Publication

This report relies upon the center-of-gravity sections of Clausewitz's "On War" in order to 1) assess the strengths and weaknesses of Salafi-jihadi groups now operating in Syria and Iraq, and 2) clarify potential courses of action for US leaders, particularly against the so-called Islamic State and Jabhat al Nusra. As the report's authors see it, the two groups derive their strengths from different sources in Iraq and Syria, which means that the strategies used to defeat them should be nuanced and area-specific.