About the Mongol art of war
and possible ecological limits thereto.
Maps of
the various Iranian empires. Map of
the maximum (over-extended) extent of the Sassanian empire. About
the patterns of Romano-Persian conflict. About
the Sassanian army.
Problems with the notion of
Effect Based Operations. (Reminds me a bit of problems with outcome-oriented education.)
Arguing for an organization
to confront jihadi ideology directly.
The Indian crime-boss
who is also a jihadi.
A
timeline of the Mumbai attacks. It represented
sophisticated and innovative (for terrorism) squad tactics, with indicative links to Pakistan. Including up-to-date
“buddy pair” tactics. (
Also used in a 2006 crime gang attack across Sao Paulo.) A modern updating of tactics
that date back to the Prophet. Hotel staff
risked (and sometimes lost) their lives to protect guests. A sweeper
shot dead by terrorist who asked for water. A photographer
who witnessed and photographed the attacks at the railway station and
who regrets he did not have a gun. As elite commandos
kill the last of the gunmen, India says that they came from Pakistan. The difficulties
faced by the commandos, and evidence of local accomplices. The interrogation of the only survivor, who decided
he did not want to die, provides information that the operation took
a year to plan from inside Pakistani-ruled Kashmir and apparently claims training
by the Pakistani navy. The Pakstani government
is denying any involvement. Past Pakistani support for jihadi organisations
may have spun out of control. India
demands 20 fugitives from Pakistan. An Israeli official suggests the Indian commandos
started storming the hotel somewhat prematurely. Fears that the total death toll
may reach 300.
India
has become a big arms customer of Israel.
Somali families in Minnesota
are worried that their young men are returning to Somalia to fight.
More.
18 women
recruited as suicide bombers have surrendered to Coalition forces in Iraq after being persuaded to do so by family and clerics. The optimists in Iraq think there will be
a spike in violence as the US forces withdraw, the pessimists think it will fall apart.
Baghdad from a Blackhawk.
The
interesting difficulties of the Alawite-dominated Ba'ath regime in Syria.