Podcasts about urban warfare studies

John Spencer is one of the world's foremost authorities on urban warfare, the kind of fighting that's reshaping modern conflict, from Gaza to Ukraine. A retired U.S. Army major, John served more than 25 years in uniform and now leads research as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point.He's walked the streets of Mariupol, studied the rubble of Gaza, and is now also analyzing India's own Operation Sindoor, offering insights to militaries around the world on how wars are fought — and lost — in cities. What makes John unique is not just his battlefield experience or academic expertise, but his ability to explain the brutal logic of urban warfare in a way that's deeply human, brutally honest, and urgently relevant.

How has the media distorted Israel's response to the October 7 Hamas attacks? In this powerful conversation from AJC Global Forum 2025, award-winning journalist and former AP correspondent Matti Friedman breaks down the media bias, misinformation, and double standards shaping global coverage of Israel. Moderated by AJC Chief Communications and Strategy Officer Belle Etra Yoeli, this episode explores how skewed narratives have taken hold in the media, in a climate of activist journalism. A must-listen for anyone concerned with truth in journalism, Israel advocacy, and combating disinformation in today's media landscape. Take Action: Take 15 seconds and urge your elected leaders to send a clear, united message: We stand with Israel. Take action now. Resources: Global Forum 2025 session with Matti Friedman:: Watch the full video. Listen – AJC Podcasts: The Forgotten Exodus: Untold stories of Jews who left or were driven from Arab nations and Iran People of the Pod:  Latest Episodes:  John Spencer's Key Takeaways After the 12-Day War: Air Supremacy, Intelligence, and Deterrence Iran's Secret Nuclear Program and What Comes Next in the Iranian Regime vs. Israel War Why Israel Had No Choice: Inside the Defensive Strike That Shook Iran's Nuclear Program Follow People of the Pod on your favorite podcast app, and learn more at AJC.org/PeopleofthePod You can reach us at: peopleofthepod@ajc.org If you've appreciated this episode, please be sure to tell your friends, and rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Transcript of the Interview: Manya Brachear Pashman: I've had the privilege of interviewing journalism colleague Matti Friedman: twice on this podcast. In 2022, Matti took listeners behind the scenes of Jerusalem's AP bureau where he had worked between 2006 and 2011 and shared some insight on what happens when news outlets try to oversimplify the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Then in 2023, I got to sit down with Matti in Jerusalem to talk about his latest book on Leonard Cohen and how the 1973 Yom Kippur War was a turning point both for the singer and for Israel.  Earlier this year, Matti came to New York for AJC Global Forum 2025, and sat down with Belle Yoeli, AJC Chief Strategy and Communications Officer. They rehashed some of what we discussed before, but against an entirely different backdrop: post-October 7. For this week's episode, we bring you a portion of that conversation.  Belle Yoeli:   Hi, everyone. Great to see all of you. Thank you so much for being here. Matti, thank you for being here.  Matti Friedman:   Thanks for having me.  Belle Yoeli:   As you can tell by zero empty seats in this room, you have a lot of fans, and unless you want to open with anything, I'm going to jump right in. Okay, great.  So for those of you who don't know, in September 2024 Matti wrote a piece in The Free Press that is a really great foundation for today's discussion. In When We Started to Lie, Matti, you reflect on two pieces that you had written in 2015 about issues of media coverage of Israel during Operation Protective Edge in 2014. And this piece basically talked about the conclusions you drew and how they've evolved since October 7. We're gonna get to those conclusions, but first, I'm hoping you can describe for everyone what were the issues of media coverage of Israel that you first identified based on the experience in 2014? Matti Friedman:   First of all, thanks so much for having me here, and thanks for all of the amazing work that you guys are doing. So it's a real honor for me. I was a reporter for the AP, between 2006 and the very end of 2011, in Jerusalem. I was a reporter and editor. The AP, of course, as you know, is the American news agency. It's the world's largest news organization, according to the AP, according to Reuters, it's Reuters. One of them is probably right, but it's a big deal in the news world.  And I had an inside view inside one of the biggest AP bureaus. In fact, the AP's biggest International Bureau, which was in Jerusalem. So I can try to sketch the problems that I saw as a reporter there. It would take me seven or eight hours, and apparently we only have four or five hours for this lunch, so I have to keep it short. But I would say there are two main problems. We often get very involved. When we talk about problems with coverage of Israel. We get involved with very micro issues like, you call it a settlement. I call it a neighborhood. Rockets, you know, the Nakba, issues of terminology. But in fact, there are two major problems that are much bigger, and because they're bigger, they're often harder to see. One of the things that I noticed at the Bureau was the scale of coverage of Israel. So at the time that I was at the AP, again, between 2006 and the very end of 2011 we had about 40 full time staffers covering Israel. That's print reporters like me, stills photographers, TV crews. Israel, as most of you probably know, is a very small country. As a percentage of the world's surface, Israel is 1/100 of 1% of the surface of the world, and as a percentage of the land mass of the Arab world, Israel is 1/5 of 1%. 0.2%.  And we had 40 people covering it.  And just as a point of comparison, that was dramatically more people than we had at the time covering China. There are about 10 million people today in Israel proper, in China, there are 1.3 billion. We had more people in Israel than we had in China. We had more people in Israel than we had in India, which is another country of about 1.3 billion people. We had more people in Israel than we had in all of the countries of Sub-Saharan Africa. That's 50 something countries. So we had more people in Israel than we had in all of those countries combined. And sometimes I say that to Jews, I say we covered Israel more than we covered China, and people just stare at me blankly, because it's Israel. So of course, that makes perfect sense.  I happen to think Israel is the most important country in the world because I live there. But if the news is meant to be a rational analysis of events on planet Earth, you cannot cover Israel more than you cover the continent of Africa. It just doesn't make any sense. So one of the things that first jumped out at me– actually, that's making me sound smarter than I am. It didn't jump out at me at first. It took a couple of years. And I just started realizing that it was very strange that the world's largest organization had its largest international bureau in the State of Israel, which is a very small country, very small conflict in numeric terms. And yet there was this intense global focus on it that made people think that it was the most important story in the world. And it definitely occupies a place in the American political imagination that is not comparable to any other international conflict.  So that's one part of the problem. That was the scope, the other part was the context. And it took me a while to figure this out, but the coverage of Israel is framed as an Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The conflict is defined in those terms, the Israeli Palestinian conflict, and everyone in this room has heard it discussed in those terms. Sometimes we discuss it in those terms, and that is because the news folks have framed the conflict in those terms. So at the AP bureau in Jerusalem, every single day, we had to write a story that was called, in the jargon of the Bureau, Is-Pals, Israelis, Palestinians. And it was the daily wrap of the Israeli Palestinian conflict. So what Netanyahu said, what Abbas said, rockets, settlers, Hamas, you know, whatever, the problem is that there isn't an Israeli=Palestinian conflict. And I know that sounds crazy, because everyone thinks there is.  And of course, we're seeing conflicts play out in the most tragic way right now in Gaza. But most of Israel's wars have not been fought against Palestinians. Israel has unfortunately fought wars against Egyptians and Jordanians and Lebanese and Iraqis. And Israel's most important enemy at the moment, is Iran, right? The Iranians are not Palestinian. The Iranians are not Arab. They're Muslim, but they're not Arab. So clearly, there is a broader regional conflict that's going on that is not an Israeli Palestinian conflict, and we've seen it in the past year. If we had a satellite in space looking down and just following the paths of ballistic missiles and rockets fired at Israel. Like a photograph of these red trails of rockets fired at Israel. You'd see rockets being fired from Iraq and from Yemen and from Lebanon and from Gaza and from Iran. You'd see the contours of a regional conflict.  And if you understand it's a regional conflict, then you understand the way Israelis see it. There are in the Arab world, 300 million people, almost all of them Muslim. And in one corner of that world, there are 7 million Jews, who are Israelis. And if we zoom out even farther to the level of the Islamic world, we'll see that there are 2 billion people in the Islamic world. There's some argument about the numbers, but it's roughly a quarter of the world's population. And in one corner of that world there, there are 7 million Israeli Jews. The entire Jewish population on planet Earth is a lot smaller than the population of Cairo.  So the idea that this is an Israeli-Palestinian conflict, where Israelis are the stronger side, where Israelis are the dominant actor, and where Israelis are, let's face it, the bad guy in the story, that's a fictional presentation of a story that actually works in a completely different way. So if you take a small story and make it seem big. If you take a complicated regional story and you make it seem like a very small local story involving only Israelis and Palestinians, then you get the highly simplified but very emotive narrative that everyone is being subjected to now. And you get this portrayal of a villainous country called Israel that really looms in the liberal imagination of the West as an embodiment of the worst possible qualities of the age. Belle Yoeli:   Wow. So already you were seeing these issues when you were reporter, earlier on. But like this, some of this was before and since, since productive edge. This is over 10 years ago, and here we are. So October 7 happens. You already know these issues exist. You've identified them. How would you describe because obviously we have a lot of feelings about this, but like, strictly as a journalist, how would you describe the coverage that you've seen since during October 7, in its aftermath? Is it just these issues? Have they? Have they expanded? Are there new issues in play? What's your analysis? Matti Friedman:   The coverage has been great. I really have very I have no criticism of it. I think it's very accurate. I think that I, in a way, I was lucky to have been through what I went through 10 or 15 years ago, and I wasn't blindsided on October 7, as many people were, many people, quite naturally, don't pay close attention to this. And even people who are sympathetic to Israel, I think, were not necessarily convinced that my argument about the press was right. And I think many people thought it was overstated.  And you can read those articles from 2014 one was in tablet and one was in the Atlantic, but it's basically the two chapters of the same argument. And unfortunately, I think that those the essays, they stand up. In fact, if you don't really look at the date of the essays, they kind of seem that they could have been written in the past year and a half. And I'm not happy about that. I think that's and I certainly wrote them in hopes that they would somehow make things better. But the issues that I saw in the press 15 years ago have only been exacerbated since then. And October seven didn't invent the wheel. The issues were pre existing, but it took everything that I saw and kind of supercharged it.  So if I talked about ideological conformity in the bureaus that has been that has become much more extreme. A guy like me, I was hired in 2006 at the AP. I'm an Israeli of center left political leanings. Hiring me was not a problem in 22,006 by the time I left the AP, at the end of 2011 I'm pretty sure someone like me would not have been hired because my views, which are again, very centrist Israeli views, were really beyond the pale by the time that I left the AP, and certainly, and certainly today, the thing has really moved what I saw happening at the AP. And I hate picking on the AP because they were just unfortunate enough to hire me. That was their only error, but what I'm saying about them is true of a whole new. Was heard. It's true of the Times and CNN and the BBC, the news industry really works kind of as a it has a herd mentality. What happened was that news decisions were increasingly being made by people who are not interested in explanatory journalism. They were activists. Activists had moved into the key positions in the Bureau, and they had a very different idea of what press coverage was supposed to do. I would say, and I tried to explain it in that article for the free press, when I approach a news story, when I approach the profession of journalism, the question that I'm asking is, what's going on? That's the question I think you're supposed to ask, what's going on? How can I explain it in a way that's as accurate as as possible? The question that was increasingly being asked was not what's going on. The question was, who does this serve? That's an activist question. So when you look at a story, you don't ask, is it true, or is it not true? You ask, who's it going to help? Is it going to help the good guys, or is it going to help the bad guys?  So if Israel in the story is the villain, then a story that makes Israel seem reasonable, reasonable or rational or sympathetic needs to be played down to the extent possible or made to disappear. And I can give you an example from my own experience.  At the very end of 2008 two reporters in my bureau, people who I know, learned of a very dramatic peace offer that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert had made to the Palestinians. So Olmert, who was the prime minister at the time, had made a very far reaching offer that was supposed to see a Palestinian state in all of Gaza, most of the West Bank, with land swaps for territory that Israel was going to retain, and a very far reaching international consortium agreement to run the Old City of Jerusalem. Was a very dramatic. It was so far reaching, I think that Israelis probably wouldn't have supported it. But it was offered to the Palestinian side, and the Palestinians rejected it as insufficient. And two of our reporters knew about this, and they'd seen a map of the offer. And this was obviously a pretty big story for a bureau that had as the thrust of its coverage the peace process.  The two reporters who had the story were ordered to drop it, they were not allowed to cover the story. And there were different explanations. And they didn't, by the way, AP did not publish the story at the time, even though we were the first to have it. Eventually, it kind of came out and in other ways, through other news organizations. But we knew at first. Why were we not allowed to cover it? Because it would have made the Israelis who we were trying to villainize and demonize, it would have made Israel seem like it was trying to solve the conflict on kind of reasonable lines, which, of course, was true at that time. So that story would have upended the thrust of our news coverage. So it had to be made to go away, even though it was true, it would have helped the wrong people. And that question of who does this serve has destroyed, I want to say all, but much, of what used to be mainstream news coverage, and it's not just where Israel is concerned.  You can look at a story like the mental health of President Biden, right. Something's going on with Biden at the end of his term. It's a huge global news story, and the press, by and large, won't touch it, because why? I mean, it's true, right? We're all seeing that it's true, but why can't you touch it? Because it would help the wrong people. It would help the Republicans who in the press are the people who you are not supposed to help.  The origins of COVID, right? We heard one story about that. The true story seems to be a different story. And there are many other examples of stories that are reported because they help the right people, or not reported because they would help the wrong people. And I saw this thinking really come into action in Israel 10 or 15 years ago, and unfortunately, it's really spread to include the whole mainstream press scene and really kill it.  I mean, essentially, anyone interested in trying to get a solid sense of what's going on, we have very few options. There's not a lot, there's not a lot out there. So that's the broader conclusion that I drew from what I thought at the time was just a very small malfunction involving Israel coverage. But Israel coverage ends up being a symptom of something much bigger, as Jews often are the symptom of something much bigger that's going on.  So my problems in the AP bureau 15 years ago were really a kind of maybe a canary in the coal mine, or a whiff of something much bigger that we were all going to see happen, which is the transformation of the important liberal institutions of the west into kind of activist arms of a very radical ideology that has as its goal the transformation of the west into something else. And that's true of the press, and it's true of NGO world, places like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, which were one thing 30 years ago and are something very different today. And it's also true of big parts of the academy. It's true of places like Columbia and places like Harvard, they still have the logo, they still have the name, but they serve a different purpose, and I just happen to be on the ground floor of it as a reporter. Belle Yoeli:   So obviously, this concept of who does this serve, and this activist journalism is deeply concerning, and you actually mentioned a couple other areas, academia, obviously we're in that a lot right now in terms of what's going on campus. So I guess a couple of questions on that. First of all, think about this very practically, tachlis, in the day to day.  I'm a journalist, and I go to write about what's happening in Gaza. What would you say is, if you had to throw out a percentage, are all of them aware of this activist journalist tendency? Or you think it's like, like intentional for many of them, or it's sort of they've been educated that way, and it's their worldview in such a way that they don't even know that they're not reporting the news in a very biased way. Does that make sense? Matti Friedman:   Totally. I think that many people in the journalism world today view their job as not as explaining a complicated situation, but as swaying people toward the correct political conclusion. Journalism is power, and the power has to be wielded in support of justice. Now, justice is very slippery, and, you know, choosing who's in the right is very, very slippery, and that's how journalism gets into a lot of trouble. Instead of just trying to explain what's going on and then leave, you're supposed to leave the politics and the activism to other people. Politics and activism are very important.  But unless everyone can agree on what is going on, it's impossible to choose the kind of act, the kind of activism that would be useful. So when the journalists become activists, then no one can understand what's what's going on, because the story itself is fake, and there are many, many examples of it. But you know, returning to what you asked about, about October 7, and reporting post October 7, you can really see it happen. The massacres of October 7 were very problematic for the ideological strain that now controls a lot of the press, because it's counterintuitive. You're not supposed to sympathize with Israelis.  And yet, there were a few weeks after October 7 when they were forced to because the nature of the atrocities were so heinous that they could not be ignored. So you had the press covering what happened on October 7, but you could feel it. As someone who knows that scene, you could feel there was a lot of discomfort. There was a lot of discomfort. It wasn't their comfort zone, and you knew that within a few weeks, maybe a month, it was gonna snap back at the first opportunity.  When did it snap back? In the story of the Al Ahli hospital strike. If you remember that a few weeks in, there's a massive global story that Israel has rocketed Hospital in Gaza and killed about 500 people and and then you can see the kind of the comfort the comfort zone return, because the story that the press is primed to cover is a story about villainous Israelis victimizing innocent Palestinians, and now, now we're back. Okay. Now Israel's rocketing hospital. The problem was that it hadn't happened, and it was that a lot of stories don't happen, and they're allowed to stand.  But this story was so far from the truth that even the people involved couldn't make it work, and it had to be retracted, but it was basically too late. And then as soon as the Israeli ground offensive got into swing in Gaza, then the story really becomes the same old story, which is a story of Israel victimizing Palestinians for no reason. And you'll never see Hamas militants in uniform in Gaza. You just see dead civilians, and you'll see the aftermath of a rocket strike when the, you know, when an Israeli F16 takes out the launcher, but you will never see the strike. Which is the way it's worked in Gaza since the very end of 2008 which is when the first really bad round of violence in Gaza happens, which is when I'm at the AP.  As far as I know, I was the first staffer to erase information from the story, because we were threatened by Hamas, which happened at the very end of 2008. We had a great reporter in Gaza, a Palestinian who had always been really an excellent reporter. We had a detail in a story. The detail was a crucial one. It was that Hamas fighters were dressed as civilians and were being counted as civilians in the death toll, an important thing to know, that went out in an AP story. The reporter called me a few hours later. It was clear that someone had spoken to him, and he told me, I was on the desk in Jerusalem, so I was kind of writing the story from the main bureau in Jerusalem. And he said, Matti, you have to take that detail out of the story. And it was clear that someone had threatened him. I took the detail out of the story. I suggested to our editors that we note in an Editor's Note that we were now complying with Hamas censorship. I was overruled, and from that point in time, the AP, like all of its sister organizations, collaborates with Hamas censorship in Gaza.  What does that mean? You'll see a lot of dead civilians, and you won't see dead militants. You won't have a clear idea of what the Hamas military strategy is. And this is the kicker, the center of the coverage will be a number, a casualty number, that is provided to the press by something called the Gaza health ministry, which is Hamas. And we've been doing that since 2008, and it's a way of basically settling the story before you get into any other information. Because when you put, you know, when you say 50 Palestinians were killed, and one Israeli on a given day, it doesn't matter what else you say. The numbers kind of tell their own story, and it's a way of settling the story with something that sounds like a concrete statistic. And the statistic is being, you know, given to us by one of the combatant sides. But because the reporters sympathize with that side, they're happy to play along. So since 2008, certainly since 2014 when we had another serious war in Gaza, the press has not been covering Gaza, the press has been essentially an amplifier for one of the most poisonous ideologies on Earth. Hamas has figured out how to make the press amplify its messaging rather than covering Hamas. There are no Western reporters in Gaza. All of the reporters in Gaza are Palestinians, and those people fall into three categories. Some of them identify with Hamas. Some of them are intimidated by Hamas and won't cross Hamas, which makes a lot of sense. I wouldn't want to cross Hamas either. So either. And the third category is people who actually belong to Hamas. That's where the information from Gaza is coming from. And if you're credulous, then of course, you're going to get a story that makes Israel look pretty bad. Belle Yoeli:   So this is very depressing. That's okay. It's very helpful, very depressing. But on that note, I would ask you so whether, because you spoke about this problem in terms, of, of course, the coverage of Israel, but that it's it's also more widespread you talk, you spoke about President Biden in your article, you name other examples of how this sort of activist journalism is affecting everything we read. So what should everyone in this room be reading, truly, from your opinion. This is Matti's opinion. But if you want to you want to get information from our news and not activist journalism, obviously The Free Press, perhaps. But are there other sites or outlets that you think are getting this more down the line, or at least better than some, some better than others?  Matti Friedman:   No, it's just The Free Press. No. I mean, it's a question that I also wrestle with. I haven't given up on everyone, and even in publications that have, I think, largely lost the plot, you'll still find good stuff on occasion. So I try to keep my eye on certain reporters whose name I know. I often ask not just on Israel, but on anything, does this reporter speak the language of the country that they're covering? You'd be shocked at how rare that is for Americans. A lot of the people covering Ukraine have no idea what language they speak in Ukraine, and just as someone who covers Israel, I'm aware of the low level of knowledge that many of the Western reporters have. You'll find really good stuff still in the Atlantic. The Atlantic has managed, against steep odds, to maintain its equilibrium amid all this. The New Yorker, unfortunately, less so, but you'll still see, on occasion, things that are good. And there are certain reporters who are, you know, you can trust. Isabel Kirchner, who writes for The New York Times, is an old colleague of mine from the Jerusalem report. She's excellent, and they're just people who are doing their job. But by and large, you have to be very, very suspicious of absolutely everything that you read and see. And I'm not saying that as someone who I'm not happy to say that, and I certainly don't identify with, you know, the term fake news, as it has been pushed by President Trump.  I think that fake news is, you know, for those guys, is an attempt to avoid scrutiny. They're trying to, you know, neuter the watchdog so that they can get away with whatever they want. I don't think that crowd is interested in good press coverage. Unfortunately, the term fake news sticks because it's true. That's why it has worked. And the press, instead of helping people navigate the blizzard of disinformation that we're all in, they've joined it. People who are confused about what's going on, should be able to open up the New York Times or go to the AP and figure out what's going on, but because, and I saw it happen, instead of covering the circus, the reporters became dancing bears in the circus. So no one can make heads or tails of anything. So we need to be very careful.  Most headlines that are out there are out there to generate outrage, because that's the most predictable generator of clicks, which is the, we're in a click economy. So I actually think that the less time you spend following headlines and daily news, the better off you'll be. Because you can follow the daily news for a year, and by the end of the year, you'll just be deranged. You'll just be crazy and very angry.  If you take that time and use it to read books about, you know, bitten by people who are knowledgeable, or read longer form essays that are, you know, that are obviously less likely to be very simplistic, although not, you know, it's not completely impossible that they will be. I think that's time, that's time better spent. Unfortunately, much of the industry is kind of gone. And we're in an interesting kind of interim moment where it's clear that the old news industry is basically dead and that something new has to happen. And those new things are happening. I mean, The Free Press is part of a new thing that's happening. It's not big enough to really move the needle in a dramatic way yet, but it might be, and I think we all have to hope that new institutions emerge to fill the vacuum.  The old institutions, and I say this with sorrow, and I think that this also might be true of a lot of the academic institutions. They can't be saved. They can't be saved. So if people think that writing an editor, a letter to the editor of the New York Times is going to help. It's not going to help. Sometimes people say, Why don't we just get the top people in the news industry and bring them to Israel and show them the truth? Doesn't help. It's not about knowing or not knowing. They define the profession differently.  So it's not about a lack of information. The institutions have changed, and it's kind of irrevocable at this point, and we need new institutions, and one of them is The Free Press, and it's a great model of what to do when faced with fading institutions. By the way, the greatest model of all time in that regard is Zionism. That's what Zionism is. There's a guy in Vienna in 1890 something, and his moment is incredibly contemporary. There's an amazing biography of Herzl called Herzl by Amos Elon. It's an amazing book. If you haven't read it, you should read it, because his moment in cosmopolitan Vienna sounds exactly like now. It's shockingly current. He's in this friendly city. He's a reporter for the New York Times, basically of the Austro Hungarian empire, and he's assimilated, and he's got a Christmas tree in his house, and his son isn't circumcised, and he thinks everything is basically great. And then the light changes.  He notices that something has changed in Vienna, and the discourse about Jews changes, and like in a Hollywood movie, the light changes. And he doesn't try to he doesn't start a campaign against antisemitism. He doesn't get on social media and kind of rail against unfair coverage. He sits down in a hotel room in Paris and he writes this pamphlet called the Jewish state, and I literally flew from that state yesterday. So there's a Zionist model where you look at a failing world and you think about radical solutions that involve creation. And I think we're there. And I think Herzl's model is a good one at a dark time you need real creativity. Belle Yoeli:   Thank God you found the inspiration there, because I was really, I was really starting to worry. No, in all seriousness, Matti, the saying that these institutions can't be saved. I mean the consequences of this, not just for us as pro-Israel, pro-Jewish advocates, but for our country, for the world, the countries that we come from are tremendous.  And the way we've been dealing with this issue and thinking about how, how can you change hearts and minds of individuals about Israel, about the Jewish people, if everything that they're reading is so damaging and most of what they're reading is so damaging and basically saying there's very little that we can do about that. So I am going to push you to dream big with us. We're an advocacy organization. AJC is an advocacy organization. So if you had unlimited resources, right, if you really wanted to make change in this area, to me, it sounds like you're saying we basically need 15 Free Presses or the new institutions to really take on this way. What would you do? What would you do to try to make it so that news media were more like the old days? Matti Friedman:   Anyone who wants unlimited resources should not go into journalism. I have found that my resources remain limited. I'll give you an answer that is probably not what you're expecting or not what you want here. I think that the fight can't be won. I think that antisemitism can't be defeated. And I think that resources that are poured into it are resources wasted. And of course, I think that people need legal protection, and they need, you know, lawyers who can protect people from discrimination and from defamation. That's very important. But I know that when people are presented with a problem like antisemitism, which is so disturbing and it's really rocking the world of everyone in this room, and certainly, you know, children and grandchildren, you have a problem and you want to address it, right? You have a really bad rash on your arm. You want the rash to go away, and you're willing to do almost anything to make it go away. This has always been with us. It's always been with us.  And you know, we recently celebrated the Seder, and we read in the Seder, in the Haggadah, l'chol dor vador, omdim aleinu l'chaloteinu. Which is, in every generation, they come at us to destroy us. And it's an incredibly depressing worldview. Okay, it's not the way I wanted to see the world when I grew up in Toronto in the 1990s. But in our tradition, we have this idea that this is always gonna be around. And the question is, what do you do? Do you let other people define you? Do you make your identity the fight against the people who hate you? And I think that's a dead end.  This crisis is hitting the Jewish people at a moment when many of us don't know who we are, and I think that's why it's hitting so hard. For my grandfather, who was a standard New York Jew, garment industry, Lower East Side, poor union guy. This would not have shaken him, because he just assumed that this was the world like this. The term Jewish identity was not one he ever heard, because it wasn't an issue or something that had to be taught. So if I had unlimited resources, what I would do is I would make sure that young Jewish people have access to the riches of Jewish civilization, I would, you know, institute a program that would allow any young Jewish person to be fluent in Hebrew by the time they finish college. Why is that so important? Why is that such an amazing key?  Because if you're fluent in Hebrew, you can open a Tanakh, or you can open a prayer book if you want. Or you can watch Fauda or you can get on a plane to Israel and hit on Israeli guys. Hebrew is the key to Jewish life, and if you have it, a whole world will open up. And it's not one that antisemites can interfere with. It does not depend on the goodwill of our neighbors. It's all about us and what we're doing with ourselves. And I think that if you're rooted in Jewish tradition, and I'm not saying becoming religious, I'm just saying, diving into the riches of Jewish tradition, whether it's history or gemara or Israel, or whatever, if you're if you're deep in there enough, then the other stuff doesn't go away, but it becomes less important.  It won't be solved because it can't be solved, but it will fade into the background. And if we make the center of identity the fight against antisemitism, they've won. Why should they be the center of our identity? For a young person who's looking for some way of living or some deep kind of guide to life, the fight against antisemitism is not going to do it, and philanthropy is not going to do it. We come from the wisest and one of the oldest civilizations in the world, and many of us don't know how to open the door to that civilization, and that's in our hands. And if we're not doing it, it's not the fault of the antisemites. It's our own fault. So if I had unlimited resources, which, again, it's not, it's not going to happen unless I make a career change, that's where I would be putting my effort. Internally and not externally.  Belle Yoeli:   You did find the inspiration, though, again, by pushing Jewish identity, and we appreciate that. It's come up a lot in this conversation, this question about how we fight antisemitism, investing in Jewish identity and who we are, and at the same time, what do we do about it? And I think all of you heard Ted in a different context last night, say, we can hold two things, two thoughts at the same time, right? Two things can be true at the same time. And I think for me, what I took out of this, in addition to your excellent insights, is that that's exactly what we have to be doing.  At AJC, we have to be engaging in this advocacy to stand up for the Jewish people and the State of Israel. But that's not the only piece of the puzzle. Of course, we have to be investing in Jewish identity. That's why we bring so many young people to this conference. Of course, we need to be investing in Jewish education. That's not necessarily what AJC is doing, the bulk of our work, but it's a lot of what the Jewish community is doing, and these pieces have to go together. And I want to thank you for raising that up for us, and again, for everything that you said. Thank you all so much for being here. Thank you. Manya Brachear Pashman: If you missed last week's episode, be sure to tune in as John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at West Point, breaks down Israel's high-stakes strike on Iran's nuclear infrastructure and the U.S. decision to enter the fight. 

