Insurgents’ Micro-tactics of Violence: Insights From the Taliban Insurgency

Abstract

The Taliban insurgency in northwest Pakistan has gained relatively limited research attention, and their micro-level violence techniques are underexplored. This article examines the insurgency and applies Randall Collins’s interaction theory of violence to analyze the Taliban’s violent tactics. Based on qualitative data, the findings indicate that the Taliban’s methods of executing violence included strategic decisions and actions; their methods and actions were calculating, discriminate, and deliberate. Such actions by the Taliban included targeting the vulnerable, engaging in violence by deception, conducting remote acts of violence, staging violent incidents, and employing threats to coerce, instill fear, and establish dominance. The examination and findings surrounding violent tactics in warfare highlight the impacts of interactional micro and emotional methods in intrastate conflicts, contribute to the literature on insurgent violence, and enhance sociological understanding of political violence.