It is an understatement to say that armed conflicts fought in densely populated areas can and do cause tremendous human suffering. Civilians in particular have historically paid a high price in the form of death, injuries, and permanent disabilities. They have also paid indirectly through the effects of widespread damage to their homes, the impact on their livelihoods, and the destruction of the infrastructure that supplies the necessities of life. With modern conflicts increasingly fought in urban areas, civilians are increasingly...
This essay attempts to present operational perspectives on conducting warfare in densely populated areas. It also distinguishes between three types of combat within this general category, with the goal of shedding light on this complex type of warfare.
The starting point for any analysis of the legality of an armed attack by Israel or the US against Iranian nuclear facilities must be the UN Charter prohibition against “the threat or use of force.” The UN Charter provides explicitly for only two exceptions to the prohibition against use of force. The first exception is if the use of force is authorized by the UN Security Council acting within its powers under Chapter VII of the Charter. It can be assumed with high certainty that China and Russia would veto any proposal...
Lawfare is closely linked to the challenges facing the regular armies of law-abiding nations engaged in asymmetrical confrontations in densely populated civilian urban areas. Therefore, as part of its preparations for the challenges it may have to face in the future, particularly in this type of fighting, the IDF must give the proper weight to the legal front that is likely to develop as an integral part of the same confrontation.
What legal rules apply to armed confrontations against non-state elements in areas populated by civilians? What rules apply when the enemy does not honor the basic laws of warfare – does not distinguish itself from the local population, and even uses it for shelter and as a base of operations? This essay, which presents my position on the issue, refers to such confrontations as “asymmetrical conflicts.”
This essay will deal with the challenges to the laws of warfare posed by fighting in urban zones, the consequent changes to these laws, and the problems these changes have aroused and responses to them.
In Israeli research there are two types of discourse regarding how to assess and judge warfare in densely populated areas: the normative discourse and the operative discourse. Conspicuously absent is the interactive discourse with the non-state enemy, i.e., the willingness to look at oneself through the eyes of the enemy in the course of the fighting. This discourse exists among non-state organizations such as Hizbollah and Hamas.
It behooves us to investigate asymmetry. Asymmetry between entities is measured not only in terms of force but also exists in every aspect in which there is a difference in the nature of the conflicting sides, in their goals, power, methods of operation, and especially the rules of the game by which they play.
Since the middle of the twentieth century there has been a process of dramatic change in the history of warfare. The change in the landscape, i.e., natural landscapes turning into urban areas, requires a change in the nature of war, both on the part of the defender and on the part of the attacker.
Current assessments are that fighting in densely populated areas will be one of the main types of combat the IDF will face in the foreseeable future. This essay will focus on three points: one, change in threats facing the State of Israel; two, the main characteristics of the military response necessitated by the change in the threat; and three, some components of the necessary method of action in such confrontations.
The book includes thirteen analytical essays written by INSS researchers. Focus is on Israel’s strategic environment, particularly in the wake of the major changes experienced in the Middle East commonly known as the Arab spring. The ongoing Palestinian issue and Iran’s nuclear program remain at the fore of the challenges facing Israel. Other issues explored in the volume include the “new” Middle East and the role of the superpowers, Turkey, and questions of particular urgency to Israel, including the...
Over the past five years the Israeli economy has demonstrated impressive stability and growth in comparison with other developed countries, and in May 2010 Israel gained membership in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Nonetheless, the Israeli economy faces difficult long term challenges, with potential implications for the state’s ability to finance high defense consumption, the economy’s effect on internal socioeconomic stability, and even Israel’s global status. These risks are in...
