Doctoral Dissertation Research in Political Science: Waging War among Civilians: Patterns of Military-Civilian Interaction in the Second Intifada

本研究探讨了国内冲突中针对平民的暴力得以实施和控制的条件。它通过分析2000-2005年第二次起义中以色列士兵与巴勒斯坦平民的互动来做到这一点。在个人层面和单位层面都检查了相互作用，询问为什么一些战斗人员和一些单位比其他人更暴力或更少暴力，以及为什么有些人完全抵制暴力。研究包括对不同级别的退役作战士兵和部队指挥官的深度访谈，基于媒体和非政府组织报道的档案研究，以及对退役士兵的调查研究。这项研究是一个新兴的关于国内暴力微观基础的研究项目的一部分，该项目仍处于早期阶段。这项研究在几个方面有助于本研究项目。首先，与许多关于政治暴力的研究不同，这项研究并不局限于致命暴力，而是包括广泛的军民互动。其次，通过对普通士兵和高级军官的采访，调查人员能够更好地避免精英偏见，一些人认为精英偏见是许多政治暴力工作的特征。最后，该研究提请注意可以限制过度暴力的指挥和控制体制机制以及执行这些机制所涉及的挑战。除了理论贡献之外，该研究还具有重要的政策意义，因为它表明平民虐待和内部冲突并不一定是同义词。暴力的变化表明，暴力至少在某种程度上是可以遏制和控制的。了解限制暴力的机制可以更好地保护平民，更有效地管理冲突。

This study explores the conditions under which violence against civilians during internal conflict is enabled and controlled. It does so by analyzing Israeli soldier interactions with Palestinian civilians in the Second Intifada, 2000-2005. Interactions are examined both at the individual level and the unit level, asking why some combatants, and some units, are more violent or less violent than others, and why some resist violence altogether. The research includes in-depth interviews with former combat soldiers and army commanders of varying ranks, archival research based on media and NGO reports, and survey research of former soldiers. The study is part of an emerging research program on the micro-foundations of civil violence, still in its early stages. This study contributes to this research program in several ways. First, unlike much research on political violence, this study is not limited to lethal violence but includes a wide range of military-civilian interaction. Second, through interviews with both ordinary soldiers and higher ranked officers the investigator is better able to avoid the elitist bias which some argue characterizes much work on political violence. Finally, the study draws attention to institutional mechanisms of command and control that can limit excessive violence and to the challenges involved in implementing them. Beyond its theoretical contribution, the study has important policy implications as it suggests that civilian abuse and internal conflict are not necessarily synonymous. Variations in violence indicate that violence can be curbed and controlled, at least to some extent. An understanding of the mechanisms that limit violence can lead to better protection for civilians and more effective conflict management.