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This electronic representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for non- commercial use only. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of our research documents. This product is part of the RAND Corporation monograph series. RAND monographs present major research findings that address the challenges facing the public and private sectors. All RAND mono- graphs undergo rigorous peer review to ensure high standards for research quality and objectivity. Urban Battle Fields of South Asia Lessons Learned from Sri Lanka, India, and Pakistan C. Christine Fair Prepared for the United States Army Approved for public release; distribution unlimited The research described in this report was sponsored by the United States Army under Contract No. DASW01-01-C-0003. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Fair, C. Christine. Urban battle fields of South Asia : lessons learned from Sri Lanka, India, and Pakistan / C. Christine Fair. p. cm. “MG-210.” Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 0-8330-3682-3 (pbk.) 1. Urban warfare—Sri Lanka. 2. Urban warfare—India. 3. Urban warfare—Pakistan. 4. Terrorism—Sri Lanka—Prevention. 5. Terrorism—India—Prevention. 6. Terrorism—Pakistan—Prevention. 7. War on Terrorism, 2001– I. Title. U167.5.S7F35 2004 355.4'26'0954—dc22 2004019129 The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit research organization providing objective analysis and effective solutions that address the challenges facing the public and private sectors around the world. RAND’s publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors. R® is a registered trademark. © Copyright 2004 RAND Corporation All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form by any electronic or mechanical means (including photocopying, recording, or information storage and retrieval) without permission in writing from RAND. Published 2004 by the RAND Corporation 1776 Main Street, P.O. Box 2138, Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138 1200 South Hayes Street, Arlington, VA 22202-5050 201 North Craig Street, Suite 202, Pittsburgh, PA 15213-1516 RAND URL: http://www.rand.org/ To order RAND documents or to obtain additional information, contact Distribution Services: Telephone: (310) 451-7002; Fax: (310) 451-6915; Email: [email protected] Preface Over the past several years, the U.S. military has become increasingly interested in military operations in urban areas. This attention is war- ranted because such operations are among the most complex chal- lenges that confront the U.S. Army, be it a conventional conflict or military operations other than war. Recent Army experiences in Iraq demonstrate the ability of the adversary to engage U.S. forces in ur- banized areas to vitiate much of the U.S. military’s edge in high- technology firepower. The likelihood that U.S. forces will engage in these environments will only increase as societies continue to urban- ize. Compared to a number of other nations, the Army has relatively less experience operating in this environment. There are countries that have been immersed in urban internal security and peace opera- tions for decades. This report will look at three such states: Sri Lanka, India, and Pakistan. While the three countries lack the technological sophistication and resources of U.S. armed forces, their experiences may be illuminating because of their extensive encounters with such conflicts. Moreover, they have had to find means of countering the urban threat within severe budget constraints. This monograph will analyze cases involving sustained cam- paigns of urban terrorism that have occurred in Sri Lanka, India, and Pakistan. It will identify key innovations of the organizations using terrorism. It will also detail the three states’ responses to the evolving threats they confront, noting successful as well as unsuccessful efforts. This effort will specifically focus upon the operational and tactical as- iii iv Urban Battle Fields of South Asia pects of the selected campaigns. It will not address the political, eco- nomic and sociological dimensions of these cases, which have been amply addressed by the literature on these conflicts. This monograph has several purposes. First, it seeks to garner operational insights from the experiences of countries that may en- hance the Army’s ability to operate in the urban environment. Sec- ond, it identifies common structural similarities within the militant organizations in question that might be targeted to degrade their ability to project power. Third, as these states are all partners to vari- ous extents in the global war on terrorism, this report describes ways to improve security cooperation programs with these states. Finally, it lists key insights from these countries that may inform U.S. stability operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, and future operations. This research is a part of a larger effort led by RAND Arroyo Center to identify current U.S. force requirements for urban contin- gency planning and to develop innovative approaches for doing so. This monograph will be of interest to individuals within the govern- ment whose responsibilities include doctrine, policy designs, plan- ning, and preparation to support civil or military operation in urban environments. It will also be of interest to individuals interested in structural features of organizations using terrorism to achieve their objectives. Research in conjunction with this report was undertaken for the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) and was conducted in RAND Arroyo Center’s Force Development and Tech- nology Program. RAND Arroyo Center, part of the RAND Corpora- tion, is a federally funded research and development center sponsored by the United States Army. For more information on RAND Arroyo Center, contact the Director of Operations (telephone 310-393-0411, extension 6419; FAX 310-451-6952; e-mail [email protected]), or visit Ar- royo’s web site at http://www.rand.org/ard/. Contents Preface....................................................................... iii Contents ..................................................................... v Figures ...................................................................... ix Tables ....................................................................... xi Summary................................................................... xiii Acknowledgments......................................................... xvii Glossary .................................................................... xix CHAPTER ONE Introduction .................................................................1 Background ..................................................................1 Methodology.................................................................2 Case Selection.............................................................2 Analytical Tools and Methods ............................................4 Objectives and Implications of This Study ..................................5 Summary of the Findings ....................................................6 Organization of This Report.................................................9 CHAPTER TWO Sri Lanka................................................................... 11 Preview of the Findings .................................................... 11 Introduction to the Case................................................... 15 Background to the Tamil Militancy ....................................... 16 Background on the LTTE ................................................. 20 The Indian Peacekeeping Force (July 29, 1987 to March 24, 1990)... 20 v vi Urban Battle Fields of South Asia The LTTE’s Ascendancy................................................ 23 LTTE Organization and Function ..................................... 24 LTTE: A Global Operator .............................................. 30 The LTTE’s Relationship with India ................................... 34 LTTE: Contacts and Training with Other Militant Organizations .... 36 Suicide Bombing and the Black Tigers Cadres ............................ 37 Adoption and Innovation of the Suicide Attack ........................ 38 Classes of Targets ....................................................... 40 Audiences for the Attacks ............................................... 43 Strategic Implications of Suicide Attacks ............................... 44 Mythology of the Hero ................................................. 46 Countering the LTTE in Colombo and Jaffna ............................ 47 The Colombo Theater .................................................