Ever since the evolution of mankind, the art of warfare has witnessed numerous changes. From early hand to hand fight, the art of warfare transitioned to become the battle of wits, nerves, technology and tactics. Wars were fought with the swords and spears till the invention of guns in 14th century. From the first use of guns in a battle till the Napoleonic era, warfare relied on manpower and line-and-column tactics to achieve firepower concentration. Focus of warfare shifted from manpower to firepower, between American civil war and WW-I, with the invention of machine guns and efficient rifles. Improved ranges and accuracy of the weapons also increased the width of the battle zone. The technological advancements of the twentieth century added
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The overwhelmingly superiority displayed by the coalition forces, during gulf war, made clear that in near future the US forces are unlikely to fight a conventional war. Instead the enemy will look for other ways of waging war to cater for their weaknesses. After 9/11, asymmetric warfare emerged as a term applicable to a number of overt and covert operations fought by regular and irregular forces. Adversaries waging the asymmetric warfare can employ a variety of tools, ranging from cyber warfare to Weapons of Mass Destruction or the use of terrorism. Use of terrorism has been the most common form of asymmetric warfare. Post 9/11, US led coalition forces threw everything at Al-Qaeda by launching a worldwide campaign against it. Al-Qaeda absorbed the impact of the Western military force and transformed itself into a global organization. Modern thinkers, through historical case studies, have developed a theory that explains a six step process on how the terrorism ends. This process includes capturing or killing a leader, negotiations, achieving strategic goals, implosion, crushing with military force and transitioning to other modus operandi. The military operations of the past decade suggest that a terrorist group will resort to asymmetric tactics instead of wagging a conventional war. It is absolutely imperative that military commanders and their staff understand the challenges posed by the new arena, while planning and conducting military operations. Key military thinkers formulated a theory of fighting an asymmetric war and armed forces are trained to fight a war in smaller
The overwhelmingly superiority displayed by the coalition forces, during gulf war, made clear that in near future the US forces are unlikely to fight a conventional war. Instead the enemy will look for other ways of waging war to cater for their weaknesses. After 9/11, asymmetric warfare emerged as a term applicable to a number of overt and covert operations fought by regular and irregular forces. Adversaries waging the asymmetric warfare can employ a variety of tools, ranging from cyber warfare to Weapons of Mass Destruction or the use of terrorism. Use of terrorism has been the most common form of asymmetric warfare. Post 9/11, US led coalition forces threw everything at Al-Qaeda by launching a worldwide campaign against it. Al-Qaeda absorbed the impact of the Western military force and transformed itself into a global organization. Modern thinkers, through historical case studies, have developed a theory that explains a six step process on how the terrorism ends. This process includes capturing or killing a leader, negotiations, achieving strategic goals, implosion, crushing with military force and transitioning to other modus operandi. The military operations of the past decade suggest that a terrorist group will resort to asymmetric tactics instead of wagging a conventional war. It is absolutely imperative that military commanders and their staff understand the challenges posed by the new arena, while planning and conducting military operations. Key military thinkers formulated a theory of fighting an asymmetric war and armed forces are trained to fight a war in smaller