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Date: April 30, 2024 Tue
Time: 3:33 am
Time: 3:33 am
Results for militias
6 results foundAuthor: Reid, Rachel Title: “Just Don’t Call It a Militia” Impunity, Militias, and the “Afghan Local Police” Summary: With US plans to withdraw troops and hand over security to the Afghan government by 2014, the US and Afghan governments have embraced a high-risk strategy of arming tens of thousands of men in a new village-level defense force. Called the Afghan Local Police (ALP), it is the latest in a long line of new security forces and militias the US and other international forces have worked with in recent years to pave the way for the exit of international troops. The Afghan government has also recently reactivated various irregular armed groups, particularly in the north. “Just Don’t Call it a Militia” — based primarily on interviews in Kabul, Wardak, Herat, and Baghlan, with additional interviews in Kandahar, Kunduz, and Uruzgan—first surveys attempts over the past decade to create civilian defense forces in Afghanistan. While some efforts have been more successful than others, all have at times been hijacked by local strongmen or by ethnic or political factions, spreading fear, exacerbating local political tensions, fueling vendettas and ethnic conflict, and in some areas even playing into the hands of Taliban insurgents, thus subverting the very purpose for which the militias were created. Against this backdrop, we then provide an account of the ALP one year after it was created, detailing instances in which local groups are again being armed without adequate oversight or accountability. We conclude that unless urgent steps are taken to prevent ALP units from engaging in abusive and predatory behavior, the ALP could exacerbate the same perverse dynamics that subverted previous efforts to use civilian defense forces to advance security and public order. Details: New York: Human Rights Watch, 2011. 110p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 15, 2011 at: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/afghanistan0911webwcover.pdf Year: 2011 Country: Afghanistan URL: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/afghanistan0911webwcover.pdf Shelf Number: 122735 Keywords: MilitiasPolice AccountabilityPolicing (Afghanistan) |
Author: Lamb, Robert Dale Title: Microdynamics of Illegitimacy and Complex Urban Violence in Medellin, Colombia Summary: For most of the past 25 years, Medellin, Colombia, has been an extreme case of complex, urban violence, involving not just drug cartels and state security forces, but also street gangs, urban guerrillas, community militias, paramilitaries, and other nonstate armed actors who have controlled micro-territories in the city's densely populated slums in ever-shifting alliances. Before 2002, Medellin's homicide rate was among the highest in the world, but after the guerrillas and militias were defeated in 2003, a major paramilitary alliance disarmed and a period of peace known as the "Medellin Miracle" began. Policy makers facing complex violence elsewhere were interested in finding out how that had happened so quickly. The research presented here is a case study of violence in Medellin over five periods since 1984 and at two levels of analysis: the city as a whole, and a sector called Caicedo La Sierra. The objectives were to describe and explain the patterns of violence, and determine whether legitimacy played any role, as the literature on social stability suggested it might. Multilevel, multidimensional frameworks for violence and legitimacy were developed to organize data collection and analysis. The study found that most decreases in violence at all levels of analysis were explained by increases in territorial control. Increases in collective (organized) violence resulted from a process of "illegitimation," in which an intolerably unpredictable living environment sparked internal opposition to local rulers and raised the costs of territorial control, increasing their vulnerability to rivals. As this violence weakened social order and the rule of law, interpersonal-communal (unorganized) violence increased. Over time, the "true believers" in armed political and social movements became marginalized or corrupted; most organized violence today is motivated by money. These findings imply that state actors, facing resurgent violence, can keep their tenuous control over the hillside slums (and other "ungoverned" areas) if they can avoid illegitimizing themselves. Their priority, therefore, should be to establish a tolerable, predictable daily living environment for local residents and businesses: other anti-violence programs will fail without strong, permanent, and respectful governance structures. Details: College Park, MD: University of Maryland, 2010. 657p. Source: Internet Resource: Dissertation: Accessed May 6, 2013 at: http://drum.lib.umd.edu/handle/1903/10242 Year: 2010 Country: Colombia URL: http://drum.lib.umd.edu/handle/1903/10242 Shelf Number: 128671 Keywords: GangsHomicidesMilitiasOrganized CrimeParamilitariesRule of LawUrban AreasViolence (Colombia)Violent Crime |
