Strategic Assessment

Some argue that the international laws of war in their current format, which do not deal with low intensity conflicts, are outdated and limit more than necessary the ability of regular armed forces to deal with the operational difficulties they face against guerrilla forces, terrorist organizations, or irregular militias. Others argue that the current laws of war meet the challenges raised by low intensity conflicts, but have not been observed strictly enough. The authors here embrace the former approach, and propose changes so that the international laws of war are better suited to the challenges posed by low intensity conflicts.