The Special Operations Policy Forum is a joint effort of the Global SOF Foundation, New America, the University of Texas, and Arizona State University. This half-day seminar was focused on US Special Operations Forces (SOF) posture and policies, including security trends, impacts of modern warfare, and changing defense budgets.
Cybersecurity in the United States and around the world is staring down a future of unknowns. Cybersecurity for a New America 2017 will ask: “What’s next?”
On March 20, 2017, New America will convene leaders from industry, government, academia, and policy to consider those unknowns, and to look at both long-term trends and more immediate prospects for the next administration and the 115th Congress.
We will also showcase New America's efforts to help build more effective cybersecurity capacity—human, technical, organizational, and institutional.
On September 30, 2011 Anwar al-Awlaki was killed in an American drone strike. Awlaki’s death marked a new step in America’s approach to the war on terror – the targeted killing of an American citizen. In his new book, Objective Troy, New York Times reporter Scott Shane tells the gripping and unsettling story of Anwar al-Awlaki, the once-celebrated American imam who called for moderation after 9/11, a man who ultimately directed his outsized talents to the mass murder of his fellow citizens.
Informants and undercover officers are a central part of American counter-terrorism strategy. Almost half of the individuals accused of terrorism related crimes since 9/11 have been monitored by informants. Today, the FBI maintains 15,000 informants across the United States working cases on a variety of issues not just terrorism. Yet many investigations have come under criticism for entrapping vulnerable individuals who would not have engaged in terrorist activity if they had never crossed paths with law enforcement. What is the proper role of informants and undercover operations?
Female reporters and authors often face unique challenges when investigating and reporting for their work, especially in repressive regimes. Delphine Schrank, author of The Rebel of Rangoon: A Tale of Defiance and Deliverance in Burma, wrote the story of a group of resisters who fought for democracy in Burma/Myanmar against one of the world's most repressive military junta's, largely while working undercover.
Clear and secure rights to property—land, natural resources, and other goods and assets—are crucial to human prosperity. Most of the world’s population lack such rights. That lack is in part a consequence of political and social breakdowns, and in part driven by informational deficits. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), also known as drones, by virtue of their aerial perspective, are able to gather large amounts of information cheaply and efficiently, as can unpowered aerial platforms like kites and balloons.
During the first four years of the U.S. presence in Iraq, the city of Fallujah remained mired in almost continuous violence. Most famously, it was the site of the two iconic battles by U.S. forces to retake the city from insurgent forces in 2004 and was the home to numerous insurgent groups operating just west of Baghdad. While U.S. and Iraqi forces successfully retook the city, they struggled to set the conditions for Iraqi government control as they continued to wage a low-intensity warfare campaign against insurgents.
Should governments talk to terrorists? Do they have any choice? In Terrorists at the Table, Jonathan Powell argues that we will never end armed conflict without allowing for negotiation with terrorists. In his book, Mr. Powell draws upon his own experiences negotiating peace in Northern Ireland and talks to the major players from the last thirty years--terrorists, Presidents, secret agents and intermediaries, exposing the subterranean world of secret exchanges between governments and armed groups.
In August 1947, India and Pakistan were partitioned, yet the boundary between Indian and Pakistani culture remained porous and intersecting. In The Sky Below, award winning filmmaker Sarah Singh explores the painful memories and powerful issues arising from the partition. Shot on both sides of the Indo-Pak border, with a strong local ethos communicated through the music, the language and the people, the film provides unique perspective upon the partition and its aftermath.