text: Insurgency Threat Characteristics
  5-44. However, criminal groups can develop into insurgencies. In the case of localities that depend on
  black markets for their general welfare, the local population may depend on criminal activities. This creates
  a closely interlocked relationship between the criminal element (running the black market) and the
  insurgents (linked to the black market). In some cases, this relationship feeds into the causes of an
  insurgency. For example, a local population may support the insurgents because they want to stop
  interference with their economic livelihood. An insurgency based on a black market generally has ties to
  other black markets and resources through globalization. At its core, a black market requires trade and
  contact with others. This can create a well-funded, trained, and equipped commercial insurgency.
  5-45. An insurgency can begin with a political aim and then develop into a commercial insurgency because
  of connections to a market. For example, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia started as a
  communist insurgent group in 1964. However, through its involvement in the drug trade, it has become the
  richest self-sustaining insurgent group in history. In the parts of Columbia that it controls, it is closely
  linked to the population because the population depends on the drug trade for its economic well-being.
  NONGOVERNMENT MILITIAS
  5-46. As the host-nation government weakens and violence increases, people look for ways to protect
  themselves. If the government cannot provide protection, people may organize into armed militias to
  protect themselves. Moreover, some social structures, such as tribes, may have a militia structure.
  Examples of militias include the following:
  * Loyalist militias formed in Northern Ireland.
  * Right-wing paramilitary organizations formed in Colombia to counter the Revolutionary Armed
  Forces of Colombia.
  * Militias of various ethnic and political groups formed in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
  5-47. If militias are outside the host-nation government’s control, they can often be obstacles to ending an
  insurgency. Militias may become more powerful than the host-nation government, particularly at the local
  level. They may also fuel the insurgency and precipitate a downward spiral into a full-scale civil war.
  However, they can also play a constructive role and provide local security. While this can undermine the
  host nation’s government, it can also be a building block to help build legitimacy at the local level.
  5-48. A militia can also shift into becoming an active insurgency and an insurgency can sometimes shift
  into becoming a militia. A militia may not actively oppose the government and may be working within the
  system. However, it represents a capability to challenge the host nation. Militias may become insurgencies.
  An insurgency may also be integrated by a government and become a militia.