Counterterrorism
484 Articles
Why the Laws of War Apply to Drone Strikes Outside “Areas of Active Hostilities” (A Memo to the Human Rights Community)
Reports that the White House is poised to revise a four-year old set of policy restrictions on drone strikes and other lethal operations has generated a heated debate that turns…
Three Half-Truths on U.S. Lethal Operations and Policy Constraints
Late last week, Charlie Savage and Eric Schmitt of the New York Times reported that President Donald Trump might soon adopt a new policy on U.S. lethal operations outside hot warzones.…
Trump’s New Drone Strike Policy: What’s Any Different? Why It Matters
[Editor’s note: this article was originally published on September 21, 2017 at 9:50 PM] After months of continued tough talk and recent assurances that the United States…
What Can Stop the Next Black Hawk Down: Risks to Special Operation Forces in the Trump Era
(Editors’ note: This article first appeared as a three-part series. We are reproducing it here in full.) Twenty-four years ago this month, President Bill Clinton, a first-term…
We Shouldn’t Forget the Lessons of Black Hawk Down: Part I
Bravo Company, 3rd Battalion of the 75th Ranger Regiment in Somalia, 1993. (Editors’ note: This article is the first of a three-part series by the author on the Trump administration’s…
French Anti-Terror Bill Threatens To Extend State of Emergency Abuses
The French Senate voted 229 to 106 earlier this month to approve a controversial new anti-terrorism bill, titled the “Draft Law to Strengthen Internal Security and the Fight…
Fighting Terrorism Without Dividing Us: Why Congress Must Look Beyond Countering Violent Extremism
On Thursday July 27, the National Security Subcommittee of the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform will hold a hearing on “Combatting Homegrown Terrorism.”…
Hyping the Terrorist Threat: Trump Makes an Old Problem Worse
For the better part of two decades, American policymakers have struggled to explain the nature of the terrorist threat facing the United States. Mayors, governors, and members…
Exclusive: Draft Military Force Authorization against ISIL—by House Foreign Affairs Committee, Ranking Member Rep. Engel
Representative Eliot Engel, the ranking Democratic member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee has prepared a draft authorization for use of military force (AUMF) against ISIL…
The Trump Administration’s Homeland Security Record – and What Lies Ahead
It has been an eventful first 100 days for the Trump team in the realm of homeland security. In his first full week in office, the president made a major splash by issuing three…
UN Counterterrorism Reform Overlooks Crucial Partner
Only a few weeks into his tenure as UN Secretary-General, António Guterres has been under pressure to fix the UN’s efforts to deal with terrorism and violent extremism. The…
Norms Watch: Tracking the Erosion of Democratic Traditions (Apr. 7-14)
Editor’s Note: Welcome to the latest installment of Norms Watch, our series tracking both the flouting of democratic norms by the Trump administration and the erosion of…