40th ID Urban Warfare Center
@UrbanWarfareCtr
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@40thID Urban Warfare Center studies #urbanWarfare and operations in dense urban environments, including #SbT , for @USArmy 🇺🇸 #WarInCities #UrbanOperations
JFTB, Los Alamitos, CA
Joined December 2021
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And here we go!
@SpencerGuard
kicking off the latest Urban Operations Planner Course here at
@40thID
headquarters.
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John Spencer talks with Radio Free Europe on Ukraine's momentum going into 2023.
@SpencerGuard
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"It is time to seriously consider how we prepare soldiers for the physical challenges of urban warfare. . . The current United States Army fitness standards, especially with the most recent version of the ACFT, do not aptly prepare soldiers for this level of strain."
The physical and mental demands of urban combat are staggering.
How and why leaders should focus on training the fitness and resiliency to fight and win block to block.
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Day 3 Recap of the Urban Warfare Planners Course boarding a C-17 to get boots-on-ground urban warfare training in the city of Razish at NTC, Fort Irwin. We were guided by the expertise of NTC’s top SMEs.
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The
@40thID
#UrbanWarfare
team will conduct the next Urban Operations Planner Course 10-16 July 22 at Joint Forces Training Base, Los Alamitos. The course prepares brigade/division staff officers/NCOs to successfully plan and execute large-scale urban operations.
@SpencerGuard
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John Spencer discusses the battle of Bakhmut with Michael Kofman, director of the Russia Studies Program at CNA.
#UrbanWarfare
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Day 1 Recap of the Urban Warfare Planners Course was a fantastic success! 🌍 We kicked off with a warm welcome to our international participants, our Army components, SOF personnel, and newcomers. Follow our journey ahead! 🚀
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John Spencer speaks with Aiden Aslin on how he and a small group of defenders held off a much larger Russian force for over eighty days during the battle of Mariupol.
@WarInstitute
@SpencerGuard
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Urban tactical problem solving for Divisions in
#UrbanWarfare
with Dr
@JacobStoil
. This is what everyone came for!
(Photobomb by
@SpencerGuard
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The
@40thID
#UrbanWarfare
team will conduct the next Urban Operations Planner Course 14-20 May 23 at Joint Forces Training Base, Los Alamitos. The course prepares brigade/division staff officers/NCOs to successfully plan and execute large-scale urban operations.
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For this week’s Urban Operations Planner Course, we published and used our final draft of The Gray Book,
@40thID
’s Urban Standard Operating Procedures. We received useful feedback from planners and will post a link on our Community of Interest page soon.
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We present to offer one-stop shopping for
#UrbanWarfare
history, scholarship, resources, and points of contact for the
#UrbanOperations
Community of Interest (COI). This is a living webpage, updated often to keep it relevant, and we welcome your feedback.
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Day 2 Recap of Urban Warfare Planners Course: Taking strategy to new heights with a UH-60 Blackhawk ride over Los Angeles, where tactical simulations meet real-world urban dynamics. 🏙️🚁
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One month left to go until
#UOPC
24-1. The greatest minds in
#UrbanWarfare
will be there. Will you?
Email 40ID-urban-warfare
@army
.mil for more info or to sign up.
@SpencerGuard
@JaysonGeroux
@JacobStoil
@Stu_Lyle
@Sahrmally
@ZFTWARNING
@SapperGeologist
@40ID_DeputyCG
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Kicking off the second day of our
#UrbanWarfare
master class,
@Stu_Lyle
from UK Ministry of Defence shares his vision of future war… (spoiler: it’s urban)
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We agree that the
@USArmy
should permanently fund the
@40thID
‘s Urban Operations Planners Course. The weeklong course teaches staff how to conduct large-scale urban operations (offense and defense) in dense urban areas. As we have seen in 2023,
#UrbanWarfare
is the future of war.
The 2023 Urban Warfare Experts’ Christmas Wish List
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Two weeks until we start another
@40thID
Urban Operations Planner Course at
@JFTBLosAl
. Once again, the best minds in
#UrbanWarfare
will converge to offer unique training for BDE/Division planners to succeed in the hardest combat environment: Dense Urban Terrain.
The Urban Operations Planner Course hosted by the 40th Infantry Division, kicks off July 10, 2022, JFTB in Los Alamitos, California. The course brings together an international audience of military personnel to discuss modern warfare in megacity environments.
@UrbanWarfareCtr
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Our
#urbanWarfare
planners got some great practice today: a custom urban
#wargame
and an urban terrain walk in Long Beach. Practical application for the skills they have learned so far.
