brutal – adj. extremely cruel or harsh

de facto - adj. used to describe something that exists but that is not officially accepted or recognized

discipline – n. control that is gained by requiring that rules or orders be obeyed and punishing bad behavior

counterpart – n. someone or something that has the same job or purpose as another

combat – n. active fighting especially in a war

particularly – adv. more than usually

convince – v. to cause someone to believe that something is true

encourage – v. to tell someone to do something

impunity – n. without fear of punishment