Bureaucracy, Organisational Learning and Resilience: ISI 2008-12
IS’s predecessor, the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), has previously proved resilient and capable of learning from and adapting to setbacks.
Fear and Self Loathing in South Asia
CIA director Leon Panetta is currently engaged in talks in Islamabad, arriving the day after the head of the Pakistani Army, attempted to win back some respect from the Pakistani population by urging the US to divert some of its $3 billion a year aid to ‘help the common man’ while also forcefully re-asserting Pakistan’s sovereignty. These concerns would be heartening if they were not so transparent.
Child Soldiers & International Law
In 2000, the UN reported that 36 countries were currently involved in conflict in which child soldiers were taking part. 17 of those conflicts saw the state itself employing children to fight. While some are kidnapped or forced into military service many join of their own volition, seduced by the illicit glamour of violence, tales of war and the promise of adventure which recruiters provide.
