In such a war any military action from outside will provoke a reaction, and a change in the balance of forces.
The brutal attack in the town of Paghman, outside Kabul, provoked a national outcry, with many Afghans demanding the men be hanged.
But its proposal that there should be no visas made available for unskilled workers outside agriculture provoked alarm among business leaders, who said they needed access to a large labour pool to fill jobs in sectors such as construction, haulage and hospitality.
Ms Thornberry had posted a picture of a terraced house with three England flags, and a white van parked outside which provoked a Twitter storm after being regarded by many as "snobby" and "offensive" - despite the MP's insistence it was entirely innocent.
It took the Aug. 21 poison gas attack that killed hundreds of civilians outside Damascus to provoke a long-overdue unified diplomatic response.
Such a policy signals to a local warring faction that all it needs to do, to trigger outside intervention, is provoke an act of genocidal proportions by the other side.
The establishment of a temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints at Chesnay, a stone's throw from Louis XIV's Château of Versailles outside Paris, has provoked some resistance from the predominantly Catholic locals.
Still, the juxtaposition with the oblivious people outside is thought-provoking: some half a billion people worldwide live within 60 miles of historically active volcanoes, according to the Cascade Volcano Observatory of the United States Geological Survey.
'We don't want a civil war' Jump to media player Saif al-Islam Gaddafi has appeared on Libyan TV and accused people outside Libya of provoking violence, adding that the reported numbers of deaths in anti-government protests were "imaginary".
This provokes demonstration outside police station.
