The United States defines counterterrorism as the offensive measures taken to prevent, deter, preempt, and respond to terrorist activities (Rineheart, 2010) . Counterterrorism is characterized by three units, which are planning, preparedness, and tactical units. The planning unit is responsible for collecting intelligence on terrorist groups in order to plan attack strategies. This unit is also involved in surveillance and reconnaissance. The preparedness unit is mostly accountable for responding to terrorist attacks. It consists of the police, firefighters, and emergency units that work together to mitigate the effects of terrorist attacks. The third unit is the tactical unit, which is trained to handle terrorist threats. They perform preventive measures against terrorism, facilitate rescue missions, and address current attacks.
Counterinsurgency is defined as a collaborative action between the civilians and military strategies to defeat and suppress a rebellion (Rineheart, 2010) . Counterinsurgency is mostly tactical, and it involves creating strategies that ally the civilians to the military instead of scaring them off. This is because friendly civilians will give information about terrorist groups to the military (Ricks, 2009) . Some of the tactics that have been used include population control, oil spot, cordon and search, air operations, public diplomacy, and information operation.
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Both counterterrorism and counterinsurgency have played a role in the Global War on Terror (GWOT). Through counterterrorism strategies, security agencies are able to obtain vital information on terrorist groups. Counterterrorism activities have seen to the prevention of many panned attacks through analysis of information and the study of terrorist group's attack patterns. Counterterrorism has also helped during active combat; the units involved develop sufficient ammunition to counter those used by terrorists. Mitigation has also been an essential role of counterterrorism. On the other hand, counterinsurgency has contributed to the war on terror. It has been used on many occasions to lure terrorists from their dens. This strategy has proved to be useful, especially in the battle against Al-Qaida. The military collaborated with civilians to obtain information on the strategies of different subgroups in Al-Qaida ( Byman, 2004). Counterinsurgency is an effective strategy because it offers protection to civilians.
References
Byman, D. (2004). Al-Qaeda as an Adversary: Do We Understand Our Enemy? World Politics, 56(1), 139–163. https://doi-org.proxy-library.ashford.edu/10.1353/wp.2004.0002
Ricks, T. E. (2009). U. S. counterinsurgency academy giving officers a new mind-set: Course in Iraq stresses the cultural, challenges the conventional (Links to an external site.) . The Washington Post . Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/20/AR2006022001303.html
Rineheart, J. (2010). Counterterrorism and counterinsurgency. Perspectives on Terrorism , 4 (5), 31-47.
Slowtvaus. (2009, September 3). David Kilcullen on strategy and counterinsurgency in Iraq (Links to an external site.) [Video]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vK2hZgiQuBI&feature=related
