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Our articles cut through the noise on irregular warfare to connect strategic theory to operational reality and translate complexity into insight for practitioners and policymakers. No time to read? Check out our podcast, "Insider: Short of War," which transforms our articles into concise, engaging audio pieces you can listen to anywhere. Available directly in most of our articles and on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and all major platforms.
Solving the Dilemma: A Leadership Model for Irregular Warfare ('Guerrilla Leader Series' - Part 3 of 3)
“Every intervention begins as a story of liberation. Without adaptation, it ends as a story of occupation.” Why do militarily superior forces consistently win the fight—but lose the peace? This is not a new question. It is the defining paradox of modern irregular warfare. From Vietnam to Afghanistan to
Commercial Pathways and Proxy Power: How Irregular Forces Acquire Advanced Capabilities
In June 2024 Italian customs officials opened shipping containers labeled "wind turbine parts" bound for Libya. Inside were disassembled components for Chinese Wing Loong II drones—the same systems UN investigators had forensically linked to the January 2020 Tripoli military academy strike that killed twenty-six cadets. Four
Claimed or Unclaimed: Patterns of Attribution in Global Terrorism
Editor’s Note: this article is being republished with the permission of Small Wars Journal as part of a republishing arrangement between IWI and SWJ. The original article was published on 02.18.2026 and is available here. Despite extensive research on terrorist violence, far less attention has been paid
The Insurance Weapon: How Commercial Risk Logic Became an Irregular Warfare Tool at Hormuz
Before Iran laid mines in the Strait of Hormuz and before the IRGC began striking tankers with drones, the strait had already been effectively closed. Within 48 hours of coordinated U.S.–Israeli airstrikes on Iran on February 28, 2026, war risk premiums surged fivefold, major marine insurers terminated existing
The Strategic Shift: A Leader’s Guide to the Risk to Follower Model (‘Guerrilla Leader Series' - Part 2 of 3)
"Understanding this model is the key to knowing when to lead with decisive action and when to lead with empathetic connection. It is the essential next step in moving beyond short-term tactical success toward long-term strategic victory." In the preceding analysis—the first installment of what
The Elder’s Gambit and the Practice of Narrative Warfare
"If one individual can be influenced by activating identity over ideology, then influence in modern conflict is less about information superiority and more about narrative precision." What is more powerful: a learned ideology or an inherited identity? For years, the U.S. national security apparatus has grappled with
Friendly Cyber Fire: How Much Did NotPetya Cost Russia?
In June 2017, a cyber attack spread malware across government, utilities, commercial, and financial websites across Ukraine and more than 60 other countries. In February 2018, the UK and US governments attributed the attack, since dubbed "NotPetya," as a Russian military operation. It’s been called (perhaps hyperbolically)
Proof Against the Clock: The Two-Hour Rule for Second Thomas Shoal
Salty air whips across the deck as the Philippine resupply vessel shoulders through turbulent swells, its bow locked onto the skeletal silhouette of the BRP Sierra Madre rusting atop the reef at Second Thomas Shoal. Dawn hasn’t yet fully broken, but the sea gives its warning anyway. Within seconds,
The Strategic Use of Drones in Pakistan–India Irregular Warfare
The rapid spread of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) has changed the dynamics of the India-Pakistan rivalry. Instead of manned airpower and attritional land exchanges, the competition is now based on cheap precision, constant surveillance, deniable force, and escalation ambiguity. Drones of all types are now used constantly along the
Q&A with Former Israeli Shin Bet Director and Command-in-Chief of the Israeli Navy – Ami Ayalon on Iran, Gaza, and Posturing the Israeli Navy for the Future
✉️ Email header below is auto-generated from this post’s author tag. It only appears in the newsletter — please don’t edit or delete it. “The essence of victory is not to kill your enemy; it is to change your political reality.” — Ami Ayalon Editor’s Note: This article is
Bridging the gap between irregular warfare scholars, practitioners, and policymakers.