Using RASCAL to Find Key Villages in Afghanistan
Abstract
In 2010, the locals of the village of Gizab, Dykundi Province Afghanistan forcibly evicted the Taliban. Though not directly supported by U.S. ground forces, the villagers had received training and logistical support from U.S. Special Forces. Many hoped that the actions of the villagers could be replicated throughout the country. However, there are a limited number of U.S. Special Forces teams to conduct such missions. Can we identify a limited number of villages, such that if we provide them Special Forces support, the local revolts against the Taliban would be most likely to spread and stabilize at a large scale? In this paper, we take a network science approach to the problem. Using the tipping model from the social science literature, a network of villages created using tribal and spatial relationships, and a new software package called RASCAL (that the authors developed), we find that villages in Zabul have a significant influence on Helmand and Kandahar. In our results, villages in Zabul represented 40.00% of the influential villages for those three provinces -- while representing only 26.25% of the total villages examined.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 18, 2012
- Accession Number
- ADA565419
Entities
People
- Randolph Rotte
- Sean Eyre
- Theodore Taggart
Organizations
- United States Military Academy