechanisms of Corruption
by Magdalena Defort | Tue, 07/14/2020 - 4:17pm | 0 comments
This assessment seeks to answer questions about how social programs run by Venezuela’s Chavista regime became a perfect mechanism for building a widespread international corruption network to benefit the president and his cronies. It examines the pivotal role played by foreign powers—i.e., Iran, and Turkey—in these clandestine illegal operations.
Third Generation Gangs Strategic Note No. 28: PCC Exploits Medical and Dental Clinics to sustain Criminal Governance in Greater São Paulo
by John P. Sullivan, by José de Arimatéia da Cruz, by Robert Bunker | Sat, 07/11/2020 - 4:33pm | 2 comments
On 3 June 2020, Brazilian police in Greater São Paulo launched Operação Soldi Sporchi (Operation Dirty Money), serving search and arrest warrants against members of the First Capitol Command (Primeiro Comando da Capital – PCC). The PCC was alleged to have used medical and dental clinics to launder money earned from the gang’s drug trafficking activities and treat injured gang members to avoid detection by the police. The investigation also exposed corrupt connections to public officials and transnational links to the ‘Ndrangheta.
Militarised Criminal Networks in Mexico and the Challenges They Present to the Military and Police
by Alexander Elfes | Fri, 07/10/2020 - 3:43pm | 0 comments
Lieutenant Alexander Elfes, Platoon Commander, 1st Military Police Battalion, Australian Army provides an overview of the May 2020 Warrant Officer Class 1 Ken Bullman OAM lecture series (KBLS) on 'Mexico's criminal Insurgencies" by Dr John P. Sullivan.

Blog Posts

08/07/2020 News & Commentary – National Security
by Dave Maxwell | Fri, 08/07/2020 - 10:13am | 0 comments
A roundup of the day’s news.
08/07/2020 News & Commentary – Korea
by Dave Maxwell | Fri, 08/07/2020 - 9:55am | 0 comments
A roundup of the day’s news.
8/6/2020 News & Commentary - National Security
by David S. Maxwell | Thu, 08/06/2020 - 12:35pm | 0 comments
A roundup of the day's news.
08/06/2020 News & Commentary – Korea
by Dave Maxwell | Thu, 08/06/2020 - 8:01am | 0 comments
A roundup of the day’s news.
08/05/2020 News & Commentary – National Security
by Dave Maxwell | Wed, 08/05/2020 - 9:56am | 0 comments
A roundup of the day’s news.
08/05/2020 News & Commentary – Korea
by Dave Maxwell | Wed, 08/05/2020 - 9:29am | 0 comments
A roundup of the day’s news.
08/04/2020 News & Commentary – National Security
by Dave Maxwell | Tue, 08/04/2020 - 12:12pm | 0 comments
A roundup of the day’s news.
08/04/2020 News & Commentary – Korea
by Dave Maxwell | Tue, 08/04/2020 - 11:47am | 0 comments
A roundup of the day’s news.
08/03/2020 News & Commentary – National Security
by Dave Maxwell | Mon, 08/03/2020 - 9:38am | 0 comments
A roundup of the day’s news.
08/03/2020 News & Commentary – Korea
by Dave Maxwell | Mon, 08/03/2020 - 8:20am | 0 comments
A roundup of the day’s news.
8/2/2020 News & Commentary - National Security
by Dave Maxwell | Sun, 08/02/2020 - 12:30pm | 0 comments
A roundup of the day's news.
8/2/2020 News & Commentary - Korea
by Dave Maxwell | Sun, 08/02/2020 - 10:58am | 0 comments
A roundup of the day's news.
8/1/2020 News & Commentary - Korea
by Dave Maxwell | Sat, 08/01/2020 - 1:01pm | 0 comments
A roundup of the day's news.
8/1/2020 News & Commentary - National Security
by Dave Maxwell | Sat, 08/01/2020 - 11:03am | 0 comments
A roundup of the day's news.
"It's time for a third special operations revolution"
by SWJ Editors | Sat, 08/01/2020 - 8:15am | 0 comments
A recent article discussing the need for a fundamental reorganization of US special operations forces by frequent contributor and senior fellow that the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, COL(r) Dave Maxwell.