Kevin A O’Brien
Biographic Data
| ID | 6567395 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Kevin A O’Brien |
| GIVEN NAMES | Kevin A |
| FAMILY NAME | O’Brien |
| SIGNATURE | O’BRIEN K A |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Hull |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 12 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 10 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 12 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1995 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2013 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
Islamist militancy in Sierra Leone
This article examines the contemporary Islamic trends in post-conflict Sierra Leone (through 2009) against the background of international concerns that the country might become a haven for religiously-inspired violence. It argues that there is some evidence that prolonged economic impoverishment and foreign religious influences, especially from Saudi Arabia and Iran, have led to a reinvigoration of Islam in post-war Sierra Leone. Though this rei…
Managing national security and law enforcement intelligence in a globalised world
This article argues that there are five major challenges currently facing Western intelligence communities. First – ensuring skills retention for intelligence officers and analysts, while developing knowledgeable managers and customers, all in an increasingly-complex security environment. Second – instituting and inculcating knowledge and expertise in these staff – while addressing an opponent in al-Qaeda which demonstrates increasingly sophistic…
Ungoverned Territories: Understanding and Reducing Terrorism Risks
Using a two-tiered framework areas applied to eight case studies from around the globe, the authors of this ground-breaking work seek to understand the conditions that give rise to ungoverned territories and make them conducive to a terrorist or insurgent presence. They also develop strategies to improve the U.S. ability to mitigate their effects on U.S. security interests
Ungoverned Territories: A Unique Front in the War on Terrorism
This research brief describes a RAND Project AIR FORCE study of the factors that give rise to ungoverned territories and make some of them conducive to terrorists and insurgents
A blunted spear: The failure of the African National Congress/South African Communist Party revolutionary war strategy 1961–1990
Following a classic Maoist revolutionary war strategy, with both Guevarian and Giapist elements, the African National Congress (ANC) attempted to overthrow, through revolutionary violence, the apartheid government of South Africa. This struggle, which began in 1961 and was eventually suspended in mid-1990, witnessed the general failure of the ANC strategy: for all intents and purposes – and despite all claims to the contrary – the ANC and its arm…
Information age, terrorism and warfare
This essay will discuss two of the key pillars of asymmetry: notably Information Operations and terrorism, including the links between the two. While a great deal changed on 11 September 2001, one thing that has not changed in substance is the challenge of protecting the Information Society, notably from cyber-threats. Although the immediate threat to Western societies is from the physical and possibly bio-weapons favoured by Al Qaeda and its ass…
Truth and Reconciliation in South Africa: Confronting the Past, Building the Future
Military‐advisory groups and African security: Privatized peacekeeping
Private security firms are growing in influence throughout Africa and other regions of the world; generally composed of former special forces personnel from Western or Southern African countries, they increasingly include strong capabilities in combat firepower and support. While most often they are involved in the re‐training and re‐equipping of national armies in these countries, they have also been involved in combat operations to secure and s…
The use of assassination as a tool of state policy: South Africa's counter-revolutionary strategy 1979-92 (part I)∗
This article will discuss the use of assassination as a tool of state policy, examining a number of cases in which assassination has been so used in the modern era. It will focus on the role of the apartheid‐era security forces in South Africa, and the policies that developed under South Africa's counter‐revolutionary strategy against the various liberation movements in Southern Africa during the last 15 years of the apartheid government. Notes T…
South Africa's evolving intelligence and security structures
Regional security in southern Africa: South Africa's national perspective
South Africa has re‐emerged into the international forum as a strong leader in Southern Africa and as a potential leader in the international system. Following its first democratic elections in April 1994, South Africa began to transform its security forces in order to reflect fully the make‐up and constitution of its society, and the new norms which will govern it. These changes in policy have been reflected in the transformation of the South Af…
Interfering with civil society: CIA and KGB covert political action during the Cold War
(1995). Interfering with civil society: CIA and KGB covert political action during the Cold War. International Journal of Intelligence and CounterIntelligence: Vol. 8, No. 4, pp. 431-456
Military‐advisory groups and African security: Privatized peacekeeping
Private security firms are growing in influence throughout Africa and other regions of the world; generally composed of former special forces personnel from Western or Southern African countries, they increasingly include strong capabilities in combat firepower and support. While most often they are involved in the re‐training and re‐equipping of national armies in these countries, they have also been involved in combat operations to secure and s…
The use of assassination as a tool of state policy: South Africa's counter-revolutionary strategy 1979-92 (part I)∗
