Managing a Transnational Insurgency: The Islamic State of Iraq's "Paper Trail," 2005-2010

Abstract

A cornerstone of strategic thinking is a clear understanding of one's opponent. Developing such an understanding in dealing with the Islamic State (IS) is challenging. Constraints on access to the frontlines in Iraq and Syria make it unusually hard for researchers to ground assessments in evidence-based approaches. This occasional paper contributes to the development of an empirically grounded understanding of the IS by analyzing the finances and management of the group's predecessor, the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), which changed its name to the Islamic state of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) in April 2013 and then the Islamic State in June 2014. This occasional paper describes key findings of a joint research project between the Combating Terrorism Center (CTC) at the United States Military Academy and the Empirical studies of Conflict Project (ESOC) at Princeton.

Open PDF

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Dec 15, 2014
Accession Number
ADA615955

Entities

People

  • Danielle F. Jung
  • Jacob N. Shapiro
  • Jon W. Wallace
  • Pat Ryan

Organizations

  • United States Military Academy

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Abstracts
  • Administrative Personnel
  • Finance
  • Governments
  • Information Operations
  • Insurgency
  • Organizational Structure
  • Personnel Management
  • Security
  • Terrorism
  • Terrorists
  • Training
  • United States
  • United States Military Academy
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Political Violence and Terrorism Studies.
  • Systems Analysis and Design