John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at West Point, joins guest host Casey Kustin, AJC's Chief Impact and Operations Officer, to break down Israel's high-stakes strike on Iran's nuclear infrastructure and the U.S. decision to enter the fight. With Iran's terror proxy network reportedly dismantled and its nuclear program set back by years, Spencer explains how Israel achieved total air superiority, why a wider regional war never materialized, and whether the fragile ceasefire will hold. He also critiques the international media's coverage and warns of the global consequences if Iran's ambitions are left unchecked. Take Action: Take 15 seconds and urge your elected leaders to send a clear, united message: We stand with Israel. Take action now. Resources and Analysis: Israel, Iran, and a Reshaped Middle East: AJC Global Experts on What Comes Next AJC Advocacy Anywhere - U.S. Strikes in Iran and What Comes Next  Iranian Regime's War on America: Four Decades of Targeting U.S. Forces and Citizens AJC Global Forum 2025: John Spencer Breaks Down Israel's War and Media Misinformation Listen – AJC Podcasts: The Forgotten Exodus: Untold stories of Jews who left or were driven from Arab nations and Iran People of the Pod:  Latest Episodes:  Iran's Secret Nuclear Program and What Comes Next in the Iranian Regime vs. Israel War Why Israel Had No Choice: Inside the Defensive Strike That Shook Iran's Nuclear Program Follow People of the Pod on your favorite podcast app, and learn more at AJC.org/PeopleofthePod You can reach us at: peopleofthepod@ajc.org If you've appreciated this episode, please be sure to tell your friends, and rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Transcript of the Interview: Casey Kustin:   Hi, I'm Casey Kustin, AJC's Chief Impact and Operations Officer, and I have the pleasure of guest hosting this week's episode. As of the start of this recording on Wednesday, June 25, it's been 13 days since Israel launched precision airstrikes aimed at dismantling the Iranian regime's nuclear infrastructure and degrading its ballistic missile capabilities to help us understand what transpired and where we are now, I'm here with John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, co-director of the Urban Warfare Project and Executive Director of the Urban Warfare Institute.  John, welcome to People of the Pod. John Spencer:   Hey, Casey, it's good to see you again.  Casey Kustin:   Thanks so much for joining us. John, you described Israel's campaign as one of the most sophisticated preemptive strike campaigns in modern history, and certainly the scope and precision was impressive. What specific operational capabilities enabled Israel to dominate the Iranian airspace so completely? John Spencer:   Yeah, that's a great question, and I do believe it basically rewrote the book, much like after the 1973 Yom Kippur War, where Israel did the unthinkable, the United States military conducted 27 different studies, and it fundamentally changed the way we fight warfare. It's called Air-Land Battle. I think similarly with Operation Rising Lion, just the opening campaign rewrote what we would call, you know, Shock and Awe, Joint Forcible Entry, things like that. And the capabilities that enabled it, of course, were years of planning and preparation. Just the deep intelligence infiltration that Israel did before the first round was dropped. The Mossad agents texting the high command of the IRGC to have a meeting, all of them believing the texts. And it was a meeting about Israel. They all coming together. And then Israel blew up that meeting and killed, you know, in the opening 72 hours, killed over 25 senior commanders, nine nuclear scientists, all of that before the first bomb was dropped.  But even in the opening campaign, Israel put up over 200 aircrafts, almost the entire Israeli air force in the sky over Iran, dominating and immediately achieving what we call air supremacy. Again, through years of work, almost like a science fiction story, infiltrating drone parts and short range missiles into Iran, then having agents put those next to air defense radars and ballistic air defense missile systems. So that as soon as this was about to begin, those drones lost low cost drones and short range missiles attacked Iranian air defense capabilities to give the window for all of the Israeli F-35 Eyes that they've improved for the US military since October 7 and other aircraft.  Doing one of the longest operations, seconded only to one other mission that Israel has done in their history, to do this just paralyzing operation in the opening moment, and then they didn't stop. So it was a combination of the infiltration intelligence, the low-tech, like the drones, high-tech, advanced radar, missiles, things like that. And it was all put together and synchronized, right? So this is the really important thing that people kind of miss in military operations, is how hard it is to synchronize every bit of that, right? So the attack on the generals, the attack on the air defenses, all of that synchronized. Hundreds of assets in a matter of minutes, all working together. There's so much chance for error, but this was perfection. Casey Kustin:   So this wasn't just an operational success, it was really strategic dominance, and given that Iran failed to down a single Israeli Aircraft or cause any significant damage to any of Israel's assets. What does that tell us about the effectiveness of Iran's military capabilities, their Russian built air defenses that they have touted for so long? John Spencer:   Absolutely. And some people say, I over emphasize tactics. But of course, there's some famous sayings about this. At the strategic level, Israel, one, demonstrated their military superiority. A small nation going against a Goliath, a David against a Goliath. It penetrated the Iranian myth of invincibility. And I also failed to mention about how Israel, during this opening of the campaign, weakened Iran's ability to respond. So they targeted ballistic missile launchers and ballistic missile storages, so Iran was really weakened Iran's ability to respond. But you're right, this sent a signal around the Middle East that this paper tiger could be, not just hit, it could be dominated. And from the opening moments of the operation until the ceasefire was agreed to, Israel eventually achieved air supremacy and could dominate the skies, like you said, without losing a single aircraft, with his really historic as well. And hit what they wanted with what they wanted, all the military infrastructure, all the senior leaders. I mean, eventually they assigned a new commander of the IRGC, and Israel found that guy, despite him running around in caves and things.  It definitely had a strategic impact on the signal to the world on Israel's capabilities. And this isn't just about aircraft and airstrikes. Israel's complete dominance of Iran and the weakness, like you said. Although Israel also taught the world back when they responded to Iran's attack in April of last year, and in October of last year, is that you probably shouldn't be buying Russian air defense systems like S-300s. But Iran still, that was the backbone of their air defense capabilities, and Israel showed that that's a really bad idea. Casey Kustin:   You mentioned the component of this that was not just about going after infrastructure sites, but targeting Iranian military leadership and over 20 senior military and nuclear figures, according to public reporting. This was really a central part of this campaign as well. How does this kind of decapitation strategy alter the regime's military capability now, both in this immediate short term, but also in the long term, when you take out that kind of leadership? John Spencer:   Yeah, absolutely. I mean, much like when the United States took out Qasem Soleimani, the head of the Quds Force, who had been decades of leadership of the Quds Force, the terror proxies, which I'm sure we'll talk about, overseeing those to include the ones in Iraq, killing my soldiers. It had a ripple effect that was, it's hard to measure, but that's decades of relationships and leadership, and people following them. So there is that aspect of all of these. Now we know over 25 senior IRGC and Iranian basically leadership, because they killed a police chief in Tehran and others. Yet that, of course, will ripple across.  It paralyzed the leadership in many ways during the operation, which is the psychological element of this, right? The psychological warfare, to do that on the opening day and then keep it up. That no general could trust, much like Hezbollah, like nobody's volunteering to be the next guy, because Israel finds him and kills him. On the nuclear though, right, which all wars the pursuit of political goals. We can never forget what Israel said the political goals were – to roll back Iran's imminent breakout of a nuclear weapon, which would not only serve to destroy Israel, because that's what they said they wanted to do with it, but it also gives a nuclear umbrella, which is what they want, to their exporting of terrorism, and the Ring of Fire, the proxy networks that have all been defanged thanks to Israel. That's the reason they wanted. So in taking out these scientists.So now it's up to 15 named nuclear scientists. On top of the nuclear infrastructure and all the weaponization components. So it's not just about the three nuclear enrichment sites that we all talked about in the news, you know, Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan. It's about that complete, decades-long architecture of the scientists, the senior scientists at each of the factories and things like that, that does send about, and I know we're in right now, as we're talking, they're debating about how far the program was set back. It holistically sets back that definitely the timeline.  Just like they destroyed the Tehran clock. I'm sure you've heard this, which was the doomsday clock that Iran had in Tehran, which is the countdown to the destruction of Israel. Israel stopped that clock, both literally and figuratively. Could they find another clock and restart it? Absolutely. But for now, that damage to all those personnel sets everything back. Of course, they'll find new commanders. I argue that you can't find those same level of you know, an Oppenheimer or the Kahn guy in Pakistan. Like some of those guys are irreplaceable. Casey Kustin:   So a hallmark of Israeli defense policy has always been that Israel will take care of itself by itself. It never asks the United States to get involved on its behalf. And before President Trump decided to undertake US strikes, there was considerable public discussion, debate as to whether the US should transfer B2s or 30,000 pound bunker busters to Israel. From purely a military perspective, can you help us understand the calculus that would go into why the US would decide to take the action itself, rather than, say, transfer these assets to Israel to take the action? John Spencer:   Sure. It's a complex political question, but actually, from the military perspective, it's very straightforward. The B2 stealth fire fighter, one of our most advanced, only long range bomber that can do this mission right, safely under radar, all this stuff. Nobody else has it. Nobody else has a pilot that could do it. So you couldn't just loan this to Israel, our strongest ally in the Middle East, and let them do the operation. As well as the bomb. This is the only aircraft with the fuselage capable of carrying this side. Even the B-52 stratomaster doesn't have the ability to carry this one, although it can push big things out the back of it. So just from a logistics perspective, it wouldn't work.  And then there's the classification. And there's many issues with, like, the somebody thinking that would have been the easiest, and even if it was possible, there's no way to train an Israeli pilot, all the logistics to it, to do it. The Israel Begin Doctrine about, you know, taking into their own hands like they did in Iraq in 1981 and Syria in 2007, is still in full effect, and was shown to be literally, a part of Israel's survival is this ability to, look, I understand that allies are important. And I argue strongly that Israel can never go at it alone, and we should never want it to. The strength of any nation is its allies.  And the fact that even during this operation, you saw immense amounts of American military resources pushed into the Middle East to help defend Israel and US bases but Patriot systems on the ground before this operation, THAAD systems on the ground before the system. These are the advanced US army air defense systems that can take down ballistic missiles. You had Jordan knocking down drones. You had the new Assad replacement guy, it's complex, agreeing to shoot things down over their airspace. That is part of Israel's strength, is its allies.  I mean, the fact that you have, you know, all the Arab nations that have been helping and defending Israel is, I think, can't be underscored under Israel doesn't, shouldn't need to go it alone, and it will act. And that's the Begin Doctrine like this case. And I do believe that the United States had the only weapon, the only capability to deliver something that the entire world can get behind, which is nuclear proliferation, not, you know, stopping it.  So we don't want a terror regime like the Islamic regime, for so many different reasons, to have a nuclear weapon close to breakout. So United States, even the G7, the United Nations, all agree, like, you can't have a nuclear weapon. So the United States doing that limited strike and midnight hammer, I think, was more than just about capabilities. It was about leadership in saying, look, Iran's double play that the economic sanctions, or whatever, the JCPOA agreement, like all these things, have failed. Conclusively, not just the IAEA statement that they're 20 years that now they're in violation of enrichment to all the different intelligence sources. It was not working. So this operation was vital to Israel's survival, but also vital for the world and that too, really won in this operation. Casey Kustin:   Vital both in this operation, in the defense of Israel, back in April 2024 when Iran was firing missiles and we saw other countries in the region assist in shooting them down. How vital is Israel's integration into CENTCOM to making that all work? John Spencer:   Oh, I mean, it's life saving. And General Carrillo, the CENTCOM Commander, has visited Israel so much in. The last 20 months, you might as well have an apartment in Tel Aviv. It's vital, because, again, Israel is a small nation that does spend exponential amounts of its GDP in its defense. But Iran, you know this, 90 million much greater resources, just with the ballistic missile program. Why that, and why that was so critical to set that back, could overwhelm Israel's air defense systems. Could. There's so much to this, but that coordination. And from a military to military perspective, and this is where I come and get involved, like I know, it's decades long, it's very strong. It's apolitical on purpose. It's hidden. Most people don't know it, but it's vital to the survival of our greatest ally in the Middle East. So it meets American interest, and, of course, meets Israel's interest. Casey Kustin:   Can you help us understand the Iranian response targeting Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, because this seemed like a very deliberate way for the regime to save face and then de-escalate. But if the ceasefire falls apart, what are the vulnerabilities for us, troops and assets in the region. How well positioned are our bases in Qatar, Al Dhafra in the UAE, our naval assets in Bahrain, our bases in Iraq? How well positioned are we to absorb and deter a real retaliatory response? John Spencer:   Yeah, it's a great question. I mean, first and foremost, you know, there is a bit of active defense. So, of course, all of our US bases are heavily defended. A lot of times, you can see things are about to happen, and you can, just like they did, they moved to naval aircraft that would have been even vulnerable in some of these locations, out to sea, so they can't be touched. Heavily defended. But really, active defense is absolutely important, but really deterrence is the greatest protection. So that has to be demonstrated by the capability, right? So the capability to defend, but also the capability to attack and the willingness to use it.  This is why I think that supposedly symbolic to the 14 bunker busters that the United States dropped during Operation Midnight Hammer. Iran sent 14 missiles. President Trump says, thanks for the heads up. You know, all of it was evacuated, very symbolic, clearly, to save face and they had a parade, I guess, to say they won something. It's ludicrous, but sometimes you can't get inside the heads of irrational actors who are just doing things for their own population.  Our bases, the force protection is heavy. I mean, there's never 100% just like we saw with all the air defenses of Israel, still about 5% or if not less, of the ballistic missiles got through one one drone out of 1000 got through. You can never be 100% but it is the deterrence, and I think that's what people miss in this operation. It set a new doctrine for everyone, for the United States, that we will use force with limited objectives, to send an immense amount of strength.  And when somebody says there's a red line now that you should believe that, like if you would have injured a single American in the Middle East, Iran would have felt immense amount of American power against that, and they were very careful not to so clearly, they're deterred. This also sent a new red line for Israel, like Israel will act just like it did in other cases against even Iran, if they start to rebuild the program. War is the pursuit of political objectives, but you always have to look at the strategic on down. Casey Kustin:   On that last point, do you think we have entered a new phase in Israeli military doctrine, where, instead of sort of a more covert shadow war with Iran, we will now see open confrontation going forward, if necessary? John Spencer:   Well, you always hope that it will not be necessary, but absolutely this event will create, creates a new doctrine. You can see, see almost everything since October 7, and really there were just things that were unconceivable. Having studied and talked to Israeil senior leaders from the beginning of this. Everybody thought, if you attacked Hezbollah, Iran, was going to attack and cause immense amounts of destruction in Israel. Even when Israel started this operation, their estimates of what the damage they would incur was immense. And that it didn't is a miracle, but it's a miracle built in alliances and friendships with the United States and capabilities built in Israel.  Of course, Israel has learned a lot since October 7 that will fundamentally change everything about not just the military doctrine, but also intelligence services and many aspects that are still happening as they're fighting, still to this day in Gaza to achieve the realistic, measurable goal there. Yes, it absolutely has set forth that the old ways of doing things are gone, the you know, having these terror armies, the ring of fire that Israel has defanged, if not for Hamas dismantled and destroyed.  It sets a new complete peace in the Middle East. But also a doctrine of, Israel is adapting. I mean, there's still some elements about the reserve forces, the reigning doctrine, that are evolving based on the magnitude of the war since October 7. But absolutely you're right about they will, which has been the doctrine, but now they've demonstrated the capability to do it to any threat, to include the great, you know, myth of Iran. Casey Kustin:   So when you talk about this defanging of the Iranian proxy network obviously, Israel undertook significant operations against Hezbollah. Over the last year, they've been in active conflict with the Houthis. How does this operation now alter the way that Iran interacts with those proxies and its capacity to wage war against Israel through these proxies? John Spencer:   Yeah, cripples it, right? So Iran's nuclear ambition and its terror campaign are literally in ruins right now, both literally and figuratively. Hezbollah was defanged, the leadership, even taking out Nasrallah was believed to have caused catastrophic consequences, and it didn't. So, absolutely for Iran, also during this operation, is sniffing because all of his proxies were silent. I think the Houthis launched two missiles because thanks to Israel and the United States, the Houthi capabilities that should never have been allowed to amass, you know, this pirate terror empire. They didn't make those greatest shore to sea arsenal out of falafels. It got it straight from Iran, and that pipeline has already been cut off, let alone the capabilities.  Same thing with Hezbollah, which relied heavily on pipelines and infrastructure of missiles and everything being fed to it by Iran. That's been cut. The Assad regime being the drug empire, support of Hezbollah to rule basically, in Lebanon, has been cut. Hezbollah couldn't come to the aid of Assad. All of these variables. And of course, Hamas will never be able to do anything again, period. It all causes Iran to have to rethink everything. From, you know, not only their own national defense, right air defense capabilities and all this, but their terror campaign, it isn't just in ruins. There's a new doctrine, like it's not acceptable.  Now, of course, that's going to be hard to fully reign in. You have Shia backed groups in Iraq, you have a lot of bad things going on, but the Quds Force, which is its job, it's all shattered. Of course, they'll try to rebuild it. But the fact that these terror proxies were already so weakened by Israel that they couldn't do anything and remain silent. Hezbollah just was silent basically during this, is very significant to the peace going forward. I mean, there, there's still a lot of war here, but Israel and the United States have rewritten the map of the Middle East. Casey Kustin:   in the hours days that followed the US deciding to engage here. A lot of the conversation focused on the possibility of triggering now broader regional escalation, but we didn't see that, and it sort of shattered that myth that if Israel or the US were to go after Iran, that it would spiral into a broader Middle East conflict. Why did we not see that happen? Why did this remain so controlled? John Spencer:   So many reasons that really go back a few months, if not years? Mean going back to the first the Abraham Accords, President Trump's recent tour of the Gulf states and his story. Turic financial deals Israel's like we talked about with the Arab nations that were part of protecting it, the fact that the so on, that very geopolitical aspect. And we saw Iran turn to Russia, because there's always geopolitical considerations. Iran turned to Russia. Said, you're going to help us out. We signed this security agreement last year. We've been helping you in Ukraine do the awful things you're doing there.  And Russia said, No, that's not what we said. And it called called President Trump. President Trump says, how about you worry about mediating a ceasefire in Ukraine? And well, so they turned to China and the fact that there was nobody again, and that all the work that had been done with all the people that also disagree, nation states like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, all those others. Those are many of the contributing factors.  But war also, I wrote this piece about, this isn't Iraq, this isn't Afghanistan, this isn't Libya. I really hate the lazy comparisons. This was contained and not able to spill out by constant communication from day one of what the goals were. Limited objective to roll back a threat to the world nuclear program and the ballistic program as well. That prevents the ability for even the Islamic regime to say, you know, my survival is at risk, I need to escalate this, right? So, being clear, having strategic clarity from Israel, and when the United States assisted, from the United States. You know, war is a contest of wills, not just between the military is fighting it, but the political element and the population element. So, you know, being able to communicate to the population in Israel and like, what's the goal here? Like, how long are we gonna have to do this? And to the United States. Like, what are our interests? Keeping it the goal limited, which all parties did.  And even, in fact, you had the G7 meeting during this and they signed an agreement, we agree Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. That is a big part of how you permit the spill out. But it does have many contextual elements of the broader, this isn't black and white between Israel and Iran. It's much bigger than that. And that, and we saw all that work that has been done to show strength through peace, or peace through strength, in all the forms of national power that have been rallied against what is chaos that the Islamic regime wants in the Middle East. Casey Kustin:   So now that we've had a few days to begin to assess the impact of both the US and the Israeli strikes based on what's publicly available. I think you wrote that the nuclear timeline has been pushed back years. We saw some reporting in the New York Times yesterday saying it's only set back months. It seems this morning, the US is concurring with the Israeli assessment that it's been set back years. A lot of talk about where certain Where did certain stockpiles of enriched uranium, and how confident can we be at this point in any of these assessments? John Spencer:   So yes, as we're talking, people are trying to make it political. This should be a non partisan, non political issue. I'm an objective analyst of war. If you just write down all the things that Israel destroyed, validated by satellite imagery. then the fact that somebody And even the spinning of words where like we saw with that leaked report, which was the preliminary thoughts about something, it isn't comprehensive, right?  So one, BDA has never come that fast. Two, we do know, and Iran has validated, like all these scientists dead, all these generals dead, all these components of the nuclear program, damaged or destroyed. The idea that somebody would say, well, you only set it back a couple months to me, it's just anti-intellectual. Look, Natanz, Esfahan, Fordo, we can debate about how much stuff is inside of that mountain that was destroyed, although 14 of the world's best bunker buster munitions, 30,000 pounds punching through.  I just think, it's not a silly argument, because this is very serious. And yes, there could be, you know, hundreds of pounds of enriched uranium up there, a certain percentage that got floated around. That's not the, the things that set the timeline of breakout. Breakout included all the components of the knowledge and capability to reach breakout and then weaponization of a nuclear bomb. There's nobody, I think, who can comprehensively, without nuancing the words say that Israel wasn't very effective, and the United States assistance in only what the United States could do, at setting this program back and actually stopping the immediate danger. Of course, Iran is still a danger. The program is still a danger, but I just think it's so political that they're trying to say that, well, you only said it back a couple months. That's like, that's ridiculous. Casey Kustin:   So as an objective analyst of war, but also as someone who's really been a voice of moral clarity and has called out the international media over the last 18 months for a lot of this disinformation, misinformation, bias reporting. Before we go, John, what is one consequence of this operation that the international media is just missing? John Spencer:   One is that, I think the international media who are debating whether Iran was literally using an opposing opinion against global thought that Iran was close to a nuclear bomb, they missed that completely and tried to politicize it to where, just giving disinformation agents that tidbit of a headline that they need. I do believe in journalistic standards, fact checking, those elements and holding those people accountable. I live in the world of experts. People on the platform X who think they're experts.  But when you have national media running headlines for sensationalism, for clicks, for you know, struggling for opposition to just political administration, we should learn to really question a single report as valid when there's overwhelming opposition. I don't know how to put that succinctly, but you think we would learn over the last, you know, 20 months of this lies, disinformation, statistical warfare, the things like that that, yeah, it's just crazy that that somebody would think in any way this wasn't an overwhelming success for the world, that this program was set back and a new doctrine for treating the program was established. Casey Kustin:   Finally, John, before we wrap up here, the question on everyone's mind: can the ceasefire really hold? John Spencer:   So, you know, I don't do predictions, because I understand wars uncertainty. It's human. It's political. It looks by all signs, because of how Iran was dominated, and how the United States showed that if it isn't contained, then immense amounts of force and of course, Israel's superiority, I believe that the ceasefire will hold. It was normal. And I made some some posts about the historical examples of wars coming to an end, from the Korean War, to the Yom Kippur war, Bosnia War, where you had this transition period where you're rolling back forces and everything. But the by the fact that Iran has said, Yeah, we agreed. We have stopped our operation. All signs for me are saying that this ceasefire will hold, and now the world's in a better place. Casey Kustin:   John, thank you so much for the insight, for, as I said, your moral clarity that you bring to this conversation. We appreciate you joining us today on People of the Pod. John Spencer:   Thank you so much.   

