Victor Asal is the Director of the Center for Policy Research and a Professor of Political Science at the University at Albany, SUNY. His research focuses on violent nonstate actors (VNSAs), pedagogy and political discrimination related to ethnicity, gender and sexuality. He has been involved in research projects funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Defense Threat Reduction Agency, The Department of Homeland Security, The National Science Foundation, and The Office of Naval Research. Brian J. Phillips is a Reader in the Department of Government at the University of Essex, and an Affiliated Professor at the Center for Research and Teaching in Economics (CIDE) in Mexico City. His research focuses on subnational violence including terrorism, civil conflict, organized crime, and dynamics of violent groups. His research has been funded by the Department of Homeland Security, the National Science Foundation, and the Mexican Presidency. R. Karl Rethemeyer isthe Dean of the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences (SBS) at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a faculty member in SBS's School of Public Policy. His research spans terrorism, terrorist organizations, terrorist networks, counterinsurgency/stabilization operations, and the structure and operation of collaborative and policy networks in the public sector.

In this compelling book, Asal, Phillips, and Rethemeyer provide a much-needed investigation into why armed militant organizations target civilians during conflicts. The authors use both original quantitative data and numerous case references to construct a comprehensive picture of militant group targeting behavior that considers group relations with civilians, state counter-insurgency strategy, inter-group competition, group criminal activity, group ideology and ethnic ties and a host of other factors. The end result is a book that will inform both scholarly and policy audiences alike. A must-read for anyone interested in insurgent group behavior.

• SECTION I. Introduction, Theory, and Initial TestingChapter 1. Introduction Chapter 2. The Embeddedness Theory of Civilian Targeting by Insurgent Groups Chapter 3. Describing the BAAD2 Insurgency Data and Other Data Sources Chapter 4. Testing Primary Hypotheses SECTION II. Empirical Extensions: Types of Civilian TargetingChapter 5. Why Do Some Insurgent Groups Attack Schools? Chapter 6. Why Do Some Insurgent Groups Attack Journalists? Chapter 7. Why Do Some Insurgent Groups Mostly Attack the General Public? SECTION III. Further Analysis of Inter-Group RelationshipsChapter 8. Longitudinal Modelling of Insurgent Alliances Chapter 9. Understanding Insurgent Rivalry Chapter 10. Conclusion