| ID | 099276 |
| Title Proper | Are coethnics more effective counterinsurgents |
| Other Title Information | evidence from the second Chechen war |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Lyall, Jason |
| Publication | 2010. |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | Does ethnicity matter for explaining violence during civil wars? I exploit variation in the identity of soldiers who conducted so-called "sweep" operations (zachistki) in Chechnya (2000-5) as an empirical strategy for testing the link between ethnicity and violence. Evidence suggests that the intensity and timing of insurgent attacks are conditional on who "swept" a particular village. For example, attacks decreased by about 40% after pro-Russian Chechen sweeps relative to similar Russian-only operations. These changes are difficult to reconcile with notions of Chechen solidarity or different tactical choices. Instead, evidence, albeit tentative, points toward the existence of a wartime "coethnicity advantage." Chechen soldiers, enmeshed in dense intraethnic networks, are better positioned to identify insurgents within the population and to issue credible threats against civilians for noncooperation. A second mechanism-prior experience as an insurgent-may also be at work. These findings suggest new avenues of research investigating the conditional effects of violence in civil wars. |
| `In' analytical Note | American Political Science Review Vol. 104, No. 1; Feb 2010: p1-20 |
| Journal Source | American Political Science Review Vol. 104, No. 1; Feb 2010: p1-20 |
| Key Words | Chechen War ; Civil War ; Violence |