Counterterrorism
512 Articles
Part III: The Muddy Middle: A New Framework for Use of Force
We may not have wanted to land in this muddy middle between peace and war that we currently find ourselves in, but this is the reality of the current moment in the counterterrorism…
Part II: The Muddy Middle: Challenges of Applying Use of Force Policy Guidance in Practice
In part two of a three-part series, the authors explain how new operational models for both why and how the U.S. used force outside areas of active hostilities created tensions…
The Muddy Middle: The Disappearing Lines in America’s Counterterrorism Wars and How to Restore Order
In three articles, the authors explain how the lines have blurred between U.S. military operating procedures for use of force in hot war zones versus outside areas of active hostilities…
A Post-Mortem on UN Security Council Resolution 2482 on Organized Crime and Counter-Terrorism
The creeping conflation of armed conflict, terrorism and organized crime does not lend legal clarity to complex legal and political challenges. In the long run, it may, in fact,…
The International Security Echo-Chamber: Getting Civil Society Into the Room
It is time to make sure the public fully understands the harmful impacts of their governments’ interventions on the lives of others, and to reaffirm that security can be built…
Revisiting General Counsel Ney’s Speech in Light of New Pentagon Leadership
Former Department of Defense official (OSD) Luke Hartig critiques General Counsel Paul Ney's recent speech on the framework governing US military operations.
The Massive Perils of the Latest U.N. Resolution on Terrorism
A newly proposed U.N. Security Council resolution expanding anti-terrorism requirements for member States targets the nexus with organized crime. But like so many counterterrorism…
Finding the Federal Data on Domestic Terrorism
Is the government collecting data on acts meeting the definition of “domestic terrorism”? The short answer to the question is: Yes, but clearly more can be done.
Correcting Course: Avoiding the Collision Between Humanitarian Action and Counterterrorism
"When the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 2462(2019), aimed at combating the financing of terrorism, it included language meant to protect humanitarian action.…
In Legislation to Reduce Global Violence, Can U.S. Move Beyond a Focus on “Extremism”?
The real priority for the United States is to address not just ‘extremism’ but violent conflict overall by being clear-eyed about the complex factors driving it and what contributes…
Why the Christchurch Call to Remove Online Terror Content Triggers Free Speech Concerns
In deciding whether to endorse the Christchurch Call, the question for U.S. policymakers was whether the text essentially called on the U.S. or others to act inconsistently with…
‘Flying Ginsu’ Missile Won’t Resolve U.S. Targeted Killing Controversy
Proponents of a new, modified Hellfire missile called the R9X tout it as a game-changer that can spare more civilian lives than traditional Hellfires. But the new technology can…