A missile strike by Houthi terrorist hit Israeli soil near Tel Aviv's largest airport on Sunday, surprisingly evading air defense systems causing multiple international flights. In the wake of the missile attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the military operation in Gaza will be expanded. The Prime Minister has ordered that Israeli reservists be called up and the population of Gaza be displaced to the south while they continue their goal to root out the Hamas terror group. FOX's Eben Brown speaks with John Spencer, Chairman of Urban Warfare Studies and author of 'Connected Soldiers: Life, Leadership, and Social Connections in Modern War', who says this is a direct change of Israeli plans for post war Gaza. Click Here⁠ To Follow 'The FOX News Rundown: Evening Edition' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A missile strike by Houthi terrorist hit Israeli soil near Tel Aviv's largest airport on Sunday, surprisingly evading air defense systems causing multiple international flights. In the wake of the missile attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the military operation in Gaza will be expanded. The Prime Minister has ordered that Israeli reservists be called up and the population of Gaza be displaced to the south while they continue their goal to root out the Hamas terror group. FOX's Eben Brown speaks with John Spencer, Chairman of Urban Warfare Studies and author of 'Connected Soldiers: Life, Leadership, and Social Connections in Modern War', who says this is a direct change of Israeli plans for post war Gaza. Click Here⁠ To Follow 'The FOX News Rundown: Evening Edition' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A missile strike by Houthi terrorist hit Israeli soil near Tel Aviv's largest airport on Sunday, surprisingly evading air defense systems causing multiple international flights. In the wake of the missile attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the military operation in Gaza will be expanded. The Prime Minister has ordered that Israeli reservists be called up and the population of Gaza be displaced to the south while they continue their goal to root out the Hamas terror group. FOX's Eben Brown speaks with John Spencer, Chairman of Urban Warfare Studies and author of 'Connected Soldiers: Life, Leadership, and Social Connections in Modern War', who says this is a direct change of Israeli plans for post war Gaza. Click Here⁠ To Follow 'The FOX News Rundown: Evening Edition' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this powerful episode, Rabbi Pesach Wolicki and Pastor Doug Reed speak with Colonel John Spencer—Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at West Point and a globally recognized expert on modern combat—to unpack the complexities of Israel's war against Hamas. Colonel Spencer offers a clear-eyed analysis of urban warfare, the ethical challenges faced by democratic militaries, and the rigorous standards of international law. Together, they address the widespread misinformation fueling anti-Israel sentiment and explain why much of the global criticism ignores the realities of combat and the legal obligations Israel upholds on the battlefield.

