Militant Tricks: Battlefield Ruses of the Islamic Insurgent by H. John Poole, Ray L. Smith (Foreword by)

From the Publisher

This book gauges America's progress in Iraq and Afghanistan from a unique perspective-that of East-Asian battlefield deception. As both countries were part of the Mongol Empire for over 200 years, they are a perfect breeding ground for every sort of ancient Chinese trick-any one of the famous "36 Strategems." In combination, those stratagems can make a losing adversary think he is winning. They have done so to America before.

To see past the militant Muslim's false face, one must look for the hidden intent behind his every initiative-whether martial or otherwise. Between September 2004 and September 2005, this book does just that for both theaters of war. For some readers, it will serve as an intelligence reference manual and be read a few paragraphs at a time. For others, it will provide an in-depth solution to the enemy's so-far-successful formula and be read cover to cover. Militant Tricks reveals enemy information that active-duty Americans seldom see-that which is contained in the regional media and literature. When properly interpretted (by a student of Eastern tactics and mindset), that information may shed enough light on ongoing events to still win both wars.

United Press International

America's best writer on small unit tactics and techniques.... If people at the top [pay] ... attention ..., we have ... chance of winning.

Leatherneck Magazine

Militant Tricks is a must-read for anyone who has a stake in the newest war and for every American who wants to see our values upheld. The author continues to produce tactical answers to our ever-growing challenges in "Fourth-Generation Warfare"

Newport News Daily Press

[This] 412-page book features 45 illustrations and serves as both an intelligence reference manual and an in-depth solution to the enemy's formula.

North County Times

Poole's book examines war at the tactical level, the level of small units and individuals, and tries to explain the insurgents' ways of thinking and fighting.

www.military.com

The best book on how to fight militants, resistance fighters, insurgents, or what ever you want to call them, is Militant Tricks.... Poole ... has a keen insight [in]to the Islamic[s'] combat tactics and how they wage jihad in all its forms.

What People Are Saying

William S. Lind
Militant Tricks is a worthy supplement to John Poole's previous, excellent books on the Eastern way of war.

John H. Admire
While many speak and write about war at the strategic level and focus on the plans of senior headquarters, John Poole instinctively knows that battles are won at the tactical level by the actions of junior leaders and small units... . 'Militant Tricks' helps those who fight to fight better and to fight smarter. (Maj.Gen. John H. Admire USMC (Ret.))

Edwin Howard Simmons
[F]or those who wish to better understand today's confused events, it [Militant Tricks] is well worth reading. (B.Gen. Edwin Howard Simmons USMC (Ret.))

Robert V. Kane
By changing our current dependence on firepower and mechanized warfare and adopting an almost decentralized approach, as found in Chapter 13, I believe we stand a chance of turning things around in both Iraq and Afghanistan. (Col. Robert V. Kane U.S. Army (Ret.))

Anthony C. Zinni
John Poole has written another superb work on the nitty-gritty lessons to be drawn from the complex conflict our forces face today. He gives our troops a clear understanding of the nature of the enemy and the tactical actions needed to defeat him. (General Anthony C. Zinni USMC (Ret.) former CENTCOM commander)

Ray L. Smith
John Poole's new book, Militant Tricks, provides a detailed 'blueprint for victory' in not only Iraq, but also Afghanistan... . For all Americans who want to see his [the militant Muslim's] so-far-successful method defeated, I can't recommend this book highly enough. (Maj.Gen. Ray L. Smith USMC (Ret.))

Thomas R. Sargent
This book must be required reading at the War Colleges and ... by all our military leaders. It is based on meticulous ... research coupled with on-site experience-John Poole is a master of military history. (Vice Adm. Thomas R. Sargent USCG (Ret.))

Product Details

• ISBN: 0963869582
  
• ISBN-13: 9780963869586
• Format: Paperback, 412pp
• Publisher: Posterity Press
• Pub. Date: October 2005
• Edition Description: 45 illustrations
• Sales Rank: 103,296

• Table of Contents
• Read an Excerpt

Table of Contents

Read an Excerpt

While ostensibly crude, the Muslim militant's method has never been defeated. Through multiple deception and continual mutation, it has so far bested Russia in Afghanistan and Chechnya, Israel in Southern Lebanon and Gaza, and the United States in Beirut and Mogadishu. To finally defeat that method, every deployed (or about-to-be-deployed) GI must become thoroughly familiar with its latest configuration. That will take a good, hard look at all that has happened over the last year.

In Iraq, U.S. forces have won every firefight and killed thousands of Islamic fighters. (See Map 1.1.) Unfortunately, wars are not won by occupying nonstrategic ground or killing opposition soldiers. They are won by destroying the enemy's "strategic assets." Eastern insurgents don't have many strategic assets. Whatever they need, they can generally take from a well-supplied adversary. To make matters worse, they have the edge in a 4th-generation-warfare (4GW) environment—one in which combat/tactics, religion/psychology, politics/media, and economics/infrastructure all come into play. In a densely populated area, they are virtually immune to electronic surveillance and precision bombardment. Every time their pursuer overreacts, he damages local infrastructure and loses popular support. As such, Eastern insurgents develop a full portfolio of battlefield feints.

What has, or has not, occurred in Iraq deserves a closer look from this perspective. Marco Polo did, after all, warn of the diabolical mysteries of Upper Persia. Could U.S. forces have "won" every firefight in Iraq and still be losing the war? They were equally lethal andnever driven from the field in Vietnam.

Within the context of Eastern intrigue, Iraq's future looks far less certain than one might think. The U.S. military has had trouble countering its new foe's propensity for chaos and deception. To do so now, it must identify, analyze, and compare every one of his strategic initiatives between September 2004 to September 2005. For many, there was a hidden objective, subtle diversion, and secret maneuver.

The Muslim Militants' So-Far-Successful Equation

The Iraqi "insurgency" is not the first regional jihad against a "high-tech" invader. Its architects have drawn on the lessons of Southern Lebanon, Afghanistan, and Chechnya. Their initial strategy is the same as it was there—to create chaos. By so doing, they hope to bankrupt the occupier, discredit the government, and manipulate the people. Since the U.S. invasion of Iraq, the opposition has done whatever it could to disrupt the everyday workings of that country. It has crippled the infrastructure, discouraged foreign aid, and terrorized the population. All the while, it has managed to create the impression that someone else was to blame. For the U.S. to succeed in Iraq, it must first discover how this "projection" of complicity has been accomplished.