19 Historical Military Strategies That Are Now Considered Unethical
The past is filled with a history of war and military strategies that countless dynasties and regimes have used to expand their control. Some of these strategies were more straightforward and often consisted of clean victories. However, other times, militaries used more complex strategies with questionable methods to ensure a victory. Here are 19 historical military strategies that are now considered unethical:
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Landmines
Using landmines was one of the most popular military strategies in the past. This involved placing explosives under the ground that would explode when the enemy walked on the landmine. This was a highly unethical tactic that resulted in countless civilian deaths owing to the lack of awareness of the exact locations of the landmines. Landmines have even negatively impacted post-war reconstruction efforts because of the fear of explosions at random locations that could lead to more deaths.
Terror Bombing
Terror bombing involves aerial bombardments that are targeted at civilians to instill fear in the enemy. This strategy has been used throughout history, and modern warfare continues to see such unethical strategies in certain parts of the world. This strategy leads to many unnecessary casualties and devastation, with civilians facing the brunt of the consequences of these tactics. Terror bombing is unethical and is highly condemned by most individuals all over the world.
Chemical Warfare
Historically, the military would use all kinds of extreme methods to claim victory, even if it came at the cost of their own lives. This often included the use of different kinds of chemical agents that would negatively impact combatants and civilians alike. This strategy is highly unethical and has caused more harm than intended whenever used in the past. Using chemical weapons has been banned in many countries owing to their adverse and sometimes long-lasting effects on people.
Scorched Earth Policy
Most military strategies end in destruction, and many times, the destruction left behind after a war is a casualty. However, some military strategies involve the deliberate destruction of everything that may be useful to the enemy. This kind of strategy is reckless and unethical and leaves civilians suffering from the major destruction caused in an attempt to claim victory. Scorched earth policy can include the burning of crops, the killing of livestock, and even the destruction of infrastructure, which can all affect civilians.
Human Shields
While attempting to deter attacks from the enemies, militaries adopted the use of human shields. This involved using civilians or even children as literal shields that would stop the enemy from attacking to prevent the loss of civilian life during warfare. This strategy is considered unethical because it involves deliberately putting civilians in harm’s way without any consideration for the lives of the civilians and the damage that such a strategy could cause.
Enlisting Child Soldiers
In the past, warfare often included the forceful enlisting of children into the army. This strategy led to all kinds of psychological and physical damage and even the death of young individuals. Because enlisting child soldiers was deemed unethical, children were sometimes forced into hostile situations in an attempt to deter the enemy from attacking. These strategies are unethical and considered a violation of children’s rights.
Submarine Warfare
This strategy involved targeting civilian ships without any prior warning, often leading to a massive loss of civilian life and even the destruction of neutral vessels. Sinking ships and other vessels and mass casualties are some of the main consequences of this strategy, which often never really impacted the enemies’ military presence. Submarine warfare was often practiced during World Wars I and II and continues today.
Ethnic Targeting
Sometimes, when a war breaks out, certain ethnic groups or communities become the targets of the enemy only because of what leaders or military officers would lead the enemy to believe. This resulted in massive loss of life of individuals that belonged only to a specific ethnic group who were at the receiving end of all the attacks led by the enemy.
Collective punishment
A time of war in the past has often led to significant inconveniences for civilians who end up having to halt all daily activities for fear of what may happen to them. When militaries took over a particular area, they would employ the collective punishment strategy and impose curfews, economic sanctions, etc., on the civilians as well as anyone involved in the war as a ploy to demonstrate their authority.
Sexual Violence
In efforts to terrorize populations, military forces employ all kinds of acts of sexual violence on men, women, and children to assert their dominance and degrade their enemies. These tactics lead to various negative impacts on civilians that also include psychological damage, while enemy forces are left to deal with the consequences of the violence.
Firebombing
Some military forces deliberately use firebombs against their enemy to cause widespread destruction to their forces. Firebombs lead to the loss of civilian life and the destruction of homes, shops, and some of the basic areas that civilians use to go about their daily activities. This deliberate, widespread destruction would be considered unethical today but was used by military forces quite often in the past, as was the case of the firebombing of major Japanese cities during the Second World War.
Biological Warfare
Military forces that had access to advanced technology and engineering even used biological weapons against their enemies in the past. This tactic involved the use of biological agents to spread illness, death, or even environmental damage on enemy territories. The tactic had long-lasting effects that would sometimes even be unpredictable.
Nuclear weapons
Human innovation has led to the creation of some of the most crucial devices that we all use in our daily lives. However, this innovation also led to the creation of nuclear weapons that can destroy on a vast scale. In the past, the nuclear weapons that were used left indiscriminate and catastrophic effects on the environment as well as on civilians.
Human Experiments
Some military forces that find success often have many prisoners of war who are yet to be tried for their crimes according to the laws that rule the winning side. However, some winning sides have gone on to use the prisoners of war as human subjects to run different kinds of experiments on, without their consent, and as a form of punishment.
Poisoning Water Supplies
A common military strategy involved poisoning the territory’s water supply. This unethical strategy can have a long-lasting impact on the health of the civilians who consume the water and may even lead to multiple deaths, depending on the severity of the poisoning agents. This strategy affects human and environmental life, all to deprive enemy forces of access to clean water.
Torture
A common military strategy that was used to prise out information from enemies was torture and other cruel interrogation methods. These strategies were employed when military forces required information on suspected insurgents or attacks that would occur at any time. This unethical practice violated the human rights of the individuals interrogated and the international conventions typically followed worldwide.
Cultural Destruction
Some military forces aim their attacks at culturally and historically significant sites to demonstrate their power and put fear into the hearts of civilians. This strategy leads to destroying monuments and artifacts that play an essential part in civilian culture and are regarded as highly unethical. Cultural destruction is often used to send warnings to enemy forces, instill fear in civilians, and force some reaction or retaliation that would expose the enemy.
Biased Propaganda
Spreading biased propaganda has been a military strategy used several times to manipulate civilians and undermine the enemy. Although this unethical strategy propagates misinformation, it is still commonly used today. This strategy can lead to fear of the enemy, distrust of their forces, and even division within the communities, which can cause mental trauma on civilians and disrupt daily lives.
Indiscriminate Bombing
Another popular strategy used by militaries to instill fear in civilians and cause disruption to enemy forces is the indiscriminate bombing of civilian infrastructure like schools, hospitals, etc. This unethical strategy can lead to massive civilian casualties as well as the destruction of vital services that are required for the survival of civilians and forces. The strategy has been used throughout history, and modern warfare, unfortunately, also witnessed this unethical practice.
