Throughout history military commanders have used different techniques to obtain actionable intelligence to ensure mission success. During the Philippines War (1899-1902) United States policies of attraction and chastisement lead to direct interaction with the populace who provided intelligence information to US Forces. The French used torture tactics in their war with Algeria to obtain intelligence information. While they won military victory they lost the war. This paper will focus on these two means of obtaining intelligence information, direct interaction with the population and torture, focusing on the effectiveness of each method and how they influenced the outcome of these counter-insurgency conflicts. Concluding with whether or the United States should engage in torture as an effective means of obtaining intelligence in the current Overseas Contingency Operations environment.

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.