Written by James WebbIt was my 3rd mission that I bagged my first bad guy.Right out of the bird, I knew we were running up to the top of a hill and just above the target building. To be blatantly honest, all I paid attention to at that point was how far we were walking and if there was a terrain feature or not we had to cross, meaning a big ass mountain or anything that … [Read more...]
US/Iran Relations and the “Abu Monroe” Doctrine
US/Iran Relations and the "Abu Monroe" Doctrine By John ChandlerThis article first appeared in The Havok Journal in October of 2017 and was updated to reflect recent developments in Yemen. -editor _____ In recent weeks, an MQ9 Reaper unmanned aerial vehicle was shot down over Yemen, continuing a trend of attacks against US personnel and combat systems deployed to the … [Read more...]
Israel, Palestine, and the False Hope of “CoExistence”
Israel, Palestine, and the False Hope of "CoExistence" by Mike KelvingtonEditor's Note: Former Army Ranger and longtime Havok Journal writer Mike Kelvington penned this piece for a journal run by the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism in the Interdisciplinary College (IDC) at Herzilya, Israel. We're re-posting an excerpt here, I highly encourage you to read … [Read more...]
ISIS “SEAL Commando Video” Is… Well It’s As Awesome As You’d Expect.
ISIS "SEAL Commando Video" Is... Well It's As Awesome As You'd Expect. by Scott FaithThose clowns at ISIS are at it again, producing yet another "tacticool" recruiting video. This one focuses on maritime commando operations, and the outcome is about what you'd expect.In comparison to their beheading videos, which tend to be brutal and slickly produced, ISIS's … [Read more...]
One Hell of a Ride Back to the FOB
One Hell of a Ride Back to the FOB by Carlos TecheraThere I was laying on my back in a ditch. Everything flashing before my eyes, in an empty silence. "What just happened, no way did that just happened. Shit, we crashed... we crashed," my inner voice yelling at me open your eyes.There the silence subsided, my senses restarted I gasped for air, "I am alive."Screams, … [Read more...]
Jihadi Novels: Same Story, Different Medium, Wave of the Future?
In reading “A Guest on This Earth: Humam al-Balawi and the Birth of Jihadist Fiction” by Nadav Samin, the content struck me as both contemporary and historical. On one hand, the subject of the story, doctor and author turned suicide bomber, Humam al-Balawi is now known as a trailblazer likely to be the first to pen a jihadi novel titled “Take Me to Jihad,” written and posted … [Read more...]
The Top Five Weird Books On Osama Bin Laden’s Bookshelf
“Tonight, I can report to the American people and to the world that the United States has conducted an operation that killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of al-Qaeda.….” – President Barack ObamaOn 1 May 2011, the President of the United States announced the death of terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden. On 20 May 2015, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence … [Read more...]
Saudi Women and the War on Terror
In the masculine-driven nation of Saudi Arabia, women are subordinate men and the state, yet, in the eyes of both, they serve as an important role within their society. Historically and contextually, the Saudi government sees women as weak and “depicted as needing to be protected, controlled, and guided within an authoritarian, paternalistic, and protective framework, lest … [Read more...]
Importing the Muslim Brotherhood: Creation of the “Sahwa” in Saudi Arabia
Importing the Muslim Brotherhood: Creation of the “Sahwa” in Saudi Arabia by Mike KelvingtonA movement known as the Islamic Awakening (al-Sahwa al-Islamiyya) or Sahwa quickly established itself as a counter-culture to the religious establishment in Saudi Arabia over the course of only a few decades, starting in the mid-1950s.[1] During this time, the Muslim Brotherhood … [Read more...]
Ulama in the Kingdom: Useful Pawns or Strategic Partners?
Ulama in the Kingdom: Useful Pawns or Strategic Partners? by Mike KelvingtonPrior to reading portions of Nabil Mouline’s The Clerics of Islam I did not see the ulama, or Islamic clerics of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as anything more than religious pawns for the royal Saudi family to use when they needed to justify political decisions or legitimize their actions. … [Read more...]