Fatal attraction: explaining variation in the attractiveness of Islamic State propaganda

2018 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 430-450
Author(s):  
Daniel Milton
Keyword(s):  
Islamic State ◽  
Military Operations ◽  
Terrorist Organizations ◽  
Fatal Attraction ◽  
Geographic Expansion

Why do different Islamic State propaganda products receive different numbers of views? This article relies on a dataset of 1700 Islamic State photo essays to examine this question. It finds that violence in Islamic State photo essays, especially retributional violence, or violence directed at the group’s enemies and wayward adherents, leads to increased viewership. Releases that highlight the group’s military operations, governance activities and geographic expansion also draw more attention, although less than the increase for products containing retributional violence. These findings have implications for research and counterterrorism efforts targeted at reducing the propaganda appeal of terrorist organizations.

scholarly journals Organizacyjne i personalne ramy „globalnej wojny z terroryzmem” w świetle orzecznictwa sądów amerykańskich

Poliarchia ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (9) ◽  
pp. 51-95
Author(s):  
Dariusz Stolicki
Keyword(s):  
Use Of Force ◽  
The United States ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Federal Courts ◽  
Military Force ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Military Operations ◽  
Global War On Terror ◽  
Global War ◽  
The Impact

The Organizational and Personal Framework of the “Global War on Terror” in the Light of the Decisions of the United States Courts The article analyses the law of military detention applicable to the ongoing conflict with Al‑Qaeda and associated forces, to the extent that that law emerges from the jurisprudence of U.S. federal courts, and particularly of the D.C. Circuit. It discusses four major issues: the types of organizations against which military force can be used in accordance with the Congressional authorization, the range of persons subject to military detention in connection with such use of force (in terms of both legal categories and factual predicates), the scope of the battlefield on which the use of force is authorized, and the extent to which American citizens or foreigners lawfully present in the U.S. territory enjoy special immunity from military detention. The article concludes that the impact of the D.C. Circuit decisions on those questions extends beyond the issue of military detention, and provides the general legal framework applicable to other military operations directed against terrorist organizations in the Middle East, such as target strikes or the campagin against the self‑styled Islamic State.

Strategy and the Surge

The Last Card ◽  
2019 ◽  
pp. 296-313
Author(s):  
Joshua Rovner
Keyword(s):  
The Political ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Military Operations ◽  
Military Action ◽  
Strategic Effect ◽  
Practical Strategy ◽  
The Face ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Subsequent Rise

This chapter studies the relationship between strategy and the surge. Strategy is the bridge that links military operations and political objectives in war. A practical strategy describes those objectives and explains how military action will achieve them. The chapter disputes the idea that the surge constituted a new US strategy in Iraq. Instead, it can be considered as a “decision to put strategy on hold.” The surge, the chapter argues, encouraged a perverse strategic effect—by obscuring the political objectives of the war, it undercut efforts to forge competent and self-reliant governance in Iraq and contributed to the breakdown of the Iraqi state in the face of the subsequent rise of the Islamic State.

Routes to Power

2021 ◽  
pp. 77-112
Author(s):  
Christopher M. Davidson
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Economic Crisis ◽  
Economic Reforms ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Al Qaeda ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Donald Trump ◽  
Terrorist Organizations ◽  
Trump Administration

This chapter provides a detailed chronology of MBS and MBZ’s respective ascents. Firstly, their dynastic advantages are considered, along with their apparent early career ambitions and accomplishments. Secondly, their charismatic personalities and their relative youth are discussed, including the erection of charismatic facades by their supporters. Thirdly, their ability to position themselves as proponents of major economic reforms and long-term ‘visions’ during periods of economic crisis are emphasized. Fourthly, their capacity to repair Saudi Arabia and the UAE’s international reputations vis-à-vis the historical funding and support of terrorist organizations such as Al-Qaeda and (in Saudi Arabia’s case) the Islamic State is investigated. Finally, the apparent mentor-mentee relationship between the more established MBZ and the younger MBS is examined, alongside their recent support from the Donald Trump administration.

Countering Islamic State’s Propaganda

2019 ◽  
pp. 219-241
Author(s):  
Tobias Borck ◽  
Jonathan Githens-Mazer
Keyword(s):  
Information Environment ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Military Operations

This chapter reflects on the challenge of countering the Islamic State (IS) in the information environment. National and international efforts to counter the group must—and must continue to—go beyond military operations and political initiatives and include a range of counterpropaganda activities. This chapter combines a scholarly approach with the view of practitioners in order to identify and discuss the challenges brought about by two types of counterpropaganda. First, it examines the issues associated with efforts to deny IS access to the information environment, especially online, by shutting down accounts and deleting content. Second, it addresses the possibilities and pitfalls of various approaches to directly engage and compete with IS propaganda in the information environment, including through the propagation of counter- and alternative narratives.

Who follows whom? A coincidence analysis of military action, public opinion and threats

2019 ◽  
Vol 56 (6) ◽  
pp. 753-766 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tim Haesebrouck
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
Public Relations ◽  
Public Support ◽  
Causal Link ◽  
Causal Connection ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Military Operations ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Military Action ◽  
The Public

Does public opinion act as a constraint on military action, are ordinary citizens the easily manipulated targets of the public relations efforts of their governments, or does the general public react as assertively to threats as decisionmakers? This article examines the causal connection between military action, public opinion and threats. Empirically, it focuses on the pattern of EU member state participation in two recent military operations: the 2011 intervention in Libya and the operation against the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS). Three competing causal models on the relationship between threats, public opinion and military action were derived from the scholarly literature and tested with coincidence analysis. The results of the analysis show that public opinion acted as a constraint on executives during the Libya operation. However, there was no direct causal link between public opinion and military participation in the operation against IS, in which both military action and public support were an effect of threat. More generally, the results suggest that the context of the intervention is decisive for the relation between threat, military action and public support. More specifically, whether public opinion constitutes a constraint on military action or is an effect of threats to national interests depends on whether these threats are clear and tangible.

