| Summary/Abstract |
According to the strategy of decapitation, the best way to defeat a nation is by attacking its civilian and/or military leadership. Without it, the enemy can no longer fight effectively due to lack of direction and strategy-making capacity. Hence, the leadership is akin to the brain of the body in this view: without it, the rest of the organs can no longer function at the strategic level. Specifically, the objective of decapitation is to kill, overthrow or isolate the enemy regime by striking a small number of crucial leadership targets.1
1. John Warden, “The Enemy as a System,” Airpower Journal 9, no. 1 (1995): 40–55.
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The end goal is to win wars rapidly with minimal commitment of resources and risk of life, low collateral damage and minimal or no friendly casualties.
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