Protection of Civilians Military Reference Guide, Second Edition Second Edition | Page 37

Protection of Civilians Military Reference Guide
criminal groups, and terrorists, as well as regular and irregular security forces (including those of
the host-state government). Groups that are nominally aligned with the military force or its partners
may be viewed as adversaries if they also jeopardize PoC. Some adversaries (such as some local
leaders or media) may “attack” the military force with non-physical means and may need to be
addressed with non-combat methods such as information activities or key leader engagements.
b. An adversary’s center of gravity could be its leadership, armed groups, financial backing,
ideology, recruitment, or other candidates.
c. Adversary critical capabilities may include maintaining control over an area; retaining the
support of the military or other armed groups, an elite, or selected international actors; generating
or coercing support from a sizable part of the population; conducting operations against victims
and any opposition including intervening military forces or peacekeeping missions; concealing
acts of violence against civilians from outside observers; attacking “soft networks” such as
humanitarian organizations or civilian workers that support the military force or stabilization
efforts; 20 intimidating other actors; dissuading effective action by the international community and
intervening military forces; or legitimizing adversary actions through propaganda and efforts to
discredit intervening military forces.
d. Adversary critical requirements may include sufficiently loyal and pervasive armed
eleme nts to target civilians and any opposition including intervening military forces; control and
manipulation of information; monetary, weapons, political or other support from third-party
enablers (including neighboring nations or political or armed groups from other countries); a
legitimizing narrative; immunity or anonymity to preclude accountability for their crimes; and
general military-type functions such as mobility, command and control, logistics, facilities,
recruits, and combat power. Adversaries will often view their motivations (such as political power,
the elimination of rivals, profit, or survival) as critical requirements.
e. Critical vulnerabilities for adversaries may include corruption and infighting; limited
commitment in the event of adversity or setbacks; loss of support from enablers or the population;
insufficient strength and resources; fragile and targetable logistics and command and control; low
morale, discipline, or training; and limited capability beyond infantry-type forces.
V ULNERABLE C IVILIANS
a. This category includes any civilians who are vulnerable to the threats discussed in Task 4—
Understand Civilian Vulnerabilities and Threats. While military forces are usually concerned
about violence that threatens civilians, they may have to address other vulnerabilities as well.
Vulnerable civilians may be defined by political, economic, area, or social affiliation or other
characteristics such as gender or age. In some situations, an entire population may be vulnerable
without regard for their particular group affiliation.
b. The center of gravity for vulnerable civilians may be survival, to include their continued
existence as a distinct identity group.
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For information on soft networks, see Warren Miska, “Soft Networks: Time to Counter the Enemy’s Logical
Strategy” in the Combatting Terrorism Exchange, Vol 3, No. 4, November 2013. Also see Scenario 10 in Annex E.
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