Author: Althaus, Dudley Title: Mexico's Security Dilemma: Michoacan's Militias. The Rise of Vigilantism in Mexico and Its Implications Going Forward Summary: Since 2006, violence and criminality in Mexico have reached new heights. Battles amongst criminal organizations and between them have led to an unprecedented spike in homicides and other crimes. Large criminal groups have fragmented and their remnants have diversified their criminal portfolios to include widespread and systematic extortion of the civilian population. The state has not provided a satisfactory answer to this issue. In fact, government actors and security forces have frequently sought to take part in the pillaging. Frustrated and desperate, many community leaders, farmers and business elites have armed themselves and created so-called "self-defense" groups. Self-defense groups have a long history in Mexico, but they have traditionally been used to deal with petty crime in mostly indigenous communities. These efforts are recognized by the constitution as legitimate and legal. But the new challenges to security by criminal organizations have led to the emergence of this new generation of militias. The strongest of these vigilante organizations are in Michoacan, an embattled western state where a criminal group called the Knights Templar had been victimizing locals for years and had co-opted local political power. Details: Washington, DC: Wilson Center, Mexico Institute, 2014. 21p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 17, 2015 at: http://www.wilsoncenter.org/sites/default/files/MichSelfDefense_Althaus_Dudley.pdf Year: 2014 Country: Mexico URL: http://www.wilsoncenter.org/sites/default/files/MichSelfDefense_Althaus_Dudley.pdf Shelf Number: 136439 Keywords: GangsHomicidesMilitiasOrganized CrimeVigilantismViolence |
Author: Amnesty International Title: 'Punished for Daesh's Crime': Displaced Iraqis Abused by Militias and Government Forces Summary: Paramilitary militias and government forces in Iraq have committed serious human rights violations, including war crimes, by torturing, arbitrarily detaining, forcibly disappearing and extrajudicially executing thousands of civilians who have escaped areas controlled by the armed group calling itself the Islamic State (IS), said Amnesty International in a new report published today. The report 'Punished for Daesh's crimes': Displaced Iraqis abused by militias and government forces exposes the terrifying backlash against civilians fleeing IS-held territory, raising alarm about the risk of mass violations as the military operation to recapture the IS-held city of Mosul gets underway. The report is based on interviews with more than 470 former detainees, witnesses and relatives of those killed, disappeared or detained, as well as officials, activists, humanitarian workers and others. After escaping the horrors of war and tyranny of IS, Sunni Arabs in Iraq are facing brutal revenge attacks at the hands of militias and government forces, and are being punished for crimes committed by the group," said Philip Luther, Research and Advocacy Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International. "Iraq is currently facing very real and deadly security threats from IS, but there can be no justification for extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances, torture or arbitrary detention. "As the battle to retake Mosul begins, it is crucial that the Iraqi authorities take steps to ensure these appalling abuses do not happen again. States supporting military efforts to combat IS in Iraq must demonstrate they will not continue to turn a blind eye to violations." The report highlights widespread revenge attacks and discrimination faced by Sunni Arabs suspected of being complicit in IS crimes or supporting the group. Many were displaced during major military operations in 2016 across the country, including in Falluja and surrounding areas (in the governorate of Anbar), al-Sharqat (Salah al-Din governorate), Hawija (Kirkuk governorate) and around Mosul (Ninewa governorate). The predominantly Shi’a militias involved in abuses, known as the Popular Mobilization Units, have long been backed by the Iraqi authorities, which have provided them with financial support and weapons. They were officially designated part of the Iraqi forces in February 2016. The government's responsibility for these violations cannot be ignored and states supporting or participating in the ongoing military effort to combat IS in Iraq should have rigorous checks in place to ensure that any support or equipment they provide does not contribute to abuses. Mass abductions, killings and torture Amnesty International's research reveals that war crimes and other gross human rights violations were committed by predominantly Sh'ia militias, and possibly government forces, during operations to retake Falluja and surrounding areas from IS in May and June 2016. In one shocking incident at least 12 men and four boys from the Jumaila tribe who fled al-Sijir, north of Falluja, were extrajudicially executed after they handed themselves in to men wearing military and federal police uniforms on 30 May. Men and older boys were separated from the women and younger children before being lined up and shot dead. At least 73 other men and older boys from the same tribe were seized a few days earlier and are still missing. Details: London: AI, 2016. 70p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 1, 2016 at: http://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/files/punished_for_daeshs_crimes.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Iraq URL: http://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/files/punished_for_daeshs_crimes.pdf Shelf Number: 145773 Keywords: Extrajudicial ExecutionsHuman Rights AbusesISISIslamic StateMilitiasTorture |