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In case you missed
@SpencerGuard
's opening remarks for this weeks Urban Operations Planner Course, you can watch it on the
@40thID
Urban Warfare Center's YouTube channel here:
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@Sahrmally
helps us consider
#CivilianHarmMitigation
in our Urban Operations Planner Course. She’s a fantastic addition to the
@40thID
#UrbanWarfare
Center. Thank you
@CivCenter
for letting us borrow her for the week.
@SpencerGuard
@JaysonGeroux
@JacobStoil
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California Army National Guard, 40th Infantry Division "Sunburst Division" Urban Operations Planner Course 2022 collaboration, learning, sharing, preparing for future operations in an Urban Environment
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Our Director of Training,
@SpencerGuard
, had an enlightening and wide-ranging conversation with GEN Petraeus on his
@WarInstitute
podcast. Give it a listen.
What does it take to defeat an enemy force entrenched in a city? Retired General David Petraeus joins John Spencer to discuss.
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Day 4 Recap of the Urban Operations Planners Course: examining urban terrain from a high vantage point, applying in-class discussions to the streets of Long Beach City through simulated scenarios. Gaining tactical insights from above for optimal urban operations.
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Check out this article on
#UrbanWarfare
from
@ArmyUPress
. MAJ Anderson makes a solid argument for the city as key terrain in a conflict. He even mentions the
@40thID
@UrbanWarfareCtr
’s Urban Ops Planner Course, going on right now. This morning,
@Sahrmally
is up!
@SpencerGuard
The physical and infrastructure characteristics of cities can make control of them critical for victorious military campaigns. Read about it at
@TRADOC
@usacac
@ArmyUPress
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In 1 week, we start our 2nd Urban Ops Planner Course. A who's who of
#UrbanWarfare
experts will join
@40ID_DeputyCG
at
@40ID
HQs in LA to teach...
@SpencerGuard
,
@JaysonGeroux
,
@Stu_Lyle
,
@NTCLead6
,
@JacobStoil
,
@ZFTWARNING
,
@DerekBaird15
, Dr. Paul from
@RANDCorporation
, and
@ESRI
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@Stu_Lyle
is a key contributor to
@40thID
’s Urban Operations Planner Course. If
@dstlmod
will let us borrow him again, we hope to have him back again for the fourth iteration of the course this summer in
#LosAngeles
25-31 Aug 2024.
#urbanWarfare
#UPOC
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Understanding construction and placement of strongpoints is key for both offense and defense in
#UrbanWarfare
. Give this great podcast a listen.
Urban Warfare Project Podcast: Urban Strongpoints
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Looking forward to COL(CA) Spencer kicking off
@40thID
’s
#UrbanOperations
Planner Course next month as our keynote speaker. We still have room in the concurrent online version of the course; email 40ID-urban-warfare
@army
.mil to join us. See for more info.
Why is urban warfare the hardest form of warfare for any military (to include the best in the world) to conduct? The physical terrain, presence of people, information domain, complexity, and culture/bias/assumptions. Have a listen to my latest podcast!
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Urban Ops Planner Course 2023-1 is complete! Thanks to all the
#urbanistas
who increased the student planners' understanding of how to successfully wage
#UrbanWarfare
.
Check out this article on last week's course, published by
@CalGuard
's Grizzly Magazine:
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One more week until we kick off another Urban Operations Planner Course at
@40thID
HQs, bringing staff officers/NCOs together with the best & brightest
#UrbanWarfare
scholars/practitioners. There are still openings for the virtual course --> contact 40ID-urban-warfare
@Army
.mil
Future wars will be fought in and over urban areas.
Check out the
@calguard
's news story on last month's Urban Operations Planner Course held at
@40ID
in Los Angeles. Email 40ID-urban-warfare
@army
.mil to attend the next course in May '23.
@SpencerGuard
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John Spencer talks with Preston Stewart on how the urban fight in Ukraine has changed.
@SpencerGuard
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Registration is open to service members from any branch or component. A concurrent distance-learning option is available for those who cannot attend the class in person. Course registration closes 01APR22. To request a seat, please email 40id-urban-warfare
@army
.mil
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Future wars will be fought in and over urban areas.
Check out the
@calguard
's news story on last month's Urban Operations Planner Course held at
@40ID
in Los Angeles. Email 40ID-urban-warfare
@army
.mil to attend the next course in May '23.
@SpencerGuard
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“Decisive fights are in the urban areas… [urban is] an increasingly dominant characteristic of modern war.” “Open-space maneuver is becoming less and less common.”
