Armed Groups: Studies in National Security, Counterterrorism, and Counterinsurgency

摘要

What exactly is an armed group. The two words--armed and group are clear enough and, when used together, conjure up any manner of mental images. Unshaven men in Western attire holding dirty rifles with straps of bullets from their shoulders. Prohibition-era bank robbers standing on the running boards of a Ford Phaeton with Thompson machine guns tucked under their arms. Wild-eyed horsemen wearing furs charging across a Mongolian plateau. Somali teenagers hanging from the back of a speeding truck, hoisting AK-47 assault rifles. Heavily armed men in sunglasses escorting a political figure from an airplane. For our purposes, this edited collection will consider armed groups to include classic insurgents, terrorists, guerrillas, militias, police agencies, criminal organizations.