Who is who in international terrorism

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Владислав Красинский ◽  
Vladislav Krasinskiy ◽  
Владислав Машко ◽  
Vladislav Mashko
Keyword(s):  
Law Enforcement ◽  
Law Enforcement Officers ◽  
International Terrorism ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Terrorist Organizations ◽  
Islamic Movement ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Russian Federation ◽  
The Muslim Brotherhood ◽  
Operational Capacity

The directory contains information on the international terrorist organizations al-Qaida, the Islamic state, Jabhat al-Nusra, the Islamic movement of Uzbekistan, the Taliban, Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami, the Union of Islamic Jihad, the Jund al-sham, the Muslim Brotherhood and the international religious extremist organization Tablighi Jamaat, which are banned in the territory of the Russian Federation. The authors considered the most famous and capable terrorist organization, revealed their operational capacity, the doctrines of, the organization and tactics of the activity, their role and place in the conglomeration of international terrorist organizations. The book is intended for law enforcement officers, analysts of research funds, political scientists and media representatives, as well as for a wide range of readers and experts interested in topical issues of countering international terrorism.

Libya will fuel North Africa terrorism risk

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
North Africa ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Military Operations ◽  
Peace Agreement ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Terrorism Risk ◽  
Local Resources ◽  
Will Force ◽  
State Group ◽  
The Impact

Subject Effect of Libya on North Africa Significance The inability to produce a peace agreement in Libya and the prospect of a foreign intervention to counter the spread of Islamic State group (ISG) in the country raises questions on the impact this could have on Libya's North African neighbours. Impacts Military pressure on ISG in Libya will motivate the group to strike targets abroad to demonstrate its capabilities. ISG could use more sophisticated weapons against potential Western airstrikes and military operations. Insecurity in Libya will force its neighbours to maintain high levels of military spending at a time of lower government revenues. An influx of refugees into Tunisian and Algerian border areas could strain local resources.

Syria may spur global rise in unilateral intervention

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Security Council ◽  
Humanitarian Intervention ◽  
International Standards ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Military Operations ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Un Security Council ◽  
Broad Interpretation ◽  
State Group ◽  
Syrian Conflict

Subject Syria and international norms of war. Significance The Syrian conflict has prompted intervention by a number of states, both directly and by proxy. The participation of all but one of the five UN Security Council permanent members (except China) in military operations in Syria raises questions over whether the norms of legal and ethical grounds for intervention have changed as a result of the conflict. Impacts Justifications will include broad interpretation of 'humanitarian intervention' to conceal real intentions. The UN will have less ability to assert itself when the leading powers choose to ignore, or interpret selectively, international standards. Collective international action against Islamic State group in Syria may build.

Living with Terrorism: Unimaginable Nightmare or Prospective Reality

2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 231-246 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jerome H. Kahan
Keyword(s):  
War On Terror ◽  
Al Qaeda ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
President Obama ◽  
Terrorist Organizations ◽  
Global War On Terror ◽  
Dangerous Situation ◽  
The Us ◽  
Terrorist Organization ◽  
Global War

Abstract Nine days after the transformational 9/11 attacks, President G.W. Bush proclaimed that the nation is fighting a Global War on Terror (GWOT), an attention-grabbing phrase designed as a rallying cry for America to win the battle against al Qaeda and other terrorist organizations threatening our homeland as well as our allies and interests abroad. Eight years later, President Obama inherited what had become an even more dangerous situation, which led to the unexpected and courage attack that felled bin Laden and splintered al Qaeda. However, this success was short-lived when the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) suddenly emerged as our primary terrorist adversary – a new and brutal threat that President Obama vowed to “degrade and ultimately destroy” by doing what it takes to win the war against this and other terrorist organizations. While there has been some progress in halting and reversing ISIS territorial gains with the US providing support to newly trained Iraqi forces, this terrorist organization is not fully contained and far from being destroyed.

scholarly journals The U.S. Employment of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)

2015 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 675-694
Author(s):  
David E. Graham
Keyword(s):  
National Security ◽  
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles ◽  
Legal Issues ◽  
Weapon System ◽  
Military Operations ◽  
Terrorist Organizations ◽  
Legal Norms ◽  
Legal Principles ◽  
The Past ◽  
The U.S

Much has been written over the past several years regarding the increased U.S. employment of UAVs as a weapon system against both combatants on a battlefield and terrorists far removed from an active zone of military operations. As an element of this dialogue, there has occurred a growing discussion as to whether, given what some view as the appearance of new threats to national security—existing in the form of al-Qaeda and similar terrorist organizations—there is now a need for enhanced clarity and transparency concerning the legal principles applicable to when, where, and how such systems might be used. The purpose of this article is to demonstrate that, if, in fact, uncertainty exists as to the legal norms to be applied in the employment of UAVs against those who threaten U.S. security interests—it is an uncertainty of a U.S. self-inflicted nature. In truth, the old law, i.e., currently existing codified and customary international legal principles, can quite sufficiently regulate the lawful use of these systems. Any confusion surrounding this subject is, in reality, due to the consistently self-serving and highly questionable manner in which the U.S. government has both interpreted and applied these norms. Before turning to a discussion of the relevant legal issues, however, it would be helpful to briefly examine the basic nomenclature of commonly U.S.-deployed UAVs.

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