Fragmentation and Grievances as Fuel for Violent Extremism: The Case of Abu Musa’ab Al-Zarqawi

Violent extremism naturally benefits from any state of fragmentation. This article focuses on Iraq in a period of a staggering rise in terrorist attacks that started with “operation Iraqi Freedom.” The rhetoric of Abu Musa’ab Al-Zarqawi is used as a case study. Analyzing his statements between 2003 and 2006 shows his weaponization of the concepts of out-groups and threat; it is shown to have a temporaneous association between the escalating violence and successful mobilization. This highlights the saliency of these concepts, the crucial role of Iraq’s Sunni Arabs’ grievances, and the resulting societal fragmentations, which all play in Zarqawi’s efforts to mobilize his in-group. The use of Social Identity Theory and Integrated Threat Theory outlines Zarqawi’s rhetorical strategies in portraying his enemies, and therefore, exposes the rhetorical justifications behind his violent extremism. Results show, temporally, prominent implementation of out-group/threat in the rhetoric, the different out-groups in question, and the types of threats portrayed. In addition, this article concretely shows the effect of the allied forces/Iraqi government’s policies in fortifying Zarqawi’s rhetoric by way of adopting hostile and discriminatory measures against Sunni Arabs. This article also shows an undeniable dialectical relationship between societal fragmentation/grievances and violent-extremist rhetoric and returns the question to policy makers.

The direction, planning, and implementation of the Operation Iraqi Freedom air campaign, 19 March–2 May 2003

America’s leaders, who anticipated that Operation Iraqi Freedom would end Saddam Hussein’s Ba’athist regime, wanted to leverage technological advances to wage a ‘light-footprint’ ground war. This expectation obliged air, land, and naval planners to balance their strategic and tactical targeting options and to concentrate their activities on tactical support to ground forces, delivered at a speed designed to undermine the ability of the Iraqi forces to offer a coherent defence. The air campaign plan that emerged has often been misunderstood and misinterpreted as a blunt instrument, but it was actually underpinned by the desire to minimise civilian casualties.

Les Affreux en Irak. Die Teilprivatisierung des professionellen Blutvergießens in der heutigen Kriegsführung anhand des Beispiels des Irakkriegs

Les Affreux en Irak. The partial privatisation of professional bloodshed in modern warfare exemplified by the Iraq WarAfter the launch of "Operation Iraqi Freedom", the United States of America were engaged in war for the next eight years, in which they heavily relied on the assistance of private companies, known as Private Military Companies (PMC). The following paper uses the Iraq War respectively the following occupation of Iraq as a case study to examine the role of PMCs in modern warfare. It analyses the military branches in which PMCs provided support to the USA, including logistics, training, security, and even intelligence services. It also discusses the advantages as well as disadvantages of PMCs in current combat operations.

Risk of suicide among U.S. veterans who deployed as part of Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New Dawn

Background There has been concern about the risk of suicide among veterans returning from deployment to Afghanistan and Iraq as part of Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New Dawn (OEF/OIF/OND). This study assessed suicide risk among OEF/OIF/OND veterans by gender and unit component. Firearm related suicide was also briefly examined. Findings The study cohort was identified from records of the US Department of Defense. Vital status and cause of death through 2016 was obtained from the Mortality Data Repository, which obtains data from the National Death Index. Suicide risk was first assessed using standardized mortality ratios (SMR)s, comparing the rate of suicide among all veterans, both collectively and separately by gender and unit component (active vs. reserve/National Guard) to the expected based on the US population adjusted for age, race, sex, and calendar year. Risk of suicide among active duty compared to reserve/National Guard veterans and male compared to female veterans was assessed with hazard ratios (HR) s, generated by Cox proportional hazards models, that included the covariates race, age, marital status, rank, and branch of service. There was an increased risk of suicide when all OEF/OIF/OND Veterans were compared to the US population, (SMR = 1.42; 95%, C.I., 1.38,1.46). Both male and female veterans had an increased risk of suicide when compared to their gender specific non-veteran counterparts, (SMR = 1.40; 95%, C.I., 1.36,1.45 and SMR = 1.85; 95%, C.I., 1.60,2.13), respectively. Active duty veterans had an increased risk of suicide compared to reserve/National Guard veterans, (HR = 1.22; 95%, C.I., 1.14,1.30). Male veterans had an almost 3-fold increased risk compared to female veterans, (HR = 2.85; 95%, C.I., 2.47,3.29). Among all veteran suicides 68.3% involved a firearm, including 68.7% among males and 59.5% among females. Conclusions All OEF/OIF/OND veterans have an increased risk of suicide compared to non-veterans. Veterans will benefit from enhanced access to mental health services and initiatives to promote suicide prevention. Strategies that emphasize lethal means safety, an evidence based suicide prevention strategy which includes increasing safe storage practices (i.e., storing firearms unloaded and locked) can help address this increased risk of veteran suicide.

Usability and Acceptability of a Mobile App for the Self-Management of Alcohol Misuse Among Veterans (Step Away): Pilot Cohort Study

Background Alcohol misuse is common among Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom veterans, yet barriers limit treatment participation. Mobile apps hold promise as means to deliver alcohol interventions to veterans who prefer to remain anonymous, have little time for conventional treatments, or live too far away to attend treatment in person. Objective This pilot study evaluated the usability and acceptability of Step Away, a mobile app designed to reduce alcohol-related risks, and explored pre-post changes on alcohol use, psychological distress, and quality of life. Methods This single-arm pilot study recruited Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom veterans aged 18 to 55 years who exceeded National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism drinking guidelines and owned an iPhone. Enrolled veterans (N=55) completed baseline and 1-, 3-, and 6-month assessments. The System Usability Scale (scaled 1-100, ≥70 indicating acceptable usability) assessed the effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction dimensions of usability, while a single item (scaled 1-9) measured the attractiveness of 10 screenshots. Learnability was assessed by app use during week 1. App engagement (proportion of participants using Step Away, episodes of use, and minutes per episode per week) over 6 months measured acceptability. Secondary outcomes included pre-post change on heavy drinking days (men: ≥5 drinks per day; women: ≥4 drinks per day) and Short Inventory of Problems–Revised, Kessler-10, and brief World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire scores. Results Among the 55 veterans enrolled in the study, the mean age was 37.4 (SD 7.6), 16% (9/55) were women, 82% (45/55) were White, and 82% (45/55) had an alcohol use disorder. Step Away was used by 96% (53/55) of participants in week 1, 55% (30/55) in week 4, and 36% (20/55) in week 24. Step Away use averaged 55.1 minutes (SD 57.6) in week 1 and <15 minutes per week in weeks 2 through 24. Mean System Usability Scale scores were 69.3 (SD 19.7) and 71.9 (SD 15.8) at 1 and 3 months, respectively. Median attractiveness scores ranged from 5 to 8, with lower ratings for text-laden screens. Heavy drinking days decreased from 29.4% (95% CI 23.4%-35.4%) at baseline to 16.2% (95% CI 9.9%-22.4%) at 6 months (P<.001). Likewise, over 6 months, Short Inventory of Problems–Revised scores decreased from 6.3 (95% CI 5.1-7.5) to 3.6 (95% CI 2.4-4.9) (P<.001) and Kessler-10 scores decreased from 18.8 (95% CI 17.4-20.1) to 17.3 (95% CI 15.8-18.7) (P=.046). Changes were not detected on quality of life scores. Conclusions Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom veterans found the usability of Step Away to be acceptable and engaged in the app over the 6-month study. Reductions were seen in heavy drinking days, alcohol-related problems, and Kessler-10 scores. A larger randomized trial is warranted to confirm our findings.