by Jill. S. Russell
It is that time of year when conspirators and urban mayhem are ritually on the minds of Londoners. One year on from the start of Strife and the first of my Guy Fawkes pieces, it is worth considering how two recent events can fundamentally shift the terms of urban security, either for good or ill.
Turning first to the September attack on the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, there is much to concern the observer. The insurgent as commando is entirely effective against soft population targets, to take and hold micro-territory to short term tactical success. [1] Taking account of what we know about the modern mob in tumult [2] then the coupling of the insurgent and the mob emerges as a viable, if novel, Combined Arms [3] model for 21st century warfare. [Read more…] about Strife Remembers, Remembers