The importance of facing sixth generation wars ✍️ Professor: Fikri Kabbashi, Al-Amin Al-Arabi
In the name of God the most merciful, the most merciful
The Sixth and Fifth Generation Wars are more than just a development of the Fourth Generation Wars and those that preceded them. It is an unrestricted war in which all means are used to force the enemy into submission. It is considered a hybrid war that combines. traditional means with unconventional means such as information wars, cyber wars and others. The most important characteristic of these modern wars is that they aim to overthrow existing regimes, and strategic and military analysts differ in defining generations or eras of wars due to the difference in military and tactical standards and the theoretical concepts they use in definition or analysis. However, a distinction can be made between five or six generations and this is explained by the following:
First Generation Wars: American military expert and writer William Lind defines them as the wars of the era spanning between the years 1648 and 1860, known as conventional warfare.
This name was given to wars that take place between two regular armies on the same territory and in a specific field, where clashes take place directly between two or more adversaries and in which weapons, ammunition and traditional tactics of combat are used. all kinds. This generation of wars is characterized by the emergence of elements of chivalry, courage and daring at the level of leaders and individuals. Humanity experienced these wars very early, which continued until the period before World War II, in which a large number of military operations were used, such as maneuver and evasion operations, to surround the opponent and hit them behind the scenes to eliminate and destroy them. .
Second generation or guerrilla wars: This generation is characterized by what is known as guerrilla or revolutionary warfare, and typically takes place between a traditional regular army and relatively small groups fighting to achieve an objective. These wars are somewhat similar to the wars of the first generation, but the development of weapon techniques, maneuver tactics, movement, fire and how to manage the use of tanks and aviation between the sides in conflict made them more precise. in terms of its ability to cause greater casualties on both sides of the conflict. Guerrilla warfare is characterized by its own strategy and ideology. It arises in a continuous and long conflict, which requires the adoption of the method of surprise and surprise in the fight against regular armies, and the adoption of painful blows against the enemy in multiple small battles and clashes, this which weakens it. his capacity and makes him retreat from his objectives under the weight of the successive strikes of an adversary who appears and disappears. He fights according to a strategy in which he imposes himself and determines his conditions, and determines his place and time so as to guarantee his fitness. success.
Guerrilla warfare is characterized by unilateral leadership, as its leaders usually combine military and political leadership. This war also relies primarily on media support, in order to gain more supporters, support and financial donations. These wars have spread to many countries of the world, and perhaps the most important thing that distinguishes them is that there is no specific standard for arming their elements, but the nature of dynamic movement and maneuver conditions imposed there imposes the adoption of light forces and medium weapons.
Third Generation Wars: Some define this generation as preemptive wars, based on the theory of “deterrence through suspicion.” It is a political-military theory that originated in the United States of America after the collapse of the former Soviet Union. In practice, this means a preemptive strike and war against anything that might threaten American national security or world peace, and the Iraq War is an example of this. However, American expert William Lind believes that it was the Germans who developed this generation during World War II by embracing flexibility and speed of attack, as well as surprise and warfare behind enemy lines.
Fourth-generation wars: Military experts agree that the fourth-generation war, known as “asymmetric warfare,” is a purely American war, as the U.S. military found itself fighting “no country” after the events of September 11, 2001. Or in other words. , these were well-trained, militarily professional, globally distributed combat organizations with excellent capabilities and active hidden cells to attack the vital interests of other countries in order to weaken them in front of public opinion internal. And force it to withdraw from any interference in its areas of influence. In this war, new and traditional media, civil society and opposition organizations, intelligence operations, private security companies and American influence in any country are used to serve US interests. United States of America and their strategic policies.
Fifth Generation Wars: Some consider that human wars today have reached what are called fifth generation wars, which depend on creating contradictions between the authority and society of a country, exploiting all the means. One analyst says the fifth generation is building on its strategy. on “the occupation of minds”. Not the land, and after occupying the minds, the occupier takes care of the rest, he uses unarmed violence, exploiting the groups. Armed ideologies, organized smuggling bands and small organizations formed, in order to create internal wars that vary between economic, political and social, with the aim of exhausting the targeted country and putting it in the face of internal conflicts, alongside violent external threats.
Fifth generation warmakers rely on the use of modern technologies, which include armed force, such as anti-armor missiles, suicide operations, ambushes, terrorist acts and unarmed force, in which the The enemy is active without appearing directly. These technologies also include electronic terrorism, cyberwarfare and the provocation of people and their displacement according to the political goals of other countries. Some experts believe that one of these techniques also involves creating a state of chaos at the sites of conflict between local parties, allowing major powers to intervene and direct it to their advantage, and the “Arab Spring”, according to some, is one of these applications. . Experts also believe that flooding targeted areas with drugs is one of the effective weapons of fifth generation warfare. He uses modern technologies in order to create a government in the shadows. It also targets multiple, systematic small entities that work to destroy education in universities, sow chaos, and commit criminal acts to sow doubt about the state's ability to control security. These criminal outfits are exploited to fabricate information, alter facts and intimidate citizens.
Sixth Generation Wars: There are those who speak of the sixth generation of wars and believe that Russia was the first to start it, and this is a war managed remotely, through the use of smart weapons to incite society. by the total recruitment of Internet networks with the aim of destroying the foundations of the State and making it fail. Clever methods vary and include using birds, animals and fish as remote spying and nuisance tools. Methods for dealing with modern wars include the importance of focusing on society and implementing good governance policies, which help strengthen society in winning. the loyalty of citizens, by targeting the social incubators of terrorists and armed militias, and by drying up its resources. Programs aimed at educating individuals and preventing cultural penetration into society are among the most important methods for confronting this generation of wars, in addition to dismantling hostile alliances that form against the state and preventing their financing and their financial and human support. and non-military, with the aim of avoiding an explosion from within due to the presence of gaps in the community fabric.
Teacher: Fikri Kabbashi, Al-Amin Al-Arabi