Our own senior fellow, Maj
@JaysonGeroux
, guest hosts this MWI podcast with Dr Lou DiMarco.
Our guest on this episode of the Urban Warfare Project Podcast literally wrote the book on the history of urban operations. Retired Lt. Col. Louis DiMarco, author of "Concrete Hell," joins guest host Jayson Geroux.
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Want to hear how
@40thID
's
@UrbanWarfareCtr
got our start? It was
@40ID_DeputyCG
listening to this podcast in November 2020 that started the whole thing. 2 yrs & 2 UOPC's later, we can't believe that
@spencer_guard
thought another state would be a better choice than
@CalGuard
😁
This episode of the MWI Podcast features a conversation with John Spencer, one of the foremost experts on the subject of urban warfare and MWI's chair of urban warfare studies.
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Course graduates will gain foundational understanding of Dense Urban Environments (DUE), the complex challenges DUE poses to military operations, and the capabilities, approaches, and tactics available to successfully address those challenges.
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Taiwan is ~80% urban. We talk a lot about offense & maneuver in
#UrbanWarfare
, but this excellent article from
@USNIProceedings
discusses defending
#Taiwan
against an invasion that will be decided in the streets.
Thanks to one of our instructors, Dr Sullivan, for sharing
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Visit the 40ID Urban Warfare Community of Interest (COI) webpage at for urban warfare case studies and references, as well as more details about the upcoming Planner Course 10-16 July 2022 at JFTB, Los Alamitos.
@JaysonGeroux
@Stu_Lyle
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An outstanding look at the looming
#UrbanWarfare
in the
#UkraineRussianWar
from
@WarintheFuture
(MG(ret) Ryan, Australian Army). Worth your time to read this astute thread today.
Ten days since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began. In the past 24 hours, we have seen limited Russian progress in the north and east, increased use of Russian air power, & some progress in the south. The capture of Kyiv is the focus of this thread. 1/25 (Image
@IAPonomarenko
)
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2K
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One of the finest minds in
#sociology
, Dr Anthony King (
@antbruceking
) expanded the planners understanding of the future of
#ArtificialInteligence
and its application for military operations, including
#UrbanWarfare
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Our teammate and eminent urban scholar, Colonel (CA) Spencer, shares his top 5 foundational (for now)
#UrbanWarfare
books
I was recently asked for my top 5 book recommendations for
#urbanwarfare
against peer enemies. Here you go (these are of course the 5 until my book with
@LiamSCollins
comes out this year):
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@SapperGeologist
joined the Urban Ops Planners Course
#UOPC
to share the history of Subterranean warfare, which is inextricably linked to
#UrbanWarfare
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👇
@40ID_DeputyCG
is on
@SpencerGuard
's latest podcast! Email 40ID-urban-warfare
@army
.mil to attend the next
@40thID
Urban Ops Course in May '23. View the lessons from last month's course on our YouTube channel:
@Bigtow3360
@Stu_Lyle
@JaysonGeroux
My latest podcast. Details of our second iteration of the
@40thID
@UrbanWarfareCtr
Urban Warfare Planners Course that we ran last month in partnership with the
@NTC_UPDATE
@NTCLead6
@OPSGRP_NTC
An amazing program.
#urbanwarfare
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"Urban warfare is unavoidable," Why General James Rainey believes in the inevitability of urban warfare.
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Does anyone still think that modern armies can just isolate & bypass cities to avoid
#UrbanWarfare
? Hasn’t this conflict shown that urban areas like Bakhmut are key terrain that conventional forces will fight for (and _in_) ?
(1/4) Russia’s assault on the Donbas town of Bakhmut has largely stalled. This is likely primarily a result of extreme attrition of the Russian force. Ukraine has also suffered heavy casualties during its defence.
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Filmed during our last Urban Operations Planner Course, Maj
@JaysonGeroux
shares his extensive knowledge of a key urban battle of World War II. Key takeaways and lessons in
#urbanWarfare
; worth your time to watch.
The Army University Films Team is proud to present, The Battle of Ortona, as told by Major Jayson Geroux of the Canadian Armed Forces.
@USArmy
@USACGSC
@ArmyUniversity
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Thanks to
@JaysonGeroux
, who compiled the majority of the information on this COI webpage, , and to
@SpencerGuard
,
@Stu_Lyle
, and
@ChasAHKnight
for your contributions and review from around the world. The sun never sets on the
@40thID
#UrbanWarfare
team!
