Cities are the new battleground of our increasingly urban world. From the slums of the global South to the wealthy financial centers of the West, Cities Under Siege traces the spread of political violence through the sites, spaces, infrastructure and symbols of the world’s rapidly expanding metropolitan areas. Drawing on a wealth of original research, Stephen Graham shows how Western militaries and security forces now perceive all urban terrain as a conflict zone inhabited by lurking shadow enemies. Urban inhabitants have become targets that need to be continually tracked, scanned and controlled. Graham examines the transformation of Western armies into high-tech urban counter-insurgency forces. He looks at the militarization and surveillance of international borders, the use of ‘security’ concerns to suppress democratic dissent, and the enacting of legislation to suspend civilian law. In doing so, he reveals how the New Military Urbanism permeates the entire fabric of urban life, from subway and transport networks hardwired with high-tech ‘command and control’ systems to the insidious militarization of a popular culture corrupted by the all-pervasive discourse of ‘terrorism.’

A collection of essays exploring dangerous situations discusses wildfires in the western United States, the diamond trade in Sierra Leone, war zones in Kosovo and Afghanistan, and a hostage crisis in Kashmir.

"Cities, War and Terrorism" is the first book to look critically at the ways in which warfare, terrorism and counter-terrorism policies intersect in cities in the post Cold-War period. A path-breaking exploration of the intersections of war, terrorism and cities Argues that contemporary cities are the key strategic sites of geopolitical conflict Written by the world's leading analysts of the intersections of urban space and military and terrorist violence Draws on cutting-edge research from geography, history, architecture, planning, sociology, critical theory, politics, international relations and military studies Provides up-to-date empirical analyses of specific conflicts, including 9/11, the "War on Terrorism," the Balkan wars, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and urban antiglobalization battles Offers lay readers a sophisticated perspective on the violence that is engulfing our increasingly urbanised world

Product Description: This book is about urban terror - its meaning, its ramifications, and its impact on city life. Written by a well-known expert in the field, "Cities in a Time of Terror" draws on data from more than a thousand cities across the globe and traces the evolution of urban terrorism between 1968 and 2006...read more

Product Description: This book is about urban terror - its meaning, its ramifications, and its impact on city life. Written by a well-known expert in the field, "Cities in a Time of Terror" draws on data from more than a thousand cities across the globe and traces the evolution of urban terrorism between 1968 and 2006...read more

Product Description: This book is the first full-length study of a key security issue confronting the west in the twenty-first century, urban military operations - as currently being undertaken by US and UK forces in Iraq. It relates military operations in cities to the wider study of conflict and security in an era of urbanisation, expeditionary warfare and new power conflicts; its central process is urban operations, but its context is the changing security environment, whose features are revealed in conflicts within cities...read more

Although the seemingly apocalyptic scale of the World Trade Center disaster continues to haunt people across the globe, it is only the most recent example of a city tragically wounded. Cities are, in fact, perpetually caught up in cycles of degeneration and renewal. As with the WTC, from time to time these cycles are severely ruptured by a sudden, unpredictable event. In the wake of recent terrorist activities, this timely book explores how urban populations are affected by wounds inflicted through violence, civil wars, overbuilding, drug trafficking, and the collapse of infrastructures, as well as natural disasters such as earthquakes. Mexico City, New York, Beirut, Belfast, Bangkok and Baghdad are just a few examples of cities riddled with problems that undermine, on a daily basis, the quality of urban life. What does it mean for urban dwellers when the infrastructure of a city collapses transport, communication grids, heat, light, roads, water, and sanitation? What are the effects of foreign investment and huge construction projects on urban populations and how does this change the look and character of a city? How does drug trafficking intersect with class, race, and gender, and what impact does it have on vulnerable urban communities? How do political corruption and mafia networks distort the built environment? Drawing on in-depth case studies from across the globe, this book answers these intriguing questions through its rigorous consideration of changing global and national contexts, social movements, and corrosive urban events. Adopting a grass roots up approach, it places emphasis on peoples experiences of uneven development and inequality, their engagement with memory in the face of continual change, and the relevance of political activism to bettering their lives. It is especially attentive to the historical interaction of particular cities with wider political and economic forces, as these interactions have shaped local governance over time. Imagining e

Product Description: A study of the military's plans to improve command, control, and communications in urban operations, with a focus on the communications problems facing dismounted infantrymen in urban environments.

(view table of contents)

(view table of contents)

(view table of contents)

Product Description: This case study analysis of three recent urban operations is intended to update the lessons learned from prior military experience. The three cases examined―Panama in 1989, Somalia in 1992-1993, and Chechnya in 1994-1995―all occurred within the last ten years and capture the range of political constraints that military forces must operate under in urban environments...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

(view table of contents)