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Don’t Overestimate Drone Strikes’ Power to Kill High Value Targets

Since 9/11, eliminating terrorist leaders through a strategy known as leadership decapitation has emerged as key pillar of the United States’ counterterrorism strategy. Although the U.S. has successfully removed numerous terrorists from the battlefield, leadership decapitation does not necessarily equate to the destruction of a terrorist organization, especially groups with ties to local populations. The Cipher Brief spoke with Robert Pape, a Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago, about when leadership decapitation can prove effective and some of the factors that should be considered when implementing this approach.

The Cipher Brief: Is leadership decapitation, which some people refer to it as “mowing the grass” or “mowing the lawn,” an effective part of U.S. counterterrorism strategy?

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