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“Urban warfare is one of the most challenging military operations. City streets and alleys are easy to barricade and inhibit maneuver warfare. To capture a city, a military has to sacrifice its agility for brute strength.”
Visit
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@Digital_Sapper
@JaysonGeroux
@SpencerGuard
Make plans for next year’s Urban Operations Planner Course at the
@40thID
headquarters in Los Angeles 25-31 August 2024.
#UrbanWarfare
#complex
#inevitable
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More great urban camouflage. Thanks
@Stu_Lyle
for the link!
Kudos to 16 Royal Artillery and 32 Royal Artillery for exercising together, the former trying to hide its air defence batteries, the latter trying to find them with UAVs. It might look ridiculous, but camouflage nets alone won't do the trick and getting creative helps.
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“The most important part is urban training, because it’s the most dangerous combat, in cities,” said Serhiy.
#UrbanWarfare
is complex, compressed, and inevitable. Visit for
urban warfare history, scholarship, resources, and points of contact.
British trainers are putting the Ukrainian troops through a condensed version of the British Army’s infantry training, covering weapons handling, first aid, patrol tactics and — crucially for their country’s future — urban warfare.
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@jesusfroman
@JaysonGeroux
You can see the recorded video lessons from the July 2022
@40thID
Urban Operations Planner Course on our YouTube channel here:
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The new baseline
#urbanWarfare
doctrine for
@USArmy
and
@USMC
is out! Wish we had this for last week’s planner’s course, but we’ll have it for the next one: 14-20 May 2023!
New! ATP 3-06/MCTP 12-10B, Urban Operations (JUL 22). This publication is a dual-designated Army and USMC manual that provides Soldiers/Marines with the concepts and techniques associated with conducting urban operations.
Link:
📗
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Watch Jayson Geroux discuss the Battle of Ortona and its impact on urban warfare.
#Ortona
@OTDCanMilHis
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“Urban areas are a three-dimensional terrain in which attackers must consider a 360-degree sphere of potential threat. Defenders have an advantage, but they must worry about limiting harm to civilians and the city itself.”
Visit
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“It was clear Ukraine’s goal was to draw Russia into prolonged and close
#UrbanWarfare
, where Russia loses much of its superiority in terms of artillery and air support and where experienced Ukrainian infantry have the upper hand over Russian forces.”
#RussiaUkraineWar
With thanks to
@IAPonomarenko
for his article that succinctly summarizes the many challenges that occurred during the urban battle of Sievierodonetsk:
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There are still virtual seats available. Get yours by emailing 40ID-urban-warfare
@army
.mil
Visit for
#UrbanWarfare
events, history, scholarship, resources, and points of contact for the
#UrbanOperations
community
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@Stu_Lyle
If the Russians are using best practices for
#urbanWarfare
, their dismounted infantry are off camera, in the buildings on the flanks of the tanks, protecting their teammate’s blind spots. Doesn’t look like that’s the case, though.
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Our teammate,
@SpencerGuard
: "If they took the entire Russian army and put it into Ukraine, [they] could not achieve the numbers it would take to fight an urban counterinsurgency."
#UrbanWarfare
is very resource-intensive: more soldiers, more ammunition, more medical supplies...
NEW: The US military academy’s top expert on urban warfare has become an impromptu advisor for Ukrainians taking up arms as Russia brings the fight to Ukraine's biggest cities.
Russia could "die a thousand cuts" from an insurgency,
@SpencerGuard
told me.
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@liotier
@MichaelVSmith3
@JaysonGeroux
Yes, the yellow and blue of the
@40thID
patch predates the
@CalGuard
’s partnership with our Ukrainian allies and is a happy coincidence.
#SlavaUkrainii
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@Patthew1
@JaysonGeroux
@SpencerGuard
US infantry divisions are combined arms organizations that incorporate all of the warfighting functions (maneuver, fires, intelligence, protection, etc). The
@40thID
is well-positioned to explore
#UrbanWarfare
as a specialized skill set for all land component forces.
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Two of our mainstays,
@JacobStoil
&
@SpencerGuard
sit down to discuss likely upcoming
#UrbanWarfare
in
#Gaza
Urban Warfare Project Podcast: Israel, Gaza, and the Looming Challenges of Urban Warfare |
@SpencerGuard
@JacobStoil
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The defenders can leverage strongpoints of urban construction for fighting positions, develop urban engagement areas, and target the significant logistics lines of communication that would be necessary to sustain an invasion force.
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..and if you look behind
@JaysonGeroux
during his scenes, you can see the
#Sunburst
of the
@40thID
colors in the background. Always a please to have Maj Geroux on the team for the Urban Ops Planner Course.
