Hi,
The method of warfare, particularly from the 20th century, has taken a more brutal turn. The development of nuclear weapons, weapons of mass destruction, weapons that inflict grievous harm and torture on the human body, he development of these weapons has caused the world's warfare system to take a different turn. The use of such heinous armaments has caused warfare to be more brutal and inhumane.
Today, armed conflicts hardly resemble the wars described in history books, where two or more state armies engage on a traditional battlefield and where only the soldiers' abilities and military leadership serve as a bridge between victory and defeat. Warfare in modern society has changed into a treacherous game in civilian-prone environments, where adversaries try to defeat each other by exploiting each other's weaknesses. Today, warfare rarely occurs between states along a front line, but instead, it occurs between parties with different legal statuses and considerably different military resources, organizations, and commando structures. Conflicts where the parties differ in terms of and/or quantitative strength can be described as asymmetric.
The developments of the modern world and the world of technology has brought war to an unconventional state, where battles are fought as the parties will, bringing about a reckless abandon of the laws governing war.
The American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) defines asymmetrical warfare as:
"the use of innovative strategies, tactics and technologies by a weaker state or sub-state adversary, that are intended to avoid the strengths and exploit the potential vulnerabilities of larger and technologically superior opponents."
Non-international armed conflicts are an acute example of amorphous wars. This conflict takes place between the state party and a non-state party (rebel groups or secessionists). The non-state parties are usually the weaker parties, and they engage in guerilla warfare tactics; they fight on their own terms and use unconventional methods of warfare to achieve their objective. An example of this is acts of terrorism occasioned by religious terrorists, i.e., ISIS, and Boko Haram, where they engage in kidnapping and killing civilians, bombings, suicide bombings, fighting in urban environments, using the human shield, and so on.
WHY AMORPHOUS (ASYMMETRICAL WARS)?
The increase in asymmetrical and non-structural warfare around the world and the increase in the intensity of such conflict are tied to some key factors.
1. The proliferation of weapons around the globe: The excessive availability of weapons is a primary cause of the outbreak of wars in several parts of the globe. The progression of technology in warfare, not only funds belligerents with instruments of war, but also fuels the passion to keep fighting wars. Weapons are now readily made available to terrorists and other non-state actors in armed conflicts. The possession of such firearms by these non-state actors is not only illegal but costly to the kind of warfare our society experiences. Many of the non-state actors, particularly those recruited into the fight, were formally civilians, but for the availability of arms. Hundreds and thousands of civilian youths and children, particularly boys, ordinarily should not abandon school for the warfront, but for the availability of arms.
Belligerents are spurred (particularly, non-state actors) by their armory to keep fighting, because they have the means to do so. This takes the parties to the conflict further and further from the negotiation table; they are of the perception that the more havoc wrecked, the better the chance of them reaching their objective. This notion has cost many societies it's political and economic stability, order and serenity, social sanity, the loss of many lives, and a gross amount of capital flight, as such environments remain retrogressive for long periods of time. Examples are, Sudan, Somalia, Liberia, Sierra Leonne, Afghanistan etc.
2. Change in technology of warfare: The dramatic change in the technology employed in warfare has left our world with more and more asymmetric conflicts. Belligerents, particularly High Contracting parties are always interested in testing their newly developed weapons. For instance, the world's first nuclear weapons explosion on July 16, 1945, in New Mexico, when the United States tested its first nuclear bomb. Not three weeks later, the world changed. On August 6, 1945, the United States dropped an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. It affected nearly 130,000 people. Three days later, the United States bombed Nagasaki. Of the 286,00 people living there at the time of the blast, 74,000 were killed and another 75,000 sustained severe injuries. This brought about an epic shift in the kind of warfare our world engages in. More and more state parties are acquiring arsenals that bring about mass destruction. This has in turn influenced present day wars to be more asymmetric.
3. Radical nationalism and religious extremism: The 20th century brought about a radical digression from colonial wars to national (internal) wars. The 20th century and 21st century have been characterized by a lot of nationalist movements and religious extremisms, which have led to the full-blown armed conflicts we experience today. With the independence of many states, particularly in Africa, we have witnessed an aggressive struggle for power, influence, control over resources, and struggle for tribal and religious superiority. The extremisms in nationalist and religious ideologies and beliefs have led to the formation of many belligerent groups (non-state actors), mainly rebel groups and terrorist groups.
4. Variations in military might also spur amorphous wars. Since the parties vary in terms of military might, they might also vary in strategy and warfare tactics. This is very common in internal armed conflict, where non-state actors, who are smaller in terms of military and arsenals, engage in guerilla warfare tactics. Guerrilla tactics include ambush, avoiding open battle, cutting communication lines, and generally harassing the enemy.
The most efficient way to avoid this kind of war is to prevent the causes of the war in the first place. To a considerable extent, fair leadership and economic stability in countries (particularly third-world countries) will aid in reducing the occurrence of asymmetric warfare, as many wars are politically and economically inspired.