John Spencer is the Chief of Urban Warfare Studies at West Point's Modern Warfare Institute, and the Executive Director of the Urban Warfare Institute. Spencer also has over 25 years of active military service as an infantry soldier, achieving the rank of Major.  He sat down with Nadav Tikochinsky, Pinsker Centre Policy Fellow, to reflect on his own experience in combat, how non-state actors are changing urban warfare, and how he sees the rules of war being misunderstood and manipulated. 

From Boca Raton, Florida, this is Behind the Bima. On this week's episode, Rabbi Efrem Goldberg, Rabbi Philip Moskowitz and Rabbi Josh Broide are joined by Colonel John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point.In this compelling conversation, John Spencer provides profound insights into the complexities of urban warfare, sharing his expertise and experiences from the battlefield. The discussion delves into the themes of moral clarity in warfare, the challenges faced by Israel in its ongoing conflicts, and the broader implications for Western military strategies.Plus: all about Rabbi Broide's move to Israel.All this and more, Behind the Bima.

Send us a textDive into an in‑depth conversation with John Spencer as he delivers an inside look at Israel's government communication strategy and its evolving approach to urban warfare. In this episode of Israel: State of a Nation, John—chair of Urban Warfare Studies at West Point and a renowned military analyst—breaks down the shifting battlefield dynamics, the double standards of international law, and the challenging questions about hostages, ceasefires, and the future of Gaza.Key Topics Discussed: • How Hamas' tactics and the “moral trap” shape modern urban warfare • The political stakes and international pressures influencing Israel's strategy • The role of advanced IDF tactics—including tanks, drones, and infantry innovations—in fighting an enemy entrenched in tunnels • The hostage crisis, failed ceasefire negotiations, and the dilemma of international aid • Lessons from historical battles and how they inform today's conflictIf you're looking to understand the complex interplay between military strategy, international law, and government messaging during wartime, this episode is a must‑listen.0:00 - Introduction: The War Israel Must Win5:06 - Hamas's Strategy: Sacrificing Civilians for Victory14:05 - The Double Standard: Why Israel Can't Win By Playing By the Rules27:51 - Occupation or Anarchy: Israel's Impossible Choice34:38 - Israel's Approach to Fighting in Unimaginable TerrainCo-Creator and Host - Eylon LevyCo-Creator - Guy RossExecutive Producer - Asher Westropp-EvansDirector/Editor - Benny GoldmanStudio Manager - Lotem SegevGraphics - Thomas GirschLine Producer - Tal SegalIntern - Jesse SklarInside GenevaInside Geneva is a podcast about global politics, humanitarian issues, & international aidListen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showStay up to date at:X: https://twitter.com/stateofapodInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/stateofapod/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?... LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/state-of-a-nation

This episode of the podcast features my conversation with none other than John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at West Point, in front of a live Atlanta audience. Our organization recently hosted a series of MirYam Institute campus presentations featuring John as the keynote speaker. That campus tour included lectures at Columbia Law School, The Kennedy School of Government at Harvard and the Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy at Tufts. John's initial comments were followed by audience questions from the pro., the anti and the undecided elements of the graduate student community.  That lecture series culminated with a presentation to the Atlanta Jewish community and it's that conversation that I'm pleased to share with you here. So with that, enjoy!Don't forget that you can catch nearly all of this audio content in video format on The MirYam Institute's YouTube channel, so if you'd like to ensure that you never miss any of our programming, go ahead and subscribe to that channel as well via the link below. https://www.youtube.com/@TheMirYamInstituteSupport the showThe MirYam Institute. Israel's Future in Israel's Hands.Subscribe to our podcast: https://podfollow.com/1493910771Follow The MirYam Institute X: https://bit.ly/3jkeUyxFollow Benjamin Anthony X: https://bit.ly/3hZeOe9Like Benjamin Anthony Facebook: https://bit.ly/333Ct93Like The MirYam Institute Facebook: https://bit.ly/2SarHI3Follow Benjamin Anthony Instagram: https://bit.ly/30m6uPGFollow The MirYam Institute Instagram: https://bit.ly/3l5fvED

The character of war is constantly evolving. Those changes are happening not just on land, at sea, and in air – but also in the subterranean realm. The combatant that best understands these ongoing changes and adapts the most effectively is more likely to be successful in future wars.Few modern militaries know subterranean warfare better than Israel. That's because terrorist groups such has Hamas and Hezbollah have for years attempted to use tunnels to infiltrate Israel and conduct attacks there. Following the October 7 terror attack on Israel, Hamas and Hezbollah used tunnels in Gaza and Lebanon, respectively, to protect terrorist forces and their arsenals from counterattack, imprison hostages, extend the conflicts, and further political warfare strategies. In response, Israel has developed world-class technologies, capabilities, and tactics to detect and destroy tunnels.What is the nature of subterranean warfare, how was it used in Gaza and Lebanon, and was this an anomaly peculiar to those wars and places or rather a sign of things to come elsewhere? What lessons should be learned, and how should Israel, the United States, and its allies respond?To discuss these questions and more, FDD hosts MAJ (Ret.) John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, Daphné Richemond-Barak, Assistant Professor in the Lauder School of Government, Diplomacy, and Strategy at Reichman University in Israel, and Lt. Col. (Ret.) Jonathan Conricus, Senior Fellow at FDD. The conversation is moderated by Bradley Bowman, Senior Director of FDD's Center on Military and Political Power with introductory remarks by FDD Executive Director Jonathan Schanzer.For more, check out: https://www.fdd.org/events/2025/01/13/tunnel-vision-us-israel-cooperation-and-thefuture-of-underground-warfare/

John Spencer is the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point. He joined Rep. Crenshaw to explore the historical evolution of urban combat and analyze modern strategies for conquering and defending cities. John discusses how urban warfare is playing out in Syria, Lebanon, Gaza, and Ukraine. And he envisions the most likely scenarios for a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, along with potential U.S.-Mexico counterinsurgency efforts against the cartels. •    The evolution of urban warfare •    Regime change and chaos in Syria •    Why willpower often trumps raw numbers •    Hezbollah's decimation and its implications •    Israeli airstrikes in post-Assad Syria •    “The way you take a city is psychologically.” •    Russia's miscalculation in Kiev and Ukraine's resistance •    How Gaza's conflict was unlike any other •    Why banning missiles could result in more civilian casualties •    Debunking the “Zero Dark Thirty” Fallacy •    “Is that Batman??” •    Why the pager operation wouldn't have worked in Gaza •    More common misconceptions: The Abacus, Vampire, and Peace Table Fallacies •    Taiwan's defenses and civilian preparation for invasion •    U.S.-Mexico counterinsurgency strategies to combat cartels John Spencer currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. He also serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum, a New York based think-tank. He is a founding member of the International Working Group on Subterranean Warfare. He is the author of three books: Understanding Urban Warfare, (Howgate Publishing, 2022), Connected Soldiers: Life, Leadership, and Social Connections in Modern War (Potomac Books, 2022; Winner of the 2023 Gold Medal Award, Best Military History Memoir, Military Writers Society of America), The Mini-Manual for the Urban Defender (John Spencer, 2022). Follow him on X at @SpencerGuard.

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John Spencer, chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute, co-director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast, discusses Israel's ongoing war against Hamas, including the unique challenges presented by the extensive tunnel network in Gaza and its unprecedented and misunderstood efforts to minimize civilian harm.The Hub Dialogues features The Hub's editor-at-large, Sean Speer, in conversation with leading entrepreneurs, policymakers, scholars, and thinkers on the issues and challenges that will shape Canada's future at home and abroad.If you like what you are hearing on Hub Dialogues consider subscribing to The Hub's free weekly email newsletter featuring our insights and analysis on key public policy issues. Sign up here: https://thehub.ca/join/. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Following the brutal Hamas 'October 7th' attack that killed more than twelve hundred Israelis, Israel has vowed to rid Gaza of the terrorist group's control. But to ensure another 'October 7th' event won't happen again, a post-war plan for Gaza needs to be put in place for both reconstruction and new governance. What could that that plan look like? Meanwhile, in a daring rescue mission, Israeli commandos rescued a 52-year-old Bedouin man from Hamas captivity. FOX's Eben Brown speaks with John Spencer, the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at West Point, who says the key to the future of Gaza is making sure Hamas has no control over the Palestinian people. Click Here To Follow 'The FOX News Rundown: Evening Edition' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Following the brutal Hamas 'October 7th' attack that killed more than twelve hundred Israelis, Israel has vowed to rid Gaza of the terrorist group's control. But to ensure another 'October 7th' event won't happen again, a post-war plan for Gaza needs to be put in place for both reconstruction and new governance. What could that that plan look like? Meanwhile, in a daring rescue mission, Israeli commandos rescued a 52-year-old Bedouin man from Hamas captivity. FOX's Eben Brown speaks with John Spencer, the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at West Point, who says the key to the future of Gaza is making sure Hamas has no control over the Palestinian people. Click Here To Follow 'The FOX News Rundown: Evening Edition' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Following the brutal Hamas 'October 7th' attack that killed more than twelve hundred Israelis, Israel has vowed to rid Gaza of the terrorist group's control. But to ensure another 'October 7th' event won't happen again, a post-war plan for Gaza needs to be put in place for both reconstruction and new governance. What could that that plan look like? Meanwhile, in a daring rescue mission, Israeli commandos rescued a 52-year-old Bedouin man from Hamas captivity. FOX's Eben Brown speaks with John Spencer, the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at West Point, who says the key to the future of Gaza is making sure Hamas has no control over the Palestinian people. Click Here To Follow 'The FOX News Rundown: Evening Edition' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

#GAZA: Urban warfare Italy 1943-44:  Gaza 2023-24. 2:15 PM - John Spencer is a retired United States Army officer, researcher of urban warfare, and author. He currently serves as the chair of urban warfare studies at the Modern War Institute, co-director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project Podcast, at West Point. https://www.foreignaffairs.com/israel/israel-winning 1910 Jerusalem

