Special operations forces (SOF) as the “silver bullet”: Strategic helplessness and weakened institutional and extra-institutional civilian control

In this chapter I put forward four interrelated points: first, that the strategic helplessness of key civilian and military decision makers in the face of global jihadism has led to an emphasis on using SOF as a suitable, often preferred, response; second, that the sustained employment of such forces actually reinforces and intensifies this strategic helplessness; third, that the deployment and use of SOF necessitates forms of civilian control and oversight differing from those applied to conventional forces; and fourth, given the distinct political and ethical dilemmas posed by the use of SOF - especially targeted killings - the appropriate control of SOF must include both institutional and extra-institutional mechanisms.