Networks and Netwars: The Future of Terror, Crime, and Militancy ‘Summary:

The fight for the

future is not between

the armies of leading

states, nor are its

weapons those of

traditional armed

forces. Rather, the

combatants come

from bomb-making

terrorist groups like

Osama bin Laden’s

al-Qaeda, or drug

smuggling cartels like

those in Colombia and

Mexico. On the

positive side are

civil-society activists

fighting for the

environment,

democracy and

human rights. What

all have in common is

that they operate in

small, dispersed units

that can deploy

anywhere, anytime to

penetrate and

disrupt. They all

feature network

forms of organization,

doctrine, strategy,

and technology

attuned to the

information age. And,

from the Intifadah to

the drug war, they

are proving very hard

to beat.’ A report from the Rand Corp., published Nov. 2001. Each chapter is downloadable from the blinked page in .pdf format.