This is The Zone of Disruption! This is the I AM RAPAPORT: STEREO PODCAST! His name is Michael Rapaport aka The Gringo Mandingo aka  The Charles Oakley of The Jews, The Monster of Mucous aka Captain Colitis aka The Disruptive Warrior aka Mr. NY aka The Inflamed Ashkenazi aka The Smiling Sultan of Sniff aka The Flat Footed Phenom aka Mitzvah Mike is here from New York to discuss: Being in Khan Yunis, 400 Miles of Tunnels & the information IDF had, finding & recovering hostage bodies from Gaza, casualty numbers being reported, misinformation & differences in Urban Warfare, where is Sinwar?, Hamas using human shields, what does winning the war look like for both sides?, Iran, why must Israel exist? & a whole lotta mo'. This episode is not to be missed! Rate & Review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Send questions & concerns to: iamrapaportpodcast@gmail.com Subscribe to Rapaport's Reality Feeds:  iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/867-rapaports-reality-with-keb-171162927/ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rapaports-reality-with-kebe-michael-rapaport/id1744160673 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3a9ArixCtWRhfpfo1Tz7MR Pandora: https://www.pandora.com/podcast/rapaports-reality-with-kebe-michael-rapaport/PC:1001087456 Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/a776919e-ad8c-4b4b-90c6-f28e41fe1d40/rapaports-reality-with-kebe-michael-rapaport Stand Up Comedy Tickets on sale at: MichaelRapaportComedy.com If you are interested in NCAA, MLB, NBA, NFL & UFC Picks/Parlays Follow @TheCaptainPicks on Instagram & subscribe to packages at www.CaptainPicks.com www.dbpodcasts.com   Produced by DBPodcasts.com Follow @dbpodcasts, @iamrapaport, @michaelrapaport on TikTok, Twitter & Instagram Music by Jansport J (Follow @JansportJ) www.JansportJMusic.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In part two of my conversation with John Spencer, I ask him whether he believes that the global criticism against the actions of the IDF is the result of an anti-Israel, anti-Semitic bias and he compares and contrasts the strategic implications of Israel's casualty-averse approach to warfare vs. Hamas's readiness to sacrifice Gazan civilians in pursuit of their terror agenda. I also ask him how confident he would be if one of his children was drafted to the IDF in the post October 7th era and John marvels at the ingenuity and adaptability of Israel's campaign inside the Gaza Strip.We finish with me challenging his description of himself as the Forrest Gump of the U.S. military! Enjoy and remember to subscribe to the show.To learn more about I-SAP and to invest in the I-SAP tour, click on the link below.https://www.miryaminstitute.org/isapSupport the Show.The MirYam Institute. Israel's Future in Israel's Hands.Subscribe to our podcast: https://podfollow.com/1493910771Follow The MirYam Institute X: https://bit.ly/3jkeUyxFollow Benjamin Anthony X: https://bit.ly/3hZeOe9Like Benjamin Anthony Facebook: https://bit.ly/333Ct93Like The MirYam Institute Facebook: https://bit.ly/2SarHI3Follow Benjamin Anthony Instagram: https://bit.ly/30m6uPGFollow The MirYam Institute Instagram: https://bit.ly/3l5fvED

This episode features my in-person conversation with John Spencer, the Chair Of Urban Warfare Studies at the United States Military Academy at West Point.Recorded on July 28th, 2024, this in-person discussion was recorded just a few days after John's work was referenced by Benjamin Netanyahu in his speech to a joint session of the U.S. Congress, as the Israel premier pressed the case for Israel in the most important legislative body in the world. In this segment, I ask John to reflect on the fact that his scholarship is regularly referenced by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in order to debunk media falsehoods against Israel's prosecution of the war inside Gaza against Hamas and his feelings about his work being one of the only sources Israelis can echo and invoke at this time. Given that his department is at West Point, I ask him for his thoughts on the importance of the annual Israel Strategy and Policy Tour (I-SAP) that The MirYam Institute arranges for cadets and future officers enrolled at the academy and I also ask John whether he agrees with my belief that a military victory against Hamas is achievable. He also tells me why he believes himself to be a real-life Forrest Gump and asserts that events beyond his control have consistently placed him in the right place at the right moment. Enjoy and remember to subscribe to the show!To learn more about I-SAP and to invest in the I-SAP tour, click on the link below. https://www.miryaminstitute.org/isapSupport the Show.The MirYam Institute. Israel's Future in Israel's Hands.Subscribe to our podcast: https://podfollow.com/1493910771Follow The MirYam Institute X: https://bit.ly/3jkeUyxFollow Benjamin Anthony X: https://bit.ly/3hZeOe9Like Benjamin Anthony Facebook: https://bit.ly/333Ct93Like The MirYam Institute Facebook: https://bit.ly/2SarHI3Follow Benjamin Anthony Instagram: https://bit.ly/30m6uPGFollow The MirYam Institute Instagram: https://bit.ly/3l5fvED

John W. Spencer is a retired United States Army officer, researcher of urban warfare, and author. He currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point. John also hosts the Urban Warfare Project Podcast, at West Point. His research, spanning over a decade, focuses on military operations in dense urban areas, megacities, urban and subterranean warfare and includes cutting-edge field research into ongoing or recently concluded wars and battles from Nagorno-Karabakh, Ukraine, Israel, to Gaza. Connect with John Spencer https://www.johnspenceronline.com/ https://x.com/SpencerGuard https://www.instagram.com/spencerguard/ https://www.johnspenceronline.com/podcasts John Spencer interview with Jordan Peterson: https://youtu.be/a4nbPsPia_g?si=SKz6lISnUtHql-Ek *** Support Us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cryforzion #podcast #breakingnews #israel #specialforces #usforeignaid #usa #doronkeidar #thedoronkeidarpodcast #Israel #HamasISIS #israelatwar #BringThemHomeNOW #JohnSpencer #WestPoint #urbanwarfare

Why war isn't as simple as two armies fighting, the obsession with "2,000 pound bombs", Hamas's non-battlefield strategy (which the media helps it achieve) and so much more with John Spencer.No one understands the intricacies of modern warfare like John Spencer. As a retired US Army Major and chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, not only has he studied war for years, he also put his boots on the ground as a soldier and researcher (including several visits to Gaza over the last year). So of course, we asked him the important questions - are we all going to die? Is he single? And why is he so obsessed with concrete?The After Action Review:How did he learn about Israel?Global world orderRemember when Iran attacked Israel?? What was up with that.There are worse things than warA Just War? Yes (here's what the author of the Just War theory, Michael Walzer, had to say last year)Drones! Here is Yael's thread about battlefield innovation)Wait what is going on in Ukraine again?Dead chinese military generals that don't existAppeasement never worksSpeaking up for Ukraine vs speaking up for IsraelThe dangerously dumbJohn is a normal person — what do normal people think?The myth of the 2,000 pound bombWar has never been two militaries just trying to defeat each other - there are politicians and populations involved.Hamas's goal is not to win on the battlefieldHow the US lost a battle of Fallujah because of media pressureOh guess what Hamas is stealing (and bombing) humanitarian aid.Start digging!Sorry ladies, his heart belongs to concrete…Everyone should have a friend in the militaryFollow John on X/TwitterIsrael Has Created a New Standard for Urban Warfare. Why Will No One Admit It? - Newsweek, March 2024. Joing the AAJ conversation on Susbtack! askajew.substack.comEmail us your questions askajewpod@gmail.com ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ Want to help us grow? Rate and review us 5 stars on Apple podcasts and Spotify ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

The facts are as undeniable as they are unreported by the news media: that Israel has done more to protect civilians in war, particularly in an urban warfare setting, than any other military in the history of warfare. Despite a widespread and well-funded disinformation campaign, from actors ranging from South Africa to the Islamic Republic of Iran to professional protesters, Israel is not only definitively not guilty of the crimes it is accused of, but it has taken extraordinary steps to protect civilians in Gaza, going far beyond what is required by international law. Israel has paid for this care dearly, losing more than 270 soldiers fighting Hamas terrorists in close combat, rather than - doing as virtually any other country would do - minimizing risk to soldiers and simply using overwhelming aerial firepower. To help us understand Israel's extensive protections of civilians in Gaza, we are joined by John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, and one of the world's top experts in urban warfare. Welcome to The Honest Report podcast. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thehonestreport/message

Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/366-urban-warfare-2-0 Sam Harris speaks with John Spencer about the reality of urban warfare and Israel's conduct in the war in Gaza. They discuss the nature of the Hamas attacks on October 7th, what was most surprising about the Hamas videos, the difficulty in distinguishing Hamas from the rest of the population, combatants as a reflection of a society's values, how many people have been killed in Gaza, the proportion of combatants and noncombatants, the double standards to which the IDF is held, the worst criticism that can be made of Israel and the IDF, intentions vs results, what is unique about the war in Gaza, Hamas's use of human shields, what it would mean to defeat Hamas, what the IDF has accomplished so far, the destruction of the Gaza tunnel system, the details of underground warfare, the rescue of hostages, how noncombatants become combatants, how difficult it is to interpret videos of combat, what victory would look like, the likely aftermath of the war, war with Hezbollah, Iran's attack on Israel, what to do about Iran, and other topics. John Spencer is an award-winning scholar, professor, author, and combat veteran. He currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. He is also a founding member of the International Working Group on Subterranean Warfare. John served 25 years in the U.S. Army, having held ranks from Private to Sergeant First Class and Second Lieutenant to Major. He was an active duty Army officer during two combat tours in Iraq. His research focuses on military operations in dense urban areas, megacities, and urban and subterranean warfare. Spencer holds a Master of Policy Management from Georgetown University, and his writings have appeared in the Time magazine, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and many other publications. He is considered one of the world’s leading experts on urban warfare and has served as an advisor to everyone from top four-star generals to world leaders. He is the coauthor of Understanding Urban Warfare. Website: www.johnspenceronline.com Twitter: @SpencerGuard Learning how to train your mind is the single greatest investment you can make in life. That’s why Sam Harris created the Waking Up app. From rational mindfulness practice to lessons on some of life’s most important topics, join Sam as he demystifies the practice of meditation and explores the theory behind it.

In this episode of TAG Talks, The Adjutant General of the Army, Brig. Gen. Gregory Johnson ("TAG 63") had a conversation with Mr. John Spencer, the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies for the Modern War Institute at West Point. This episode delves into Mr. Spencer's book, "Connected Soldiers" and how Soldiers and their connections on the Battlefield continue to change.

This episode, which should be seen as a spin-off of the last, discusses the patterns of mistakes made in the coverage of Israel's war in Gaza, and examines the consequences of those mistakes. Views my own. As mentioned in the episode, linked here is a piece by Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at West Point John Spencer: https://www.newsweek.com/israel-has-created-new-standard-urban-warfare-why-will-no-one-admit-it-opinion-1883286 And here is The Atlantic piece by a former AP journalist describing the complex relationship between the press and NGOs in the Israel-Palestine conflict: https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2014/11/how-the-media-makes-the-israel-story/383262/

Israel is facing growing criticisms from allies, including President Biden, of not doing enough to protect Gaza's civilians from harm as they conduct military operations against Hamas. The criticisms have increased following an Israeli drone strike that killed seven aid workers, a mistake the IDF quickly admitted to and apologized for. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the offensive into Rafah 'will happen and there is a date' for the operation. FOX's Eben Brown speaks with John Spencer, the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum, who says Israeli Defense Forces are doing better job keeping innocent civilians safe than the world thinks. Click Here To Follow 'The FOX News Rundown: Evening Edition' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Israel is facing growing criticisms from allies, including President Biden, of not doing enough to protect Gaza's civilians from harm as they conduct military operations against Hamas. The criticisms have increased following an Israeli drone strike that killed seven aid workers, a mistake the IDF quickly admitted to and apologized for. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the offensive into Rafah 'will happen and there is a date' for the operation. FOX's Eben Brown speaks with John Spencer, the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum, who says Israeli Defense Forces are doing better job keeping innocent civilians safe than the world thinks. Click Here To Follow 'The FOX News Rundown: Evening Edition' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Israel is facing growing criticisms from allies, including President Biden, of not doing enough to protect Gaza's civilians from harm as they conduct military operations against Hamas. The criticisms have increased following an Israeli drone strike that killed seven aid workers, a mistake the IDF quickly admitted to and apologized for. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the offensive into Rafah 'will happen and there is a date' for the operation. FOX's Eben Brown speaks with John Spencer, the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum, who says Israeli Defense Forces are doing better job keeping innocent civilians safe than the world thinks. Click Here To Follow 'The FOX News Rundown: Evening Edition' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode the team discusses urban warfare with Professor John Spencer, the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern Warfare Center. If you liked Professor Spencer's points and want to learn more about Urban Warfare check out his podcast or book below, along with some other books he suggests. John Spencer's Podcast: Urban Warfare Project Podcast https://mwi.westpoint.edu/category/podcasts/urban-warfare-project-podcasts/ Book Recommendations: Understanding Urban Warfare: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/63133593-understanding-urban-warfare Block by Block: The Challenges of Urban Operations https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/14611374-block-by-block Conflict: The Evolution of Warfare from 1945 to Ukraine: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/83814899-conflict

Caroline Glick speaks with the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute John Spencer about, in his analysis, the wrongful comparisons between the Israel/Gaza war and other urban warfare conflicts. Spencer first made waves when he posited in several Newsweek articles that the civilian casualty number is quite low, that Israel was in full compliance with international law and that any comparison to urban warfare in Afghanistan and Iraq is entirely incorrect.Spencer breaks down his arguments and explains that despite what the international community thinks Israel is winning the war "spectacularly".Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-caroline-glick-show--5545596/support.

FDD Senior Vice President Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, to discuss Hamas's tunnel networks in Gaza.Learn more at: www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/

John Spencer is the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at West Point. If he is not the world's leading authority on Urban Warfare....he is on the short list. John has been writing extensively about the Israeli Defense Force's operation in Gaza in response to Oct. 7th as it is a never-before-seen urban combat mission against an entrenched enemy with 400 miles of tunnels, ensconced within the civilian infrastructure of roughly 8 cities. John explains to us why the IDF's accomplishments over the last 10 weeks out-strip anything he ever envisioned possible in urban warfare. We also get into international law, the morals/ethics of combat, hostage rescue, and John's experiences as an urban combat veteran in Iraq. Truly an incredible discussion that I think you'll learn a lot from. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Throughout the last couple of years, we've stayed on top of all the domestic and international security threats facing us all from Putin to Hamas to domestic extremists. And our guest in this episode is going to take us through all of it with a very unique, powerful and authentic perspective. He's an expert on urban combat, which is going to dominate the combat landscape for the next generation and maybe more. It's what we've seen in Iraq. It's what we've seen in Syria. It's what we've seen in Ukraine. It's what we're seeing in Gaza.  He's been there and done that. He started out in the Army as a Private and went all the way up through the ranks from Ranger instructor to Platoon Leader in Iraq and multiple tours to teaching at West Point. He's chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute. He's the author of Understanding Urban Warfare. He's a host of his own podcast, becoming much more regular in the media and is extremely prolific on social media, including a breakout moment when the invasion of Ukraine began. He's also a humble, thoughtful, experienced father of three kids who came back from Ukraine just two weeks ago. He's a leader meeting the moment who will help us understand what's happening now and what could happen next. From the battlefields of Ukraine to the streets of Gaza to the tree lighting ceremony here in New York City at Rockefeller Center. The threats are everywhere. We're going to break it down with authenticity, without the spin and with real facts and experience. It's the kind of conversation you can't have on cable news, but you can have on a podcast. Here it is, Paul Rieckhoff's (@PaulRieckhoff) high impact conversation with one of the world's leading authorities on urban warfare, Major John Spencer. Every episode of Independent Americans with Paul Rieckhoff breaks down the most important news stories–and offers light to contrast the heat of other politics and news shows. It's content for the 49% of Americans that proudly call themselves independent. Always with a unique focus on national security, foreign affairs and military and veterans issues. Independent content for independent Americans. In these trying times especially, Independent Americans is your trusted place for independent news, politics, inspiration and hope. The podcast that helps you stay ahead of the curve–and stay vigilant.  -Watch Paul and John's conversion on YouTube. - Check out https://www.johnspenceronline.com/ for more on John and his work. -Join the movement. Sign up to get our regular breakdowns of the independent news you need to know.  -Hook into our exclusive Patreon community of Independent Americans. Get extra content, connect with guests, meet other Independent Americans, attend events, get merch discounts, and support this show that speaks truth to power.  -Check the hashtag #LookForTheHelpers. And share yours.  -Find us on social media or www.IndependentAmericans.us. And get a cool, new IA hoodie sweatshirt just in time for the start of the cold season.  -Check out other Righteous podcasts like The Firefighters Podcast with Rob Serra, Uncle Montel - The OG of Weed and B Dorm.  Independent Americans is powered by veteran-owned and led Righteous Media. America's next great independent media company. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Day 571. Today, we bring you updates from the battlefront, discuss the state of Ukrainian football in the full scale invasion. Plus Dom Nicholls interviews friend of the podcast John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare studies at the Modern War Institute, about hope in war. Contributors:David Knowles (Host). @djknowles22 on Twitter.Dominic Nicholls (Associate Editor, Defence). @DomNicholls on Twitter.James Kilner (Foreign Correspondent). @jkjourno on Twitter.With thanks to:Romann Tymotsko @KarpatyLvivFC on TwitterAndrew Todos from Zorya Londonsk, Ukrainian football expert. @zoryalondonsk on Twitter.Jez Myers @jezmyers on Twitter.John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute. @SpencerGuard on Twitter.Find out more: Subscribe to The Telegraph: telegraph.co.uk/ukrainethelatestEmail: ukrainepod@telegraph.co.ukSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This Week on Ukraine 2 4 2: Urban Warfare and other Battle Knowledge – US Major John SpencerTRT: 29 minutesUS Major John Spencer is considered the world's leading expert on urban warfare. In February 2022, he wrote The Mini-Manuel for The Urban Defender, a guidebook for everyday people to defend their territory against military aggressors. The manual was posted online by the Ukrainian military and went viral, enabling Ukrainians to help their military to defeat the February 24 attack by Russia on Kyiv and other major cities.Spencer discusses the concepts in his booklet and answers many questions about the war in Ukraine from the point of view of a military expert. He discusses why Russians bomb civilian targets, the purpose of F-16 planes that have just been granted to Ukraine, NATO, threats to Poland, nuclear weapons, the current character of this war and how warfare has changed, and more. He speculates about possible outcomes for Ukraine and Russia. Above all, he reminds us that war is ultimately a matter of politics, not weaponry.  Major John Spencer is an award-winning scholar, professor, author, combat veteran, and internationally recognized expert and advisor on urban warfare and other military related topics to four-star generals and other senior leaders in the U.S. He currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum. He recently served as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. He served as a Colonel in the California State Guard with an assignment to the 40th Infantry Division, California Army National Guard as the Director of Urban Warfare Training.Music: Hey Hey Rise Up by Pink Floyd featuring Andriy Khlyvnyuk of BoomboxUkraine 2 4 2 features interviews with experts, key people on the ground in Ukraine and many others affected, who can give direct and personal accounts of the unfolding of the war in Ukraine, how people of diverse backgrounds and professional skills rally in the fight for freedom and the historical context of Russia's invasion.  

