The Role of Human Terrain and Cultural Intelligence in Contemporary Hybrid and Urban Warfare

This article deals with the increasing importance of human terrain and cultural intelligence in the contemporary urban warfare and elaborates on the interfaces between human terrain and cultural intelligence. After defining the concepts and explaining their rationales and necessity we describe the modern historical development of both, emphasizing the American experience in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, and briefly mentioning on the Israeli experience in Lebanon and the Palestinian territories. Using the theoretical foundations of both concepts enables us to add another analytical and theoretical layer to the existing literature. Our main claim is that acquiring an in-depth understanding of the local culture is an essential condition for ensuring the relevance of a military mission. Cultural understanding and knowledge are outcomes of cultural intelligence which obtained by the Human Terrain System that must be a structural and operational means of each military mission and force participates in contemporary hybrid and urban warfare. Recognizing the importance of cultural intelligence led the American military to develop its Human Terrain System. Commanders and team members who took part in the program widely agreed that the Human Terrain System contributes to the relevance and success of the military mission. On the other hand, its operation also sparked criticism, both in military and academic arenas. Despite the methodological, operational, and organizational developments of the Human Terrain System in the American context, gaps still exist, and its assimilation in the combat doctrine and in the intelligence methodology also exist among the security and intelligence agencies in Israel.