A unique, exceptional volume of compelling, thoughtful, and informative essays on the subjects of irregular warfare, counter-insurgency, and counter-terrorism endeavors that will, unfortunately, continue to be unavoidable and necessary, even as the U.S. and our allies and partners shift our focus to Asia and the Pacific in an era of renewed great power rivalries. The co-editors the late Michael Sheehan, a brilliant comrade in uniform and beyond, Liam Collins, one of Americas most talented and accomplished special operators and scholars on these subjects, and Erich Marquardt, the founding editor of the CTC Sentinel have done a masterful job of assembling the works of the best and brightest on these subjects subjects that will continue to demand our attention, resources, and commitment.
General (ret.) David Petraeus, former Commander of the Surge in Afghanistan, U.S. Central Command, and Coalition Forces in Afghanistan and former Director of the CIA
Terrorism will continue to be a featured security challenge for the foreseeable future. We need to be careful about losing the intellectual and practical expertise hard-won over the last twenty years. This handbook, the brainchild of my late friend and longtime counter-terrorism expert Michael Sheehan, is an extraordinary resource for future policymakers and CT practitioners who will grapple with the evolving terrorism threat.
General (ret.) Joseph Votel, former commander of US Special Operations Command and US Central Command
This volume will be essential reading for a new generation of practitioners and scholars. Providing vibrant first-hand accounts from experts in counterterrorism and irregular warfare, from 9/11 until the present, this book presents a blueprint of recent efforts and impending challenges. Terrorism is a perpetual threat, one that never goes away, but requires expertise and attention to compress its scale and scope. These essays provide the way forward.
Nancy Collins, author of Grey Wars and senior fellow of the Modern War Institute, West Point
The post-9/11 literature on counterterrorism has been dominated by academics and policy practitioners. The Routledge Handbook of U.S. Counterterrorism and Irregular Warfare Operations widens the existing scope of scholarship on terrorism and counterterrorism by adding a critically important operational perspective to the discussion. Conceived by the legendary Ambassador Michael Sheehan, the handbook assembles a stellar cast of contributors in a unique volume that will enlighten and inspire all those who take part and interest in the ongoing effort to stem one of the most pressing security challenges of our time from scholars to decisionmakers, and from policy practitioners to military operators.
Assaf Moghadam, Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, Israel, author of Nexus of Global Jihad: Understanding Cooperation among Terrorist Actors
The Routledge Handbook of US Counterterrorism and Irregular Warfare Operations consolidates and advances our understanding of the American experience at war since the mass murder attacks of September 11, 2001. It is a book that should be read and discussed beyond the military, as the contributors findings are consistent with Sir Michael Howards observation that, in war, the causes of victory or defeat are often found far from the battlefield.
Lt.-General (ret.) H.R. McMaster, former US National Security Advisor and author of Dereliction of Duty and Battlegrounds: The Fight to Defend the Free World
Routledge Handbook of U.S. Counterterrorism and Irregular Warfare Operations
This handbook comprises essays by leading scholars and practitioners on the topic of U.S. counterterrorism and irregular warfare campaigns and operations around the globe.
Terrorist groups have evolved substantially since 9/11, with the Islamic State often described as a pseudo-state, a terrorist group, and insurgency all at the same time. While researchers, analysts, and policymakers understanding of terrorism has grown immensely over the past two decades, similar advancements in the understanding of counterterrorism lag. As such, this handbook explains why it is necessary to take a broader view of counterterrorism, which can, and often does, include irregular warfare.
The volume is divided into three thematic sections:
- examines modern terrorism in the Islamic world and gives an overview of the major terrorist groups from the past three decades;
- provides a wide variety of case studies of counterterrorism and irregular warfare operations, spanning from the 1980s to the irregular warfare campaign against the Islamic State in northern Syria in 2018;
- examines the government instruments used to combat terrorism and wage irregular warfare, such as drones, Theater Special Operations Commands, and Theater Commands.
The handbook fills a gap in the traditional counterterrorism literature by its inclusion of irregular warfare and by providing analyses from academic experts as well as practitioners. It will be of much interest to students of counterterrorism, counterinsurgency, U.S. national security, military affairs, and international relations.
The late Michael A. Sheehan previously served as the U.S. Department of States coordinator for counterterrorism, the New York City Police Departments deputy commissioner for counterterrorism, and the assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low intensity conflict.
Erich Marquardt founded the U.S. militarys premier open-source counterterrorism journal, the CTC Sentinel, and served as editor-in-chief for seven years.
Liam Collins is a fellow at New America, former director of the Combating Terrorism Center at West Point, and founding director of the Modern War Institute at West Point. He co-authored Letters from Abbottabad: Bin Ladin Sidelined?, the first report to analyze the documents captured from Bin Ladins compound during the Abbottabad raid.
Routledge Handbook of U.S. Counterterrorism and Irregular Warfare Operations
Edited by Michael A. Sheehan, Erich Marquardt, and Liam Collins
First published 2022
by Routledge
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and by Routledge
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Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
2022 selection and editorial matter, Michael A. Sheehan, Erich Marquardt, and Liam Collins; individual chapters, the contributors
The right of Michael A. Sheehan, Erich Marquardt, and Liam Collins to be identified as the authors of the editorial material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
The Open Access version of this book, available at www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Sheehan, Michael A., editor. | Marquardt, Erich, 1980 editor. | Collins, Liam, 1970 editor.
