The New Art of War: How Soldiers of Fortune are changing the Landscape of Modern Warfare

Opinion Analysis by Johnny Achkar, Featured Writer

Private armies are a multibillion-dollar industry with a worldwide footprint. We do not know how much money is invested in this black market; what we do know is that it is booming. Mercenary violence has increased in Syria, Libya, Iraq, Yemen, and Ukraine in recent years. Many of these for-profit troops outperform local militaries, and others may even compete with the best in the country. Recognizing the value of private armies, an increasing number of countries are sending them to far-flung and unstable areas of the globe. How exactly did the idea of warfare, which had been unchanged for thousands of years, evolve into this modern unconventional mode of warfare?