This article will discuss the use of assassination as a tool of state policy, examining a number of cases in which assassination has been so used in the modern era. It will focus on the role of the apartheid‐era security forces in South Africa, and the policies that developed under South Africa's counter‐revolutionary strategy against the various liberation movements in Southern Africa during the last 15 years of the apartheid government. Notes T…
Regional security in southern Africa: South Africa's national perspective
South Africa has re‐emerged into the international forum as a strong leader in Southern Africa and as a potential leader in the international system. Following its first democratic elections in April 1994, South Africa began to transform its security forces in order to reflect fully the make‐up and constitution of its society, and the new norms which will govern it. These changes in policy have been reflected in the transformation of the South Af…
Interfering with civil society: CIA and KGB covert political action during the Cold War
(1995). Interfering with civil society: CIA and KGB covert political action during the Cold War. International Journal of Intelligence and CounterIntelligence: Vol. 8, No. 4, pp. 431-456
South Africa's evolving intelligence and security structures
Regional security in southern Africa: South Africa's national perspective
South Africa has re‐emerged into the international forum as a strong leader in Southern Africa and as a potential leader in the international system. Following its first democratic elections in April 1994, South Africa began to transform its security forces in order to reflect fully the make‐up and constitution of its society, and the new norms which will govern it. These changes in policy have been reflected in the transformation of the South Af…
Military‐advisory groups and African security: Privatized peacekeeping
Private security firms are growing in influence throughout Africa and other regions of the world; generally composed of former special forces personnel from Western or Southern African countries, they increasingly include strong capabilities in combat firepower and support. While most often they are involved in the re‐training and re‐equipping of national armies in these countries, they have also been involved in combat operations to secure and s…
The use of assassination as a tool of state policy: South Africa's counter-revolutionary strategy 1979-92 (part I)∗
This article will discuss the use of assassination as a tool of state policy, examining a number of cases in which assassination has been so used in the modern era. It will focus on the role of the apartheid‐era security forces in South Africa, and the policies that developed under South Africa's counter‐revolutionary strategy against the various liberation movements in Southern Africa during the last 15 years of the apartheid government. Notes T…
Truth and Reconciliation in South Africa: Confronting the Past, Building the Future
A blunted spear: The failure of the African National Congress/South African Communist Party revolutionary war strategy 1961–1990
Following a classic Maoist revolutionary war strategy, with both Guevarian and Giapist elements, the African National Congress (ANC) attempted to overthrow, through revolutionary violence, the apartheid government of South Africa. This struggle, which began in 1961 and was eventually suspended in mid-1990, witnessed the general failure of the ANC strategy: for all intents and purposes – and despite all claims to the contrary – the ANC and its arm…
Information age, terrorism and warfare
This essay will discuss two of the key pillars of asymmetry: notably Information Operations and terrorism, including the links between the two. While a great deal changed on 11 September 2001, one thing that has not changed in substance is the challenge of protecting the Information Society, notably from cyber-threats. Although the immediate threat to Western societies is from the physical and possibly bio-weapons favoured by Al Qaeda and its ass…
Ungoverned Territories: Understanding and Reducing Terrorism Risks
Using a two-tiered framework areas applied to eight case studies from around the globe, the authors of this ground-breaking work seek to understand the conditions that give rise to ungoverned territories and make them conducive to a terrorist or insurgent presence. They also develop strategies to improve the U.S. ability to mitigate their effects on U.S. security interests
Ungoverned Territories: A Unique Front in the War on Terrorism
This research brief describes a RAND Project AIR FORCE study of the factors that give rise to ungoverned territories and make some of them conducive to terrorists and insurgents
Managing national security and law enforcement intelligence in a globalised world
This article argues that there are five major challenges currently facing Western intelligence communities. First – ensuring skills retention for intelligence officers and analysts, while developing knowledgeable managers and customers, all in an increasingly-complex security environment. Second – instituting and inculcating knowledge and expertise in these staff – while addressing an opponent in al-Qaeda which demonstrates increasingly sophistic…
Islamist militancy in Sierra Leone
This article examines the contemporary Islamic trends in post-conflict Sierra Leone (through 2009) against the background of international concerns that the country might become a haven for religiously-inspired violence. It argues that there is some evidence that prolonged economic impoverishment and foreign religious influences, especially from Saudi Arabia and Iran, have led to a reinvigoration of Islam in post-war Sierra Leone. Though this rei…
Political science (12 works) · Law (9 works) · Sociology (6 works) · Law (5 works) · Computer Science (4 works) · Computer security (4 works) · Geography (4 works) · Intelligence, Security, War Strategy (4 works) · Political economy (4 works) · Government (linguistics (3 works)