Innovation in War

Innovation in War: Counterinsurgency Operations in Anbar and Ninewa Provinces, Iraq, 2005–2007 (scroll down for download link) – James A. Russell, Journal of Strategic Studies, Volume 33 Issue 4 2010. This article analyzes operations by three battalions conducting counterinsurgency operations in Iraq over the period from July 2005 through March 2007: the 1st Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment (1–7) along the Iraq–Syrian border in the first half of 2006; the 1st Battalion, 37th Armored Regiment (1–37) battalion operating in south-central Ramadi in the fall of 2006; and the 2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry Regiment, or 2-1, operating in eastern Mosul in 2005–06. The article argues that empirical evidence presented in these cases suggest, contrary to popular perceptions, these units successfully innovated in war — a process largely executed organically within the units themselves.