Author: Hale, Gary J. Title: Vigilantism in Mexico: A New Phase in Mexico's Security Crisis Summary: The violent struggle between rival Mexican drug cartels and other criminal groups has left tens of thousands dead and towns across Mexico paralyzed with fear. With overwhelmed police forces relatively powerless to control drug-related murders and kidnappings, a growing number of vigilante organizations, or self-defense groups, aim to restore order-but now even they are fighting, and killing, among themselves. The rise of these vigilantes is yet another test for the Mexican government. Will people continue to take security matters into their own hands? How long will they operate as independent security units? In Michoacan, what started as a cooperative agreement between self-defense groups and the federal government has become a tug-of-war over which group will ultimately provide security in Western Mexico. In one incident, police in March 2014 found two charred bodies-believed to be members of a self-defense group-in the back of a pickup truck. Days later, Mexican federal police arrested Hipolito Mora, leader of a prominent, rival self-defense group.1 Internecine fighting among the vigilante groups only means trouble for their future- and the government that deputized them as armed, rural defense forces. Details: Baker Institute, Rice University, 2014. 4p. Source: Internet Resource: Issue Brief 04.18.14: Accessed November 16, 2017 at: https://www.bakerinstitute.org/media/files/Research/3e645892/BI-Brief-041814-Vigilantism.pdf Year: 2014 Country: Mexico URL: https://www.bakerinstitute.org/media/files/Research/3e645892/BI-Brief-041814-Vigilantism.pdf Shelf Number: 148201 Keywords: GangsHomicidesMilitiasOrganized CrimeVigilantismViolence |
Author: Human Rights Watch Title: "If You Are Afraid for Your Lives, Leave Sinai': Egyptian Security Forces and ISIS-Affiliate Abuses in North Sinai Summary: For over five years, civilians in Egypt's North Sinai governorate have been caught in the crossfire during the conflict between Egyptian government forces, mainly the army, and the Sinai Province armed group, an affiliate of the Islamic State. The army has effectively turned North Sinai into a closed military zone where reporting is banned. "If You Are Afraid for Your Lives, Leave Sinai!" is the result of a two-year long investigation into abuses by both sides in the armed conflict in North Sinai. Based on interviews with victims and witnesses, including former officers and officials, and a review of official statements, social media posts, media reports, and satellite imagery, the report finds that the army has arbitrarily arrested thousands of residents and disappeared hundreds of them, moving them into secret military detention facilities. Government forces have extrajudicially killed some of the detainees. The army also has recruited locals into unofficial militias who play a major role in these abuses. Civilians have also fallen victim to possible unlawful air and ground attacks by the Egyptian military. Moreover, government forces have imposed severe restrictions on various aspects of life, including transportation, electricity, and telecommunications, while forcibly evicting tens of thousands of people. The report additionally documents that fighters belonging to the militant group Sinai Province have engaged in a campaign of kidnap, torture, and murder of civilians opposing them or those perceived as government sympathizers. They have also used landmines close to civilian homes, resulting in casualties and forced evictions, and have imposed their own brutal interpretation of Sharia rules on residents in areas where the group exerts a significant degree of control. The report urges Egypt's international partners to halt all arms exports, security trainings, and assistance to the Egyptian army and police and condition resumption of such support on accountability for abuses and concrete improvement of human rights. Details: New York: Author, 2019. 144p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 26, 2019 at: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/egypt0519_web3_0.pdf Year: 2019 Country: Egypt URL: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/egypt0519_web3_0.pdf Shelf Number: 156707 Keywords: Extrajudicial Executions Human Rights Abuses ISIS Islamic State Militias |