Day 512.Today, we bring you updates from the battlefront, analyse the reported arrest of Igor Girkin in Russia, and speak to friend of the podcast John Spencer - Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute - about his recent research trip to Ukraine. Contributors:David Knowles (Host). @djknowles22 on Twitter.Francis Dearnley (Assistant Comment Editor). @FrancisDearnley on Twitter.Roland Oliphant (Senior Foreign Correspondent). @RolandOliphant on Twitter. John Spencer (Chair of Urban Warfare Studies). @SpencerGuard on Twitter. Maria Romanenko (Ukrainian journalist). @rommari on Twitter. Subscribe to The Telegraph: telegraph.co.uk/ukrainethelatestEmail: ukrainepod@telegraph.co.ukSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Rep. Madeleine Dean (D) Pennsylvania, Maj. John Spencer (Ret.), Chair of Urban Warfare Studies, Madison Policy Forum, Imara Jones, Founder, TransLash Media, Rep. Stacey E. Plaskett (D) U.S.V.I., Noga Tarnopolsky, Independent Journalist, Nancy Northup, President & CEO, Center for Reproductive Rights, and Rep. Adam Schiff (D) California.

John Spencer is considered one of the leading experts in military operations in an urban context. As winter sets in with a vengeance life is becoming harder in Ukrainian cities and the supply of power and heat become unreliable from Russian missile strikes. Russia's campaign to cripple Ukraine's power infrastructure could therefore trigger a new wave of emigration to Europe, and there is still the threat of a new offensive against Kyiv. As Russia's position on the battlefield becomes more precarious, Putin may resort to terroristic threats, against nuclear facilities, or other irresponsible actions. Ukraine is on a path to victory, but how long will it take, and what will be the eventual cost? John Spencer is chair of Urban Warfare Studies at Modern War Institute at West Point, Major, US Army (ret). He is an award-winning College Assistant Professor and a widely published author in the many of the world's top news sources. John Spencer is considered one of the leading experts in military operations in an urban context. He is currently serving as a Colonel in the California State Guard with assignment to the 40th Infantry Division, California Army National Guard as Director of Urban Warfare Training.

On November 9, 1989, the Cold War began to thaw with the fall of the Berlin Wall, and we all breathed a sigh of relief.  Then on February 24, 2022, Russia once again invaded Ukraine. Assuming things would go the same way it did in February and March 2014, when Russia invaded and annexed Crimea from Ukraine. But it didn't go that way. Many worry about the implications of that war and whether we should just butt out. Is this war different than what we've seen before? If so, why?  According to our guest, a good part of the answer is "Urban Warfare" and "meaning." He believes that Urban Warfare can teach us much about modern leadership.  John Spencer is considered by many to be the world's leading expert on urban warfare. He is also a radical thought leader, experienced war veteran, team builder, and creative mind. John is an award-winning scholar, professor, author, combat veteran, and internationally recognized expert and advisor on urban warfare and other military-related topics. He currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum. John recently served as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. He is the author of several books, Connected Soldiers: Life, Leadership, and Social Connections in Modern War and Understanding Urban Warfare. The second was written for Ukraine civilians. That book went viral and has helped hundreds of thousands of civilians defeat the world's second-biggest military. Website https://www.johnspenceronline.com Social Media https://www.facebook.com/JohnSpencerOnline https://twitter.com/SpencerGuard https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnwspencer2018 https://www.instagram.com/spencerguard Part 2) Soulless Orcs vs. Soulful Warriors Who Will Win and Why Fact Not Opinions of What's Really Happening Exposing The Truth about The Butchers of Bucha Excuse Me, China, Can You Lend Us Some Supplies Taking Out 80% of The Attack Weapons The Impact of Russian and Ukrainian Conscription Soulless Orcs Vs Soulful Warriors Why Leadership is Urban Warfare What Truly Defines Winning and Losing Why Ukraine Already Won the War Back in April 2022 Curious to discover how tapping into the Anatomy of Meaning can #actualize your #business, #culture, #Leadership and #tribe DovBaron.com  "Those Who Control Meaning for The Tribe, Also Control The Movement of That Tribe" #videopodcast #leadership #leadershipdevelopment #emotionsourcecode #neuroscience #emotional #meaning #emotional #logic #culture #curiosity #humanbehavior #purpose Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On November 9, 1989, the Cold War began to thaw with the fall of the Berlin Wall, and we all breathed a sigh of relief.  Then on February 24, 2022, Russia once again invaded Ukraine. Assuming things would go the same way it did in February and March 2014, when Russia invaded and annexed Crimea from Ukraine. But it didn't go that way. Many worry about the implications of that war and whether we should just butt out. Is this war different than what we've seen before? If so, why?  According to our guest, a good part of the answer is "Urban Warfare" and "meaning." He believes that Urban Warfare can teach us much about modern leadership.  John Spencer is considered by many to be the world's leading expert on urban warfare. He is also a radical thought leader, experienced war veteran, team builder, and creative mind. John is an award-winning scholar, professor, author, combat veteran, and internationally recognized expert and advisor on urban warfare and other military-related topics. He currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum. John recently served as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. He is the author of several books, Connected Soldiers: Life, Leadership, and Social Connections in Modern War and Understanding Urban Warfare. The second was written for Ukraine civilians. That book went viral and has helped hundreds of thousands of civilians defeat the world's second-biggest military. Website https://www.johnspenceronline.com Social Media https://www.facebook.com/JohnSpencerOnline https://twitter.com/SpencerGuard https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnwspencer2018 https://www.instagram.com/spencerguard Part 1) Winning the War for Meaning Who Are You and What Will You Stand For Why the 2022 invasion of Ukraine is so Different than the 2014 invasion When Grandfather, Young Men, Bankers, and Builders Stand Together Answering The Question: Should the US be Backing Ukraine Is Ukraine Really Russian #Putin, Changing the Rules of #War Re-establishing in The Soviet Union Putin's Emotional Source Code What Beat POWER Every Single Time! When Defence Becomes Offence Curious to discover how tapping into the Anatomy of Meaning can #actualize your #business, #culture, #Leadership and #tribe DovBaron.com  "Those Who Control Meaning for The Tribe, Also Control The Movement of That Tribe" #videopodcast #leadership #leadershipdevelopment #emotionsourcecode #neuroscience #emotional #meaning #emotional #logic #culture #curiosity #humanbehavior #purpose Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Paul & Mike are honored to welcome John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute, U.S. Military Academy at West Point into the G Base to discuss the future of warfare and the impact an increasingly urban environment has on military training.  

With the growing urbanization of the world's population, it also follows that much of contemporary military operations would also be conducted within such urban centers. The challenges faced by military forces when engaging in operations in urban environments are considerable yet oddly are often neglected or ignored in official military training and doctrine. This despite the fact that urban battlefields have been consistent throughout military history, and seem to dominate the contemporary military landscape. These critical issues are addressed in Understanding Urban Warfare (Howgate Publishing Limited, 2022) co-edited by John Spencer and Liam Collins. John Spencer is an award-winning scholar, professor, author, combat veteran, and internationally recognized expert and advisor on urban warfare and other military related topics. Spencer currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum. He recently served as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. He also served as a Colonel in the California State Guard with assignment to the 40th Infantry Division, California Army National Guard as the Director of Urban Warfare Training. Stephen Satkiewicz is independent scholar whose research areas are related to Civilizational Analysis, Big History, Historical Sociology, War studies, as well as Russian and East European history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

With the growing urbanization of the world's population, it also follows that much of contemporary military operations would also be conducted within such urban centers. The challenges faced by military forces when engaging in operations in urban environments are considerable yet oddly are often neglected or ignored in official military training and doctrine. This despite the fact that urban battlefields have been consistent throughout military history, and seem to dominate the contemporary military landscape. These critical issues are addressed in Understanding Urban Warfare (Howgate Publishing Limited, 2022) co-edited by John Spencer and Liam Collins. John Spencer is an award-winning scholar, professor, author, combat veteran, and internationally recognized expert and advisor on urban warfare and other military related topics. Spencer currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum. He recently served as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. He also served as a Colonel in the California State Guard with assignment to the 40th Infantry Division, California Army National Guard as the Director of Urban Warfare Training. Stephen Satkiewicz is independent scholar whose research areas are related to Civilizational Analysis, Big History, Historical Sociology, War studies, as well as Russian and East European history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/history

With the growing urbanization of the world's population, it also follows that much of contemporary military operations would also be conducted within such urban centers. The challenges faced by military forces when engaging in operations in urban environments are considerable yet oddly are often neglected or ignored in official military training and doctrine. This despite the fact that urban battlefields have been consistent throughout military history, and seem to dominate the contemporary military landscape. These critical issues are addressed in Understanding Urban Warfare (Howgate Publishing Limited, 2022) co-edited by John Spencer and Liam Collins. John Spencer is an award-winning scholar, professor, author, combat veteran, and internationally recognized expert and advisor on urban warfare and other military related topics. Spencer currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum. He recently served as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. He also served as a Colonel in the California State Guard with assignment to the 40th Infantry Division, California Army National Guard as the Director of Urban Warfare Training. Stephen Satkiewicz is independent scholar whose research areas are related to Civilizational Analysis, Big History, Historical Sociology, War studies, as well as Russian and East European history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/military-history

With the growing urbanization of the world's population, it also follows that much of contemporary military operations would also be conducted within such urban centers. The challenges faced by military forces when engaging in operations in urban environments are considerable yet oddly are often neglected or ignored in official military training and doctrine. This despite the fact that urban battlefields have been consistent throughout military history, and seem to dominate the contemporary military landscape. These critical issues are addressed in Understanding Urban Warfare (Howgate Publishing Limited, 2022) co-edited by John Spencer and Liam Collins. John Spencer is an award-winning scholar, professor, author, combat veteran, and internationally recognized expert and advisor on urban warfare and other military related topics. Spencer currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum. He recently served as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. He also served as a Colonel in the California State Guard with assignment to the 40th Infantry Division, California Army National Guard as the Director of Urban Warfare Training. Stephen Satkiewicz is independent scholar whose research areas are related to Civilizational Analysis, Big History, Historical Sociology, War studies, as well as Russian and East European history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/political-science

With the growing urbanization of the world's population, it also follows that much of contemporary military operations would also be conducted within such urban centers. The challenges faced by military forces when engaging in operations in urban environments are considerable yet oddly are often neglected or ignored in official military training and doctrine. This despite the fact that urban battlefields have been consistent throughout military history, and seem to dominate the contemporary military landscape. These critical issues are addressed in Understanding Urban Warfare (Howgate Publishing Limited, 2022) co-edited by John Spencer and Liam Collins. John Spencer is an award-winning scholar, professor, author, combat veteran, and internationally recognized expert and advisor on urban warfare and other military related topics. Spencer currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum. He recently served as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. He also served as a Colonel in the California State Guard with assignment to the 40th Infantry Division, California Army National Guard as the Director of Urban Warfare Training. Stephen Satkiewicz is independent scholar whose research areas are related to Civilizational Analysis, Big History, Historical Sociology, War studies, as well as Russian and East European history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

John Spencer is an award-winning scholar, professor, author, combat veteran, and internationally recognized expert and advisor on urban warfare and other military-related topics. Considered one of the world's leading experts on urban warfare, he served as an advisor to the top four-star general and other senior leaders in the U.S. Army as part of strategic research groups from the Pentagon to the United States Military Academy. Spencer currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum. He recently served as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. He also served as a Colonel in the California State Guard with an assignment to the 40th Infantry Division, California Army National Guard as the Director of Urban Warfare Training. Serving over twenty-five years in the active Army as an infantry soldier, Spencer has held ranks from Private to Sergeant First Class and Second Lieutenant to Major. His assignments as an Army officer included two combat deployments to Iraq as both an Infantry Platoon Leader and Company Commander, a Ranger Instructor with the Army's Ranger School, a Joint Chief of Staff and Army Staff intern, a fellow with the Chief of Staff of the Army's Strategic Studies Group, and Co-Founder, Strategic Planner, and Deputy Director of the Modern War Institute at West Point. Spencer holds a Master's of Policy Management from Georgetown University. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, LA Times, NY Daily News, Wired Magazine, Politico, The Hill, Foreign Policy Magazine, Defense One, Army Magazine, and many other publications. Spencer is also a regular military analyst and commentator for CNN, MSNBC, BBC, and numerous news and media organizations. He currently lives in Colorado Springs, CO, with his wife and three children.

John Spencer is an award-winning scholar, professor, author, combat veteran, and internationally recognised expert and advisor on urban warfare and other military related topics. Considered one of the world's leading expert on urban warfare, he served as an advisor to four-star generals and other senior leaders in the U.S. Army as part of strategic research groups from the Pentagon to the United States Military Academy.We talk about:LeadershipCultureSocial CohesionCommunityTribeTeam DynamicGroup IdentityShared AdversityLiving up to historyCreating the narrativeProximity leadershipArtifactsPrideSpencer currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum. He recently served as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. He also served as a Colonel in the California State Guard with assignment to the 40th Infantry Division, California Army National Guard as the Director of Urban Warfare Training.Serving over twenty-five years in the active Army as an infantry soldier, Spencer has held ranks from Private to Sergeant First Class and Second Lieutenant to Major. His assignments as an Army officer included two combat deployments to Iraq as both an Infantry Platoon Leader and Company Commander, a Ranger Instructor with the Army's Ranger School, a Joint Chief of Staff and Army Staff intern, fellow with the Chief of Staff of the Army's Strategic Studies Group, and Co-Founder, Strategic Planner, and Deputy Director of the Modern War Institute at West Point.

John Spencer is the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies and a 25-year veteran of the US military having served two combat tours. He is also the author of ‘Connected Soldiers.' John joined the US military at age of 17 as a Private, working his way through to the senior ranks which allowed him to explore the ‘burden of command.'When the bullets were flying, instinct and training kicked in. However, it's during the downtime and when the mission is not clear that leadership skills became even more important to inspire, communicate and create an environment of trust, sacrifice and true connection. John remembers taking over a dysfunctional team of soldiers where he realised that the WHY was even more important than the WHAT of any mission or task as he slowly crafted them into an elite team. War requires a group response made up of complex individuals and leaders must set the standard and communicate clearly to all. John reinforces that shared understanding is at the foundation for success for all teams. For John the highest form of power was not rank but reverent power where he had the respect of the team, based on his ability to speak from a position of strength of having risen through the ranks himself. No one starts as the CEO, we move from individual contributor to team player to leader of others. John understands the power of connection for all teams. The bonds between individuals is a powerful mechanism for high performance. How well do you actually know the people on your team? As the world changes, new connections now exist that did not exist in the past, for example the digital social connections and tribe that most people have. Leaders must understand what connective functions or activities need to be done organisationally that complement the countless connective mechanisms that people have and require on a personal level. John talks about the importance of his team eating together as an important function of simply creating connections that were leveraged when the bullets started to fly. Everyone wants a leader that they WANT to follow. Your leader's shadow has a ripple impact and is representative of your entire team and organisation. John also outlines a powerful story of how some recruits found Covid restrictions disastrous for their ability to bond and connect. This is an inspiring episode full of humility, courage, human centred focus, and dep insight created from operating in life and death combat missions. www.johnspenceronline.com

How do you rise up to become a thought leader? Today's guest has risen to the top of thought leadership in his field and he's here to tell you what it takes. John Spencer is a 25 year Veteran of the US Armed Forces. He joined the army when he was 16 and worked his way up from Private to Sergeant 1st Class, then to Officer. He did two tours in Iraq; parachuting with the Airborn during the invasion and returning in 2008 as an Officer. This experience, and a willingness to do the hard work that comes with opportunity, kept him on the rise to become an advisor to Generals, to the Pentagon, and at West-Point Military Academy. He also formed and is the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum in NYC. Since discovering a passion for writing and sharing his knowledge, he's written extensively for and appeared on all major media channels, such as Fox News, CNN, BBC, MSNBC, ABC, etc. John has written two books and inspired by a desire to help the Ukrainians, he wrote an Urban Warfare Manual which he published and distributed for free and which has been translate in to 11 languages. Connected Soldiers is a deeply personal memoir telling the story of John's combat experience with the Airborn unit, covering topics like leadership, purpose, and the meaning of life. Understanding Urban Warfare is a study and guide to urban warfare. Download or read the Urban Warfare Manual at https://www.johnspenceronline.com/urban-warfare. To learn more about John Spencer, go to JohnSpencerOnline.com. You can also find him on all social media but Twitter is his main feed @SpencerGuard. Also in this episode: Battle of Mariupol - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Mariupol_(2014) Book: Stephen Mansfield - Men On Fire https://stephenmansfield.tv/author/men-on-fire/ Movie: A Knights Tale https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0183790/ Visit eCircleAcademy.com and book a success call with Nicky to take your practice to the next level.

