Locals rule : historical lessons for creating local defense forces for Afghanistan and beyond

232 Pages·2012·0.872 MB·English

by  Austin Long, Stephanie Pezard, Bryce Loidolt, Todd C. Helmus

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LOCALS RULE
Historical Lessons for Creating Local
Defense Forces for Afghanistan and Beyond
Austin Long, Stephanie Pezard, Bryce Loidolt, Todd C. Helmus
Prepared for the Special Operations Joint Task Force—Afghanistan
Approved for public release; distribution unlimited
NATIONAL DEFENSE RESEARCH INSTITUTE
The research described in this report was prepared for the Special
Operations Joint Task Force–Afghanistan. The research was conducted
within the RAND National Defense Research Institute, a federally funded
research and development center sponsored by the Office of the Secretary
of Defense, the Joint Staff, the Unified Combatant Commands, the Navy,
the Marine Corps, the defense agencies, and the defense Intelligence
Community under Contract W74V8H-06-C-0002.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available for this publication.
ISBN: 978-0-8330-7659-5
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Cover images, top left: Civilian Irregular Defense Group Program training in Vietnam
(U.S. Army Center of Military History); top right: a young Harki fighter in French Algeria,
circa 1961 (Jean Poussin); bottom: Afghan Local Police (U.S. Army).
© Copyright 2012 RAND Corporation
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Preface
Local defense forces have often played a key role in counterinsurgen-
cies throughout the 20th century. Today, local defense forces in the
form of the Afghan Local Police constitute a major arm of the U.S.
strategy to secure Afghanistan. This book seeks to draw lessons from
previous efforts to build local defense forces. Specifically, it analyzes
the use and management of local defense forces in eight major coun-
terinsurgencies, from Indochina to Operation Iraqi Freedom. The goal
is to inform U.S. and allied operations in Afghanistan as well as other
current or future conflicts. The book concludes that local defense forces
can be highly effective in helping to defeat an insurgency but that the
management of these forces presents enormous challenges. The final
chapter summarizes key lessons learned and best practices for the man-
agement of local defense forces.
This research was sponsored by the Special Operations Joint Task
Force–Afghanistan and conducted within the International Security
and Defense Policy Center of the RAND National Defense Research
Institute, a federally funded research and development center spon-
sored by the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Staff, the Uni-
fied Combatant Commands, the Navy, the Marine Corps, the defense
agencies, and the defense Intelligence Community.
For information on RAND’s International Security and Defense
Policy Center, see http://www.rand.org/nsrd/ndri/centers/isdp.html or
contact the director (contact information is provided on the web page).
iii

Contents
Preface ............................................................................. iii
Summary .......................................................................... ix
Acknowledgments ............................................................. xvii
Abbreviations .................................................................... xix
ChAPter One
Introduction ....................................................................... 1
ChAPter twO
Indochina .......................................................................... 5
The Organization of Auxiliary Forces ........................................... 6
Special Purpose Auxiliaries ......................................................13
Auxiliaries and the End of the French War ....................................17
Motivations for Using Auxiliaries ...............................................18
Assessment ........................................................................ 20
Conclusion ........................................................................ 27
ChAPter three
Algeria .............................................................................29
Local Defense in the Maghreb ................................................. 30
Evolution of the Different Forces ................................................41
The Evian Accords and the Fate of Local Defense Forces ....................45
Assessment .........................................................................47
Conclusion .........................................................................51
v
vi Locals Rule: Historical Lessons for Creating Local Defense Forces
ChAPter FOur
South Vietnam ...................................................................55
Civilian Irregular Defense Groups ..............................................55
Combined Action Platoons ......................................................61
RF/PFs, PSDF, and the Accelerated Pacification Campaign .................72
Conclusion and Assessment ......................................................76
ChAPter FIVe
Oman.............................................................................. 77
Oman, Dhofar, and Britain Before 1970 .......................................78
The Coup and Emergence of Local Defense, 1970–1971 ................... 80
The Tide Turns and Local Defense Matures, 1972–1974 ................... 87
Victory and Transformation of the Firqat, 1975–1985 .......................91
Conclusion and Assessment ..................................................... 94
ChAPter SIx
el Salvador ....................................................................... 97
Local Defense in El Salvador ................................................... 98
Positive Assessments of Civil Defense ........................................ 100
Probems with Civil Defense ................................................... 101
Conclusion and Assessment .................................................... 105
ChAPter SeVen
Southern Lebanon ............................................................. 107
Israeli Operations and the Evolution of the Security Zone ................ 108
The Consolidation of the Free Lebanon Army, 1978–1982 ................ 111
Expansion, Professionalization, and Collapse, 1982–2000 ................ 118
Conclusion and Assessment .................................................... 128
ChAPter eIght
The Soviets in Afghanistan .................................................. 131
Modernity Beckons: Afghanistan in the 1970s .............................. 132
A House Divided: The Afghan Government, 1980–1987 .................. 133
Local Defense in the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan,
1980–1987 .................................................................. 135
Soviet “Surge” and Withdrawal, 1987–1989 ................................. 139
Contents vii
Najibullah’s Tightrope, 1990–1991 ........................................... 141
Kabul Burning, 1992–1993 .................................................... 144
Conclusion and Assessment .................................................... 147
ChAPter nIne
Iraq ............................................................................... 149
Early Local Defense Forces in Anbar Province, 2005–2006 .............. 149
The Anbar Awakening and the Sons of Iraq, 2007 ......................... 154
Reintegrating the Sons of Iraq, 2008–2009 ................................. 157
Strengths of Local Defense in Iraq ............................................ 161
Conclusion and Assessment .................................................... 163
ChAPter ten
Lessons Learned from historical Cases and Applications to the
Afghan Local Police ...................................................... 165
Lessons Learned ................................................................. 165
Lesson One: Manage the Trilateral Relationship ......................... 165
Lesson Two: Capitalize on Intelligence Collection ....................... 171
Lesson Three: Beware of Local History .................................... 173
Lesson Four: Maintain Relationships with Conventional
Security Forces ........................................................... 174
Lesson Five: Leverage Other Government Agencies ...................... 175
Lesson Six: Transition Forces with Care ................................... 175
Lesson Seven: Avoid Insurgent Strongholds ............................... 177
Other Lessons ................................................................. 177
Local Defense in Afghanistan After 2008 ................................... 179
Conclusion: The Application of Lessons to Afghan Local Police.......... 182
Bibliography .................................................................... 187