urban guerrilla
Definition
Noun: A militant revolutionary who operates and conducts irregular warfare, including sabotage, ambushes, and bombings, specifically within an urban or metropolitan environment, as opposed to rural or wilderness areas.
Usage
This term is used to describe a specific type of combatant in asymmetrical warfare. It focuses on the operational theater (cities and towns) and implies tactics suited to that dense, populated environment. * The captured fighter was identified as an urban guerrilla, responsible for several attacks on police stations in the capital. * The government forces were trained to counter the tactics of the urban guerrilla.
Advanced Usage
- The concept often contrasts with traditional rural guerrilla warfare, emphasizing how geography dictates strategy.
- It can carry connotations of operating within a civilian population, using the urban landscape for cover and concealment.
Variants and Related Words
- Guerrilla (noun): A general term for a member of a small independent group taking part in irregular fighting, typically against larger regular forces.
- Insurgent (noun): A person who rises in active revolt against an established authority or government.
- Terrorist (noun): A person who uses unlawful violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims. (Note: This term is often used interchangeably in media/political discourse but carries distinct legal and moral connotations.)
Synonyms
- City fighter
- Urban insurgent
- Partisan (in a modern, urban context)
Related Phrases
- Urban warfare: Military operations conducted in populated areas.
- Asymmetrical warfare: Conflict between parties of unequal strength, where the weaker side uses unconventional tactics.
Noun
-
a guerrilla who fights only in cities and towns