Ali Velshi is joined by Maj. (Ret.) John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at Madison Policy Forum, Charlie Crist, Democratic nominee for Florida Governor, Lara Setrakian, Co-Founder & CEO of News Deeply, Thelma Pannell-Dantzler, Mother of Phillip Pannell, Natacha Pannell, Sister of Phillip Pannell, Terrell Jermaine Starr, Host of ‘Black Diplomats' podcast, Anne Applebaum, Staff Writer at The Atlantic, Sen. Patrick Leahy, (D) Vermont, and Secretary Katie Hobbs , Arizona Secretary of State

John Spencer is the chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Modern War Institute, United States Military Academy. He is the author of Connected Soldiers: Life, Leadership and Social Connections in Modern Warfare. This book has been endorsed by Generals David Petraeus, Stanley McChrystal and HR McMaster. John also serves as a colonel in the California State Guard with assignment to the 40th Infantry Division, California Army National Guard, as the director of Urban Warfare Training. John served twenty-five years on active duty in the U.S. Army as an infantry soldier and is a highly decorated combat veteran. https://www.johnspenceronline.com

Today, I spoke with John Spencer who is an award-winning scholar, professor, author, combat veteran, and internationally recognised expert and advisor on Urban Warfare and other military related topics. John currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum and was until recently the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies  at the Modern War Institute at West Point. He is also the Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. John is also the author of the ‘Mini-Manual for the Urban Defender', which is a short compilation of John's vast experience and there are currently over 100,000 copies of the manual in Ukraine, where it's being used daily by the defenders. Some of the topics we discussed are: John's background in Urban Warfare Why Urban Warfare is the hardest Explanation of a possible shift in initiative The strategic importance of Kherson Likelihood of Putin seeking a ‘frozen' conflict The ‘Battle of Kyiv' and why Ukraine succeeded Why understanding the ‘human domain' is critical Information and connectivity as weapons of war Birth of ‘The Mini-Manual for the Urban Defender' and its ongoing usage in Ukraine Conditions necessary for success of ‘Total Defence' Reminder why Urban Warfare is critical and here to stay Why training for the conduct of area defence is essential Reminder of why terrain is important The ‘rule book' of a nuclear-armed state Importance of a Ukrainian victor to broader geopolitical tensions During the chat, I made reference to my conversation with Carl Miller about Russian influence operations in the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) countries. You can find that interview here. If you like what you've heard, please consider liking and reviewing the show wherever you get your pods. You can also support the show on our Patreon and Buy Me A Coffee page on the links below: Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thevoicesofwar Buy Me A Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/thevoicesofwar

US ARMY Major John Spencer (ret.) is the chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point and a leading expert on Urban Warfare. In his new book, Connected Soldiers: Life, Leadership, and Social Connections in Modern War (July 1, 2022, Potomac Books), John delivers effective methods for building teams that overcome the distractions of home and the outside world, without reducing the benefits gained from connections to family and friends. His active-duty career spans more than 25 years and includes two combat deployments to Iraq as an Infantry Platoon Leader and Company Commander. He discusses being a military spouse and what he's learned from watching and traveling to Ukraine. John talks to host Jim Fausone about how social media has dissolved the barrier between home and the front line.

During a battle, the side with more chances of getting out of it victorious isn't always the best equipped, experienced, or brave; generally, it is the one with the most cohesive team. Our guest, Colonel John Spencer, divides cohesion into two groups, social and task cohesion. In his over 25 years of experience in the military, he learned that leadership is critical to guaranteeing a team's cohesion, success, and survival.Colonel John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute, is a veteran, a widely published author, considered one of the leading experts in military operations in cities, a teacher, and a leader with a Master of Policy Management from Georgetown University. In his over 25 years in the military, John has held ranks from Private to Sergeant First Class and Second Lieutenant to Major.As an Army officer, he was deployed twice in Iraq as an Infantry Platoon Leader and Company Commander. Colonel John Spencer is also the Co-Founder, Strategic Planner, and Deputy Director of the Modern War Institute at West Point.In this episode, we delve into Colonel John's journey in the military and how serving his country and traveling the world changed his perspective on life, purpose, and vision. He describes his realization of how writing can change lives, his passion for studying, researching, and teaching about war and its intimate connection with leadership.We also have a closer look at his family life and the experience of staying home with his children while his wife, whom he met in Iraq, was deployed for combat. Tune in to Episode 338 to discover a world where leadership and survival go hand in hand.Some Questions I Ask: How did you end up in the military? (4:44) If there's a young person that ranges 16 or 17, what advice do you have for them as they consider joining the military? (9:23) If you look back and think about the things that bring you satisfaction, what would those things be? (19:43)In This Episode, You Will Learn: Colonel John's dream job and the opportunities he got thanks to his military career (6:13) Colonel John describes the experience of staying at home with his children while his wife was deployed for combat (11:10) The importance of forming cohesive teams (12:13) The differences between the two forms of cohesion (18:43) Colonel John talks about the search for identity and purpose (22:01) The two ways in which people form strong bonds (27:29)Resources: Colonel John Spencer's website Colonel John Spencer's booksConnect with Colonel John Spencer: LinkedIn Instagram Twitter YouTube FacebookBecoming Your Best Resources: Becoming Your Best WebsiteEmail: support@becomingyourbest.com See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We connect inspiring leader John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute, and aspiring leader Ryan Spoors  to explore creating a cohesive team of shared identity, by connecting through shared hardship and identifying what matters most. They also discuss the influence that technology has in staying connected in war, with both its consequential threats and benefits. Episode links:Defeat Into Victory by William Slim Invictus – Clint Eastwood Huberman Lab Connected Soldiers by John Spencer Urban Warfare Project Black Hearts by Jim Frederick Man's Search For Meaning by Viktor E Frankl Lord of the Flies by William Golding Saving Private Ryan – Steven SpielbergConnect with us on LinkedIn Follow us on Instagram Subscribe on YouTube If you would like to feature on the Podcast, please get in touch! mailto: info@withleadership.co.uk Thank you for listening!

MAJ John Spencer (USA-Ret.) is the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum. He served over twenty-five years in the U.S. Army as an infantry Soldier, with two combat tours in Iraq as both an Infantry Platoon Leader and Company Commander. He has also served as a Ranger Instructor with the Army’s Ranger School, a Joint Chief of Staff and Army Staff intern, fellow with the Chief of Staff of the Army’s Strategic Studies Group, and Strategic Planner and Deputy Director of the Modern War Institute, where he was instrumental in the design and formation of the institute. In today’s interview, MAJ Spencer returns to discuss what we’ve learned about LSCO, urban conflict, and the changing character of warfare from the last four plus months of Russia’s “special military operation” in eastern Ukraine. The following bullet points highlight key insights from our interview: Modern technology forces our societies, and those of our adversaries, to be more connected to the battlefield. As the Ukrainian “Tik-Tok” war demonstrates, such connectedness can allow actors outside of the war to leverage open-source intelligence to influence the conflict by providing either side with logistical support and operational advice. It is important to study wars firsthand to understand how they are evolving to the modern context; the U.S. military used to employ appointed observers for this mission. Given that the battle for Kyiv is a truly urban fight, there is much the Army can learn from the conflict. The battle for Kyiv demonstrates that, especially in an urban environment, terrain still matters. Ukrainians flooded rivers and destroyed bridges to canalize Russian invaders into chokepoints and kill zones, demonstrating an understanding of their environment unthinkable to non-natives. The Russian invasion also demonstrates the importance of civilian involvement in urban conflict, as volunteers collaborated to establish defenses in depth, targeting and ambushing their attackers. Here, too, technology played an important role. Images and messages from the Ukrainian government and their fellow citizens helped strengthen citizens’ resolve to defend their country. Today, Soldiers and their families are more connected by technology than ever, allowing them to live with a foot in each world. This feature of modern warfare is important as it prevents Soldiers from feeling isolated, but also gives civilian families a clearer understanding of the realities of warfare. What are we missing? The Army

Russia's failure to quickly take Kyiv and crush Ukraine's government will be seen as a historic military defeat. Putin's loss in Kyiv and fierce Ukrainian resistance forced him to shift his focus to the Donbas region. FOX's Eben Brown speaks with John Spencer, the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum and author of 'Connected Soldiers: Life, Leadership, and Social Connections in Modern War', about the significance of Ukrainian soldiers stopping Russia from taking their capital and how it was done. Click Here To Follow 'The FOX News Rundown: War On Ukraine' https://listen.foxaud.io/rundown?sid=fnr.podeve  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Russia's failure to quickly take Kyiv and crush Ukraine's government will be seen as a historic military defeat. Putin's loss in Kyiv and fierce Ukrainian resistance forced him to shift his focus to the Donbas region. FOX's Eben Brown speaks with John Spencer, the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum and author of 'Connected Soldiers: Life, Leadership, and Social Connections in Modern War', about the significance of Ukrainian soldiers stopping Russia from taking their capital and how it was done. Click Here To Follow 'The FOX News Rundown: War On Ukraine' https://listen.foxaud.io/rundown?sid=fnr.podeve  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Russia's failure to quickly take Kyiv and crush Ukraine's government will be seen as a historic military defeat. Putin's loss in Kyiv and fierce Ukrainian resistance forced him to shift his focus to the Donbas region. FOX's Eben Brown speaks with John Spencer, the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum and author of 'Connected Soldiers: Life, Leadership, and Social Connections in Modern War', about the significance of Ukrainian soldiers stopping Russia from taking their capital and how it was done. Click Here To Follow 'The FOX News Rundown: War On Ukraine' https://listen.foxaud.io/rundown?sid=fnr.podeve  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Building cohesion can be difficult, but it's even more arduous under distressing circumstances like that of urban warfare. Our guest today writes in a forthcoming book about the benefits of primary group cohesion on performance and how it can be applied throughout the non-military world. Col. John Spencer is the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum. Spencer has served over 25 years in the Army and has held ranks from Private to Sergeant First Class and Second Lieutenant to Major. He's also the author of the upcoming book Connected Soldiers: Life, Leadership, and Social Connections in Modern War. He joinedthe podcast to talk about his book and creating and managing a cohesive team. *** Join GovExec Daily on Clubhouse! https://www.clubhouse.com/club/govexec-daily-group

Right now, Russia is learning a lesson as old as combat, morale is at the center of any fighting force. How does it change things when you can pick up your cell phone and call your mom to share your experiences, or even complain about your commander?How do you build a band of brothers when home is just a phone call away? Colonel John Spencer asked himself these questions and wrote a book about it called Connected Soldiers: Life, Leadership, and Social Connections in Modern War. Spencer is the chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the modern war institute at West Point.Angry Planet has a substack! Join the Information War to get weekly insights into our angry planet and hear more conversations about a world in conflict.https://angryplanet.substack.com/subscribeYou can listen to Angry Planet on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play or follow our RSS directly. Our website is angryplanetpod.com. You can reach us on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/angryplanetpodcast/; and on Twitter: @angryplanetpod.Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

John Spencer is a writer, thinker, speaker scholar who currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the US Military Academy. He brings the experience of a veteran who has led in combat to his work, and in his latest book, Connected Soldiers, also provides insights from his time as a stay at home parent as his wife deployed. His analysis of connectivity and ints impact from multiple angles makes his book a very well rounded examination of how the Internet age is transforming how nations go to war. In this OODAcast we discuss the book as well as John's career and insights he has for leaders, including leaders in business. We examine: The US Army Rangers, their mission and spirit and ability to focus How lessons in leadership from John's early career informed his leadership in combat Boredom in war and how soldiers fill down time and how connectivity and new technology is used in down time Ways connectivity and gaming impacted soldiers under John's command in combat What it was like for John to be a stay at home dad when his wife deployed and how connectivity impacted that experience Unit cohesion and unit motivation and lessons relevant beyond the military Lessons from history being repeated in the Ukraine situation. John Boyd and the OODA Loop as an example of studying our own way of thinking and seeking to learn better and optimize decision making For more see: John Spencer Online Connected Soldiers The Modern War Institute

Preston and Sayre are joined today with John Spencer–one of the world's leading scholars and experts in the field of urban warfare. He has studied, taught, and written about urban warfare for over a decade. John is the creator of The Mini-Manual for the Urban Defender and currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum. He recently served as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. This was a great conversation coming from a scholar and warrior with first hand experiences on both fronts as Spencer has one of the most infantry resumes possible. Serving over twenty-five years in the active Army as an infantry soldier, Spencer has held ranks from Private to Sergeant First Class and Second Lieutenant to Major. His assignments as an Army officer included two combat deployments to Iraq as both an Infantry Platoon Leader and Company Commander, a Ranger Instructor with the Army's Ranger School, a Joint Chief of Staff and Army Staff intern, fellow with the Chief of Staff of the Army's Strategic Studies Group, and Co-Founder, Strategic Planner, and Deputy Director of the Modern War Institute at West Point. We hope you enjoy.

Ali Velshi is joined by NBC's Molly Hunter in Kyiv, NBC's Raf Sanchez from Lviv, Fmr. Director for European Affairs, National Security Council retired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, Editor, Geopolitical Intelligence Services and former Chief Editor & Executive Director of the Kyiv Post Brian Bonner, Member of Ukrainian Parliament Dmytro Gurin, Russian opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Murza, Emergency Coordinator,Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)/Doctors without Borders Alex Wade, former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, former Representative of Jordan to the United Nations & former Ambassador of Jordan to the United States, and Professor, Practice of Law and Human Rights, The University of Pennsylvania Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, Political Editor and COO of the Kyiv Independent Oleksiy Sorokin, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, and Russian American Historian and author of “Blowing Up Russia” Yuri Felshtinsky. Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine William Taylor, founder and host of ‘Black Diplomats' podcast Terrell Jermaine Starr in Ukraine, Member of the Parliament of Ukraine Lesia Vasylenko, UNICEF Spokesperson James Elder, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Madison Policy Forum Major (ret.) John Spencer, Head of Global Magnitsky Justice Campaign William Browder, former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch, Eurasia Director at the Foreign Policy Research Institute and author of “Putinomics” Chris Miller, and Ukrainian Refugee Nastya Shpot.

