The Resistance Front: A Sign of Evolved Menace

The formation of various terror fronts and fanning the waves of separatism through different ways such as promoting and sheltering Khalistani terrorism has been a testimony to this strategy.

- DIVYANSH KALA

In a strategic move in accordance with zero tolerance towards terrorist organizations, the United States of America banned the notorious "The Resistance Front" (TRF), a proxy of Lashkar-e-Taiba. However, the Resistance Front should not be understood only as a terrorist organization; rather, it is a signal of how terrorist outfits are now maneuvering their strategies and tactics in changing times. The strategic discourse has shifted from conventional use of force in conventional battlegrounds. Now, with increasing digital footprints and decentralization of information technology, the war fronts have also decentralized. War no longer remains confined to borders; rather, the human mind and the societal psyche at large have become new theaters. Terrorist organizations have understood this and have started to evolve accordingly.

The emergence of Fifth Generation Warfare has forced terrorist leadership to conduct war in a new format. Fifth Generation Warfare is a decentralized type of warfare where the lines between war and peace, combatants and civilians, have been blurred. It is a long-term and complex warfare. To defeat the enemy, this warfare form takes advantage of societal fault lines by intensifying and exploiting them for the belligerent's purpose. Social engineering, propaganda, etc., are the main tools of this warfare.

The Resistance Front proves to be a classic study of the changing strategies of terrorist outfits to conduct war against their targets without direct involvement. Terrorist leaders are no longer the conducting agents of war. They have become facilitators of war by providing logistical and strategic support. This maneuver has posed a serious challenge to the security apparatus.