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The Role of Timely and Actionable Military Intelligence in Winning Wars
Military intelligence is crucial for success on the battlefield. Recent global events highlight the importance of swift and accurate intelligence. For example, the meticulously planned attack by Hamas on Israel revealed a shocking intelligence failure as Israel was caught by surprise (Harding). In his insightful analysis, Ted Singer, a senior Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) official…
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A Scholarly Betrayal: Reflective Assignment Part I
Introduction This essay will reflect upon one of my long and complex associations with an internationally acclaimed counterterrorism expert, think tank, and professor of security studies, Dr. Rohan Gunaratna. He is an Associate Professor and the former head of the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research (ICPVTR), part of Nanyang Technological University in…
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The US-Led NATO And Its Allies Need Dominance In Afghanistan Over Global Powers, Not Over Their Proxy Taliban
By Siddhant Hira and Kagusthan Ariaratnam As US-led NATO forces prepare to withdraw from Afghanistan, General Scott Miller — the United States’ longest-serving military commander in the area — told the BBC that the priority of NATO troops is “the risks to our forces” and “the risks to the future of Afghanistan.” General Miller’s comments…
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The Impending Threat of Islamic Radicalization: A Look at Assimilation
By Kagusthan Ariaratnam & Ammna Nasser This article was originally published by “The NATO Association of Canada” on January 22, 2018. Youth radicalization has acquired renewed momentum in the current age of ISIS (Daesh). Repeated victories reported by the Iraqi and Syrian security forces are pushing Daesh to rethink survival strategies to live and fight…
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Unintended Intelligence Consequences: How Yesterday’s Proxy Insurgents turned into Today’s Terrorists
Introduction During the Cold War, nations were increasingly sponsoring and/or supporting insurgencies. For instance, the United States of America supported Afghan-Mujahedin, Nicaraguan Contras, and Tibetan Buddhist fighters. The Soviet Union supported communist guerrillas in Angola, Greece, and South Africa. China supported insurgents in Vietnam. India supported Sri Lankan Tamil rebels. In fact, Trends in Outside…
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Recognizing Outdated Power and Eliminating the Divide: Countering Terrorism through Smart Power
Introduction Countering terrorism through “smart power” is a concept deliberated on creative thinking to combat one’s enemy, especially terrorists. This essay will examine the reconceptualization of traditional approaches toward counterterrorism and discuss how ideologies from a Western liberal democracy can respond to an unconventional terrorist ideology. To begin with, the term “power” will be defined.…
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Intelligence Innovation Outside The Anglosphere: Deconstructing The Sri Lankan Counterterrorism Model For Obliterating ISIS
Introduction As the entire world is coming forward to combat the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), I would like to share my opinion here on how to fight ISIS and eventually obliterate them just like the Sri Lankan military defeated the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) just seven years ago. ISIS, an…
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Understanding the Causes of Civil War in Iraq and Syria
Introduction The civil wars in Iraq and Syria are the most catastrophic and worst humanitarian crisis since World War II. The two main causes of civil wars in Iraq and Syria are authoritarianism and sectarianism. This essay will examine the causes and comparative analysis of two contemporary civil wars: The Iraqi civil war from 2006…
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Tigers’ Eyes and Ears: The LTTE Intelligence Wing (Part I)
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam’s (LTTE) Intelligence Wing, Tiger Organization Security Intelligence Service (TOSIS) The author would like to dedicate this article to Colonel Tuan Nizam Muthaliff RWP, MI (July 12, 1966 – May 31, 2005) was the former Commanding Officer of the 1st Battalion Military Intelligence Corps, Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI) of…