A live audience interviews John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, on urban warfare⁠—from ancient times through today.Order John Spencer's new book, Connected Soldiers, here: https://www.amazon.com/Connected-Soldiers-Leadership-Social-Connections/dp/1640125124/Find more (including how to join us live) at PM101.live or on Twitter at @PoliticsNMedia.Subscribe, rate, and review if you like what you hear.Join our e-mail list for "best of" delivered directly to your inbox, twice per month, at PM101.live

John Spencer is an award-winning scholar, professor, author, combat veteran, and internationally recognized expert and advisor on urban warfare and other military related topics. Considered the world's leading expert on urban warfare, he served as an advisor to the top four-star general and other senior leaders in the U.S. Army as part of strategic research groups from the Pentagon to the United States Military Academy. Spencer currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point and as host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. He also serves as a Colonel in the California State Guard with assignment to the 40th Infantry Division, California Army National Guard as the Director of Urban Warfare Training. Serving over twenty-five years in the active Army as an infantry soldier, Spencer has held ranks from Private to Sergeant First Class and Second Lieutenant to Major. His assignments as an Army officer included two combat deployments to Iraq as both an Infantry Platoon Leader and Company Commander, a Ranger Instructor with the Army's Ranger School, a Joint Chief of Staff and Army Staff intern, fellow with the Chief of Staff of the Army's Strategic Studies Group, and Co-Founder, Strategic Planner, and Deputy Director of the Modern War Institute at West Point.In his new book, Connected Soldiers: Life, Leadership, and Social Connections in Modern War (July 1, 2022, Potomac Books), Col. Spencer delivers lessons learned about effective methods for building teams in a way that overcomes the distractions of home and the outside world, without reducing the benefits gained from connections to family. Spencer holds a Master of Policy Management from Georgetown University. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, LA Times, NY Daily News, Wired Magazine, Politico, The Hill, Foreign Policy Magazine, Defense One, Army Magazine, and many other publications. Spencer is also a regular military analyst and commentator for CNN, MSNBC, BBC, and numerous news and media organizations. He currently lives in Colorado Springs, CO, with his wife and three children. He looks forward to connecting via Twitter@SpencerGuard.

Russia wanted a quick victory in Ukraine, but it hasn't succeeded. Instead, it's withdrawing its troops from key cities, leaving in their wake shocking evidence of torture and war crimes. It's not the end of the war: It's widely thought the Kremlin will now focus on taking control of other parts of the country. Today, former US Army Major John Spencer, who was part of the advance group that captured Baghdad from Saddam Hussein in 2003, on why Russia has failed so far, and what comes next for Ukraine's terrified civilians. Featured:  John Spencer, retired US Army major and former Chair, Urban Warfare Studies, Modern War Institute, US Military Academy, West Point, New York

Russia wanted a quick victory in Ukraine, but it hasn't succeeded. Instead, it's withdrawing its troops from key cities, leaving in their wake shocking evidence of torture and war crimes. It's not the end of the war: It's widely thought the Kremlin will now focus on taking control of other parts of the country. Today, former US Army Major John Spencer, who was part of the advance group that captured Baghdad from Saddam Hussein in 2003, on why Russia has failed so far, and what comes next for Ukraine's terrified civilians. Featured:  John Spencer, retired US Army major and former Chair, Urban Warfare Studies, Modern War Institute, US Military Academy, West Point, New York

Ali Velshi is joined by Andrei Kozyrev, Former Foreign Minister of Russia, Toomas Ilves, Former President of the Republic of Estonia, Isabelle Khurshudyan, Washington Post Foreign Correspondent, Sen. Patrick Leahy, D- Vermont, Inna Sovsun, Ukrainian Parliament Member, Lt. Col. (Ret) Alexander Vindman, Former Director for European Affairs at National Security Council, Kristina Kvien, U.S. Charge D'Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine, Nataliya Gumenyuk, Ukrainian Journalist, and Major (Ret.) John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies, Madison Policy Forum

The Russian-Ukraine war had raged for over a month now. I asked urban warfare expert, John Spencer, to come on the show to tell us how he would defend a city from a hostile force. If you are not familiar with John, here are some highlights of his bio: -Award-winning scholar, professor, author, combat veteran -Internationally recognized expert and advisor on urban warfare and other military related topics -Considered the world's leading expert on urban warfare -Advisor to the top four-star general and other senior leaders in the U.S. Army as part of strategic research groups from the Pentagon to the United States Military Academy -Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum -Recently served as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point -Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast -Served over twenty-five years in the active Army as an infantry soldier, Spencer has held ranks from Private to Sergeant First Class and Second Lieutenant to Major -His assignments as an Army officer included two combat deployments to Iraq as both an Infantry Platoon Leader and Company Commander, a Ranger Instructor with the Army's Ranger School, a Joint Chief of Staff and Army Staff intern, fellow with the Chief of Staff of the Army's Strategic Studies Group, and Co-Founder, Strategic Planner, and Deputy Director of the Modern War Institute at West Point. -Spencer holds a Master of Policy Management from Georgetown University -Spencer is also a regular military analyst and commentator for CNN, MSNBC, BBC, and numerous news and media organizations -Connect via Twitter @SpencerGuard In this episode, he will talk about :  -The power of small groups -Making yourself invisible -Closing the castle gates -Looking down and digging tunnels -How to keep the enemy out -Using surprise to your advantage as the defender -What is more likely to kill you (it's not bombs or bullets) -And much more… Listen to his Urban Warfare Project podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/urban-warfare-project/id1490714950   As you know, we are focused on the topic of Leadership in the Russian-Ukrainian war. I wrote a book focused on Zelenskyy' leadership and you can find it here on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Need-Ammunition-Not-Ride-Volodymyr-ebook/dp/B09VVW3NSV/ref=sr_1_1?crid=6YHOEVZ983NQ&keywords=i+need+ammunition%2C+not+a+ride&qid=1647625321&s=digital-text&sprefix=%2Cdigital-text%2C4098&sr=1-1 If you enjoyed this episode, please consider subscribing and tell others who might benefit from this podcast. I would like to hear from you. You can leave a comment below.  I would like to hear if this was useful. Contact me on Twitter or Gettr @daringerdes or leave a video message: https://flipgrid.com/leadersmith  Join our FACEBOOK COMMUNITY and continue the discussion there: https://www.facebook.com/groups/learnleadership/ or Join our LinkedIn community: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/13966891/ WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO HEAR? Reach out with a comment or question: https://forms.gle/fJP6ym4LDxJrKX2c8  

Ali Velshi is joined by NBC's Jacob Soboroff from Lviv, former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine William Taylor, founder and host of ‘Black Diplomats' podcast Terrell Jermaine Starr in Ukraine, Member of the Parliament of Ukraine Lesia Vasylenko, UNICEF Spokesperson James Elder, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Madison Policy Forum Major (ret.) John Spencer, Head of Global Magnitsky Justice Campaign William Browder, former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch, Eurasia Director at the Foreign Policy Research Institute and author of “Putinomics” Chris Miller, and Ukrainian Refugee Nastya Shpot.

Ali Velshi, reporting live from the Nyugati rail station in Budapest, Hungary, is joined by NBC's Molly Hunter and Gabe Gutierrez in Lviv, Ukraine, the Kyiv Independent's Oleksiy Sorokin, Ukrainian members of parliament Lisa Yasko and Sviatoslav Yurash, retired U.S. Army Major and chair of Urban Warfare Studies for the Madison Policy Forum John Spencer, NYU history professor Ruth Ben-Ghiat, Yale Law School's Oona Hathaway, founding director of Columbia's Center for Disaster Preparedness Dr. Irwin Redlener, and UNICEF's Joe English. 

MAJ John Spencer (USA-Ret.) is the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum. He served over twenty-five years in the U.S. Army as an infantry Soldier, with two combat tours in Iraq as both an Infantry Platoon Leader and Company Commander. He has also served as a Ranger Instructor with the Army’s Ranger School, a Joint Chief of Staff and Army Staff intern, fellow with the Chief of Staff of the Army’s Strategic Studies Group, and Strategic Planner and Deputy Director of the Modern War Institute where he was instrumental in the design and formation of the institute. In today’s interview, MAJ John Spencer (USA-ret.) discusses the on-going war in Ukraine, urban warfare strategies employed by both Russian and Ukrainian military forces, the changing character of warfare, and what this portends for the future of conflict. The following bullet points highlight key insights from our interview: Both with respect to the current Russia/Ukraine conflict and with modern conflict in general, urban warfare strategies are critical.This is true whether the objective requires getting past urban terrain or involves an objective that is urban in nature. Despite Russia’s initial plans falling in line with traditional invasions, characterized by a large mass of forces that are then rapidly deployed in a “shock and awe” campaign, Ukraine’s combined arms approach to defense has prevented Russia from quickly gaining control of critical areas. Anti-Tank Guided Missiles (ATGMs) and Man-Portable Air Defense Systems (MANPADS) have been very effective in this conflict due to Russia trading combined arms operations for speed. Russia’s rush to seize ground objectives in convoy without effectively utilizing their air superiority has led to many of their ground assets being destroyed. It is tough to find a recent battle where an urban area was not the strategic or decisive objective.As Antony Beevor once stated, “The age of combined arms maneuver on the open plain is over.” The conflict in Ukraine is challenging the idea that urban fighting can be bypassed. The Russia/Ukraine conflict is sending a clear reminder to the U.S. and allied forces that many of the lessons we’ve learned in the past— using combined arms in urban warfare, the dangers of emitting large Electronic Warfare (EW) signatures, and the importance of Command and Control — are all still relevant on the battlefield today. Information from around the world can be received in the combat zone and directly influence on-going kinetic operations.When Mr. Spencer observed the call for Ukrainian civilians to be added to the military force structure, he wrote a series of tweets on the most basic things civilian auxiliary forces could do to help in defending their nation (i.e., installing barricades at choke points along probable axes of advance to deter/halt Russian forces). He received videos proving that Ukrainian civilians had put his advice to good use, demonstrating that the information age is changing the character of war. Ukraine is capable of winning in urban warfare, because they do not have to actually defeat the enemy’s military power. In this

Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine has seen warfare return to the streets of Europe for the first time in decades, with Putin's troops launching major offensives to take key cities such as Kyiv, Kharkiv and Odessa. Both Ukrainian soldiers and civilians continue to mount fierce resistance against the occupiers throughout their country's urban terrain.But what is the history of urban warfare and what can it tell us about the future of this horrific new war? In this episode James is joined by John Spencer, a decorated American war veteran and Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the West Point US Military Academy, to find out more.Don't forget to leave us a rating and review while you're here!For more Warfare content, subscribe to our Warfare newsletter here.If you'd like to learn even more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download, go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

A week into the conflict in Ukraine, the Russian army seems broken and Ukrainians are holding their own. Geraldo talks to Major John Spencer from Urban Warfare Studies at the Madison Policy Forum about what the Ukrainian people can do to keep up the fight. Also, Congresswoman Shontel Brown joins the program.

The character of warfare has consistently changed over time, with technology evolving from edged weapons, bows and arrows, gunpowder, and battlefield mechanization, to more advanced technologies today, including long-range precision weapons, robotics, and autonomy. However, warfare remains an intrinsic human endeavor, with varied and profound effects felt by Soldiers on the ground. To explore this experience with those engaged in the tactical fight, we spoke with the following combat veterans, frontline reporters, and military training experts for this episode of The Convergence: Denys Antipov is a Ukrainian war veteran who served as a platoon leader and reconnaissance drone operator with the 81st Airborne Brigade in the Ukrainian Army, defending his homeland and fighting Russian paramilitary groups and anti-government separatists in the Donbas in 2015-2016. Heydar Mirza spent 36 days on the frontline as a war reporter in Terter and Agdere during the 44-day Second Nagorno-Karabakh war during the Fall of 2020. He is currently the program author and host of the weekly RADIUS military analysis program on Azerbaijan Public Television and Radio Broadcasting Company – ICTIMAI TV and Caliber.az YouTube channel. Nolan Peterson is Senior Editor at Coffee or Die Magazine and The Daily Signal‘s Ukraine-based foreign correspondent. A former U.S. Air Force special operations pilot and veteran of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, he was among the first journalists to embed with Ukrainian forces in combat in eastern Ukraine. In Iraq, he embedded with Kurdish peshmerga forces in operations around Mosul and Sinjar. He has reported from throughout Eastern Europe, France, the U.K., and was onboard the USS George H.W. Bush off the Syrian coast to cover the air war against ISIS. John Spencer is the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute, Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. He served over twenty-five years in the U.S. Army as an infantry Soldier, with two combat tours in Iraq as both an Infantry Platoon Leader and Company Commander. He has also served as a Ranger Instructor with the Army’s Ranger School, a Joint Chief of Staff and Army Staff intern, fellow with the Chief of Staff of the Army’s Strategic Studies Group, Strategic Planner and then Deputy Director of the Modern War Institute where he was instrumental in the design and formation of the institute. He has just returned from walking the battlefields of Nagorno-Karabakh, gleaning les

Doberman Emergency Management owns and operates the Disaster Tough Podcast. Contact us here at: www.dobermanemg.com or email us at: info@dobermanemg.com.We are proud to endorse L3Harris and the BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: L3Harris.com/ResponderSupport.FS Global in partnership with Tiger Tech has created the first reusable, electronic, FDA approved, COVID-19 test. Strap it to your arm, get a reading - it's that simple. Sterilize and reuse. Amazing technology! For more information on the COVID PLUS TEST, click here: https://www.fsglobalsolutions.comUrban Warfare Project Podcast is hosted by John Spencer, Chair of the Urban Warfare Studies for the Modern War Institute at West Point. Check out his show here.

It's been 20 years since the September 11 attacks which killed nearly three thousand people in New York. The US responded by launching the controversial War on Terror, which killed hundreds of thousands more. Did the US get its response to 9/11 wrong? And what have been the consequences of that foreign policy since? Guests: Khaled Beydoun Law professor and scholar on the War on Terror, national security and civil liberties Brian Glyn Williams Professor of Islamic History and former CIA operative John Spencer Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute

The US-led invasion of Afghanistan is over with the last foreign forces leaving the country today. The Taliban is celebrating taking control as a victory against foreign occupiers. The group's leaders claim they will govern Afghanistan as a new, more moderate regime. Will the Taliban build a government worthy of international recognition? Guests: John Spencer Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute and Senior Fellow at the Madison Policy Forum Emran Feroz Journalist and the Founder of Drone Memorial Yvonne Ridley Journalist and author of 'In the Hands of the Taliban'

Urban warfare continued. Joining us today are experts in subterranean operations and urban operations, and of recent U.S. and Israeli urban combat experience. They focus on specific tactical challenges and best practices in urban operations.     Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org.   Guests:  MAJ(R) John W. Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies, Co-Director, Urban Warfare Project, & Host, Urban Warfare Project podcast, Modern War Institute at West Point Dr. Daphné Richemond-Barak, Assistant Professor, Lauder School of Government, Diplomacy and Strategy, IDC Herzliya and Senior Researcher and Head of the International Law Desk, International Institute for Counter-Terrorism (ICT)  Dr. Jeremiah Rozman, National Security Analyst, Association of the United States Army and Israel Defense Forces veteran   Host: COL(Ret) Dan Roper, AUSA's Director of National Security Studies   Resources:   Modern War Institute Web: https://mwi.usma.edu/ Facebook: @ModernWarInstitute Twitter: @WarInstitute LinkedIn: @Modern War Institute at West Point Podcast: Urban Warfare Project   Lauder School of Government, Diplomacy and Strategy, IDC Herzliya Web: https://www.idc.ac.il/en/schools/government Facebook: @IDC.Herzliya Twitter: @Idc LinkedIn: @IDC Herzliya   International Institute for Counter-Terrorism (ICT)  Web: https://www.ict.org.il/Home Facbook: @ICT.org.il Twitter: @ICT_org LinkedIn: @International Institute for Counter Terrorism

Urban warfare. What should the U.S. Army prepare for? Today we welcome thought leaders on urban operations from the DoD and Army to discuss the strategic importance of urban environments and how the U.S. Army trains, organizes and equips the force for this complex operating environment. Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org. Guests:  MAJ(R) John W. Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies, Co-Director, Urban Warfare Project, & Host, Urban Warfare Project podcast, Modern War Institute at West Point Dr. Russell W. Glenn, Director, Plans and Policy, G-2, U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command COL(R) Patrick J. Mahaney, Jr., Senior Advisor, DoD National Security Innovation Network (NSIN), co-founder and Director, National Center for Urban Operations, & Senior Mentor, Army Dense Urban Studies Strategic Broadening Seminar  Host: COL(Ret) Dan Roper, AUSA's Director of National Security Studies   Resources:   Modern War Institute Web: https://mwi.usma.edu/ Facebook: @ModernWarInstitute Twitter: @WarInstitute LinkedIn: @Modern War Institute at West Point Podcast: Urban Warfare Project   U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) Web: https://www.tradoc.army.mil/ Facebook: @USArmyTRADOC Twitter: @TRADOC LinkedIn: @US Army TRADOC   National Security Innovation Network (NSIN) Web: https://www.nsin.us/ Facebook: @NSINus Twitter: @NSIN_us LinkedIn: @NSIN – National Security Innovation Network   National Center for Urban Operations Web: https://ncuo.net/ LinkedIn: @National Center for Urban Operations