2024 Was Another Great Year for the U.S. in IW
by Thomas Searle
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07.07.2025 at 06:00am
2024 Was Another Great Year for the U.S. in IW Image
TAMPA, FLORIDA - MAY 8: A U.S. Navy Special Warfare Combatant-Craft Crewman (SWCC) wears a U.S. flag patch during a capabilities demonstration at Special Operations Forces (SOF) Week at the Tampa Convention Center on May 8, 2024 in Tampa, Florida. According to the city, the demonstration will feature more than 170 United States Special Operations Command and international service members from 10 nations will take part in mock scenario defending the city of Tampa from ‘hostile invaders.’ (Photo by Luke Sharrett/Getty Images)
A year and a half ago, at the beginning of 2024, a short article appeared under the provocative title “The Future of Irregular Warfare: The United States is Winning, Now What?”. For decades, the prevailing narrative was consistent U.S. failure in irregular warfare (IW) and consistent adversary success. Since both narratives are false, it was long past time for an article like that one to set the record straight. The first months of the second Trump Administration are producing a barrage of dramatic daily news that makes it hard to predict the future of U.S. performance in IW. However, one can still see the past clearly and data is available to assess IW performance in 2024. Did the U.S. continue to outperform its adversaries in IW in 2024?
In ranking the U.S. and its main adversaries, from worst to best, here is how nations performed in IW in 2024.
Iran: The Biggest Loser
In 2024, the IW performance of Iran and its self-proclaimed Axis of Resistance was catastrophic for Iran. One year ago, Iran could claim that it controlled (or at least heavily influenced) four Arab countries: Syria (through the Assad regime), Lebanon (through Hezbollah), Iraq (through the Iraqi militias it sponsors), and Yemen (through the Houthis). Iran could also take pride in the ability of its Palestinian proxies—Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the rest—to shock Israel and the world on October 7, 2023. In 2024, however, Iran lost its two most important assets, Syria and Hezbollah, and Iran now appears to be one of the many victims of the October 7 attack.
https://smallwarsjournal.com/2025/07/07/2024-was-another-great-year-for-the-u-s-in-iw/
