In retrospect, the Syrian regime’s military victory in Aleppo city was not wholly unsurprising given the considerable resources that it invested in the battle and the fact that the rebels had previously transferred significant resources away from the city in order to take part in Operation Euphrates Shield in the north of the province. However, … [Read more…]
I am currently looking for participants for an online study on moral decision-making. Please read the information below to find out more about the study and follow the survey link if you would like to take part. Many thanks! Researchers at the Department of Psychology at University of Liverpool are looking for participants to take … [Read more…]
On the night of 19 September 2016, the war in Syria produced yet another atrocity, when a UN aid convoy was destroyed as it was being unloaded near the rebel held town of Urem al-Kubrah to the west of Aleppo city. The convoy had begun its journey in regime-controlled west Aleppo, and had been given … [Read more…]
In September of 2013, the emotionally distraught Sammy Yatim was fatally shot by Toronto Police Cst. James Forcillo while aboard a Toronto Transit street car. Video surveillance of the event reveals images of Yatim wielding a knife in one hand while exposing himself with the other. All passengers on the street car were able to exit … [Read more…]
As an interactive and mutual constitutive process between officer, civilian, and often also third parties, interpersonal communication is a crucial variable in the psychology of critical and major incidents involving law enforcement. Insight into the communicative dynamics underlying tactical decision making requires an understanding of the transactional nature of the corresponding crisis communication. Starting in spring … [Read more…]
From 9/11 to today’s crowd-sourced violence, trace how terrorists’ strategies have evolved. On September 11, 2001, an unimaginable horror unfolded that devastated a nation and the world. Fifteen years later, we are still gripped by terror, but it has transformed. The attacks have been coming fast and furious—to Boston, Paris, Brussels, San Bernardino, Orlando, Nice—but … [Read more…]
On 28 July 2016 Abu Mohammed al Jolani, the leader of Jabhat al-Nusra (JN), al Qaeda’s (AQ) affiliate in Syria, announced that “We (JN) declare the complete cancellation of all operations under the name of Jabhat al-Nusra, and the formation of a new group operating under the name Jabhat Fath al-Sham (JFS), noting that this … [Read more…]
Any use of lethal force by police officers lies at the extreme edge of policing activity. There is a fine line between the use of necessary force to achieve legitimate police objectives and the use of excessive force. When an officer uses force that may be considered excessive, public approval for police authority is shaken. … [Read more…]
From mid-2014, Islamic State (IS) began to use chemical weapons (CW) on the battlefields of Syria and Iraq. Since then, it has striven to develop more lethal CW, and formulate the necessary tactics to use them effectively. Through its territorial conquests in Syria and Iraq, it has gained access to a range of industrial chemicals … [Read more…]
The attack on the Pulse nightclub in the city of Orlando by Omar Mateen, is just one of a long line of mass shootings in the US. Because he was a Muslim and had declared allegiance to Islamic State (IS) during the course of the attack, there was a rush to judgement that this was … [Read more…]