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@RobMalcolm7
@ColeFPetersen
@BarrickTim
@SebastianBae
@UrbanWargamer
@USFightClub1
@GUWargaming
@Stu_Lyle
@40ID_DeputyCG
Hey, we recognize that game! Thanks to Brian Train for developing it to drive home the lessons of
@40thID
’s Urban Operations Planner Course. Can’t wait to run this again in August at the next
#UOPC
#WargamesWinWars
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@WarriorLoggie
@40ID_DeputyCG
@SpencerGuard
@JaysonGeroux
@Sahrmally
@JacobStoil
@SapperGeologist
@Urbanwardev
It was great to have you in the Urban Operations Planner Course and we’re glad you learned a lot about
#urbanWarfare
.
Pls spread the word about our 25-31 August 2024 course (next year).
Finally, welcome to twitter and the
#urbanistas
!
#UPOC
#Urban
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Listen to
@UrbanWarfareCtr
Instructor,
@stu_lyle
, and Urban Planner course alumnus,
@RobMalcolm7
, discuss the future of
#UrbanWarfare
Latest episode for your listening pleasure! I’m joined by
@Stu_Lyle
and
@ShaunCl20398535
to discuss the trajectory of urbanization and urban warfare training.
#urbanwarfare
#futurecities
#tactics
#operations
@mctog_magtftc
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@40ID_DeputyCG
@CWOGULA
@HeatherRCotter
We offer some great interaction with
@Sahrmally
on Civilian Harm Mitigation and a whole block on how to use civil affairs effectively in
#urbanOperations
.
You can see her most recent presentation on our YouTube channel here:
#CHM
#ProtectCivilians
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"Soldiers navigated the challenging urban terrain, with its different levels, rooms, rooftops and access points to buildings." Glad to see our Aussie allies from
@8_9_RAR_AusArmy
getting a fortnight of
#UrbanWarfare
training down under.
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Listen to
@UrbanWarfareCtr
Senior Fellow and expert on the Battle of Ortona, Canadian Major Jayson Geroux (
@JaysonGeroux
), discuss the WWII battle’s implications for
#UrbanWarfare
The World War II Battle of Ortona, often called the "Italian Stalingrad," saw intense urban combat between Canadian forces and German troops defending the town. Here's why it should inform the way we think about urban warfare today.
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@SpencerGuard
“the infantrymen also stripped down to only what they needed for the days fighting. The assumption being they would be resupplied each night. This worked well- in that it left infantrymen unencumbered for climbing around and over urban clutter”-Storming the City by Alec Wahlman
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"Win the Urban War in Taiwan". This
@USNIProceedings
article argues that the United States and Taiwan should plan a defense strategy centered on defeating China in
#UrbanWarfare
.
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@chrisgingram
@OPSGRP_NTC
@us_sams
We enjoyed working with you,
@chrisgingram
, before you went off to be a
#strategist
! If we can’t fit any more students into this course, we already have next year’s dates set: 25-31 August 2024.
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@WarriorLoggie
Seoul & Hue both had a maritime element. Paging
@JaysonGeroux
, your friendly neighborhood
#urbanWarfare
historian, for more.
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USMC conducting
#UrbanWarfare
Training at
@camp_lejeune
, North Carolina. Marines still call it Military Operation on Urbanized Terrain (MOUT).
#Marines
with 2d Combat Engineer Battalion,
@2dMarDiv
, conduct a Military Operation on Urbanized Terrain exercise at
@camp_lejeune
, Dec. 6.
This training enhances proficiency at fighting within a confined space.
#MarineCombatArms
#USMC
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@INTELonIRAN
@JaysonGeroux
Trading terrain for time (to train more forces or receive more western supplies/arms) is a possible and valid strategy.
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@SpencerGuard
@40ID_DeputyCG
Your followers on Twitter can see more photos from the course on the
@40thID
Urban Warfare Center flickr page linked below. We hope to see another great group of
#UrbanWarfare
students at our next course 10-16 July 2022.
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@JacobStoil
@JaysonGeroux
@us_sams
@CDCgov
@CDCGlobal
Good idea. We have medical officers within
@40thID
who would do an excellent job of discussing disease and non-battle injuries (DNBI) in
#UrbanWarfare
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Thanks to
@BattleLabCOMD
for posting interesting adversary tactics for maneuvering in urban terrain.
The latest update on how your training adversary will fight.
The advance in urban terrain video shows how our training enemy will conduct offensive tactics against us.
How will you and your team defeat this?
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