Counterterrorism and Counterinsurgency in the Neoliberal Age

Khalili, Laleh

Abstract

This chapter examines the colonial roots of counterinsurgency practices deployed by the US after September 11,
2011 in Iraq and Afghanistan. Drawing on a broad range of primary sources produced by the US military and its
officers and soldiers, the chapter argues that the counterinsurgency practices were intended as liberal forms of
warfare that through the use of law, administration, and procedure intended to facilitate the conquest and
management of intransigent populations in those two countries. Given the broader failure of such practices to
pacify the conquered populations and the high cost—in blood, treasure, and political credibility—of maintaining
such futile warfare, the US has now changed gears to counterterrorism, which is far more about direct violence
than it is about imperial management and transformation of conquered populations.

Citation

Khalili, L. (2015). Counterterrorism and Counterinsurgency in the Neoliberal Age. In A. Ghazal, & J. Hanssen (Eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Middle-Eastern and North African History. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199672530.013.16

• Publication Date: Jun 1, 2015
• Deposit Date: Sep 15, 2015
• Publicly Available Date: Mar 3, 2025
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Book Title: The Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Middle-Eastern and North African History
• ISBN: 9780199672530
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199672530.013.16