Insurgency And Counter-insurgency in Iraq

by Hashim, Ahmed S.

• ISBN13: 9780801444524
• ISBN10: 0801444527
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2006-03-30
• Publisher: Cornell Univ Pr

Summary

Years after the U.S. invasion of Iraq, a loosely organized insurgency continues to target American and Coalition soldiers, as well as Iraqi security forces and civilians, with devastating results. In this sobering account of the ongoing violence, Ahmed Hashim, a specialist on Middle Eastern strategic issues and on irregular warfare, reveals the insurgents behind the widespread revolt, their motives, and their tactics. The insurgency, he shows, is not a united movement directed by a leadership with a single ideological vision. Instead, it involves former regime loyalists, Iraqis resentful of foreign occupation, foreign and domestic Islamist extremists, and elements of organized crime. These groups have cooperated with one another in the past and coordinated their attacks; but the alliance between nationalist Iraqi insurgents on the one hand and religious extremists has frayed considerably. The U.S.-led offensive to retake Fallujah in November 2004 and the success of the elections for the Iraqi National Assembly in January 2005 have led more "mainstream" insurgent groups to begin thinking of reinforcing the political arm of their opposition movement and to seek political guarantees for the Sunni Arab community in the new Iraq. Hashim begins by placing the Iraqi revolt in its historical context. He next profiles the various insurgent groups, detailing their origins, aims, and operational and tactical modi operandi. He concludes with an unusually candid assessment of the successes and failures of the Coalition's counter-insurgency campaign. Looking ahead, Hashim warns that ethnic and sectarian groups may soon be pitted against one another in what will be a fiercely contested fight over who gets what in the new Iraq. Evidence that such a conflict is already developing does not augur well for Iraq's future stability. Both Iraq and the United States must work hard to ensure that slow but steady success over the insurgency is not overshadowed by growing ethno-sectarian animosities as various groups fight one another for the biggest slice of the political and economic pie. In place of sensational headlines, official triumphalism, and hand-wringing, Insurgency and Counter-Insurgency in Iraq offers a clear-eyed analysis of the increasingly complex violence that threatens the very future of Iraq.

Author Biography

Ahmed S. Hashim is Professor of Strategic Studies at the U.S. Naval War College.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements	p. ix
Preface	p. xv
Maps	p. xxvii
Evolution of the Iraqi Insurgency: from Conventional to Partisan Warfare during Operation Iraqi Freedom	p. 1
The structural, organizational and societal weaknesses of the Iraqi armed forces	p. 2
The evolution of the Sunni insurgency, April 2003 to April 2005	p. 17
Origins and Motives of the Insurgency	p. 59
Protection of Sunni Arab identity and fears of marginalization	p. 60
Motives of former regime elements	p. 82
Motives of former military personnel	p. 92
Nationalism, honor, revenge and pride	p. 99
Tribal motives	p. 104
Religion	p. 108
The political goals of the insurgency	p. 121
The Insurgents' Way of Warfare	p. 125
Intensity, geographic scope, popular base and social composition	p. 125
External support for the insurgents	p. 135
Organizational typology	p. 151
Insurgent organizations	p. 170
Operational goals and art	p. 176
Targets and tactics of the insurgency	p. 188
Weaknesses of the Iraqi insurgency	p. 200
Contending National Identities: the Kurds and shi`a Arabs	p. 214
The Kurds: federalism or independence?	p. 215
The empowerment of the Shi`a Arabs	p. 230
Ideology, Politics and Failure to Execute: the US Counter-insurgency Campaign	p. 271
Ideological lens versus political pragmatism	p. 276
Political development, basic services, rehabilitation and reconstruction	p. 288
Creation of legitimate coercive state apparatus	p. 299
The US military's approach to counter-insurgency	p. 319
Conclusions: Whither Iraq?	p. 345
The Iraqi insurgency	p. 345
Should we stay or should we go?	p. 348
Epilogue	p. 367
The insurgency and counter-insurgency in Tal Afar	p. 368
The constitutional debates of 2005	p. 380
Notes	p. 391
Bibliography	p. 451
Index	p. 473
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