.The Makeshift Menace
The most feared weapon of the Iraq insurgency has become even more terrifying. Improvised explosive devices containing a primitive form of napalm (made with common household ingredients) are showing up in some regions of Iraq. Even if soldiers escape the shrapnel of the artillery shell, the ensuing fire can cause serious burns. The complexity of the napalm bombs lies not it their manufacture but in their after-effects. Not only do they burn; they also grab attention for the insurgency. "The enemy will do just about anything to achieve desired effects," says Brig. Gen. Dan Allyn. "Obviously big bang, big flame gets big media attention."
Roadside bombs account for about half of American deaths in Iraq, and their growing sophistication--including armor-penetrating "shaped" charges and the napalm--has solidified their place as the No. 1 threat. While more soldiers and marines are surviving roadside bombings unharmed, the number of overall bombings continues to rise--meaning the casualties continue unabated.
Last week, the Pentagon said it will ask Congress to almost triple the anti-IED budget, from $1.2 billion to $3.3 billion. The new money is for a quicker rollout of more vehicles with V-shaped hulls to deflect blasts and a further expansion of the most reliable jamming technology. Allyn, a deputy director of the Pentagon's expanded Joint IED Defeat Organization, says the last year has proved which technologies are ready for wide use.
Tactics. Still, insurgents adeptly counter technological innovations. The arms race means that technology and money will not be enough to end the threat of homemade bombs. "Most of us overemphasize hardware over software," says Stephen Biddle, a Council on Foreign Relations defense fellow. "The IED threat is going to be solved tactically."
A large portion of the new funding would go into an expanded counter-IED training center. And the greatest success of the IED organization so far has been its work to spread simple new tactics. Today, when a squad goes on patrol in Iraq, the senior noncommissioned officer usually shouts out, "5 and 25!" reminding soldiers to scan the ground 5 meters or 25 meters around them. "There aren't any cookie-cutter solutions," Allyn says. "We want to develop leaders who are agile enough to adapt."
USNews
Roadside bombs account for about half of American deaths in Iraq, and their growing sophistication--including armor-penetrating "shaped" charges and the napalm--has solidified their place as the No. 1 threat. While more soldiers and marines are surviving roadside bombings unharmed, the number of overall bombings continues to rise--meaning the casualties continue unabated.
Last week, the Pentagon said it will ask Congress to almost triple the anti-IED budget, from $1.2 billion to $3.3 billion. The new money is for a quicker rollout of more vehicles with V-shaped hulls to deflect blasts and a further expansion of the most reliable jamming technology. Allyn, a deputy director of the Pentagon's expanded Joint IED Defeat Organization, says the last year has proved which technologies are ready for wide use.
Tactics. Still, insurgents adeptly counter technological innovations. The arms race means that technology and money will not be enough to end the threat of homemade bombs. "Most of us overemphasize hardware over software," says Stephen Biddle, a Council on Foreign Relations defense fellow. "The IED threat is going to be solved tactically."
A large portion of the new funding would go into an expanded counter-IED training center. And the greatest success of the IED organization so far has been its work to spread simple new tactics. Today, when a squad goes on patrol in Iraq, the senior noncommissioned officer usually shouts out, "5 and 25!" reminding soldiers to scan the ground 5 meters or 25 meters around them. "There aren't any cookie-cutter solutions," Allyn says. "We want to develop leaders who are agile enough to adapt."
USNews
posted by madtom at 1:35 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home