.'Deliberate Slip' Reveals Afghan Superbombs
A "deliberate slip" by Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morell indicates that while the threat of armor-piercing bombs has decreased sharply in Iraq, they are an increasing danger in Afghanistan.
The explosively-formed penetrator (EFP) or "superbomb" is a type of improvised explosive device which fires a high-velocity copper slug, capable of punching through armor plate. It's been by far the deadliest type of IED experienced by U.S. forces in Iraq by far; although they only account for fewer than ten per cent of IEDs, the superbombs cause forty per cent of U.S. casualties.
The argument has raged over whether EFP components were coming from Iran. Although many allegations have been made, facilities to make them have been discovered in Iraq, and nothing has been proven yet.
In a briefing earlier this month, Morell was asked about the reduction of EFPs in Iraq; last month it was reported that twenty or less were being discovered each month -- compared to sixty to eighty a month last year. The New York Daily News spotted this odd moment in the exchange :
Q Yes. Do you have any evidence that there are more or fewer Iranian-made weapons going into Iraq?...
MR. MORRELL: I don't have a strong indication of whether there are more or less, but I think we see persistent evidence that there continues to be Iranian support of special groups who are trying to undermine peace and security in Afghanistan. Whether it be through training or the supply of weapons such as EFPs. Frankly --
Q Afghanistan?
MR. MORRELL: You're asking Iraq.
Q I was asking about Iraq.
MR. MORRELL: Iraq.
(Cross Talk.)
MR. MORRELL: Okay. I did that last week, too, and I apologize, but it wasn't a Freudian slip. Actually, we have seen evidence, obviously, of it in Afghanistan, as well -- or perhaps it was a slip, but it was deliberate.
It's possible that Morrell was referring to other Iranian help to Afghanistan, but he made no attempt to correct the statement about the supply of weapons such as EFPs in that country. So, perhaps, this is his way of letting us know that the threat is there, even if it isn't being reported. (Of course the EFPs in Afghanistan may also be home made; Hamas, Hezbollah and even the IRA have made them in the past, and information gets exchanged.)
But wherever they are from, it's not good news. Currently the only way of stopping an EFP is thick armor, and heavy armored vehicles have problems in Afghanistan, where the roads are narrow and the bridges weak. Roadside bombs of all types in Afghanistan hit an all-time high last year, up by almost half to 3,376; coalition casualties more than doubled to 161. The fact that the casualties have gone up by a higher percentage than the number of bombs indicates that the bombs are getting deadlier.
If the bombs are coming from Iran, then President Obama's conciliatory approach may pay dividends. Even so, 2009 may be a tough year in Afghanistan.
Wired
Our good friends the Iranians?
The explosively-formed penetrator (EFP) or "superbomb" is a type of improvised explosive device which fires a high-velocity copper slug, capable of punching through armor plate. It's been by far the deadliest type of IED experienced by U.S. forces in Iraq by far; although they only account for fewer than ten per cent of IEDs, the superbombs cause forty per cent of U.S. casualties.
The argument has raged over whether EFP components were coming from Iran. Although many allegations have been made, facilities to make them have been discovered in Iraq, and nothing has been proven yet.
In a briefing earlier this month, Morell was asked about the reduction of EFPs in Iraq; last month it was reported that twenty or less were being discovered each month -- compared to sixty to eighty a month last year. The New York Daily News spotted this odd moment in the exchange :
Q Yes. Do you have any evidence that there are more or fewer Iranian-made weapons going into Iraq?...
MR. MORRELL: I don't have a strong indication of whether there are more or less, but I think we see persistent evidence that there continues to be Iranian support of special groups who are trying to undermine peace and security in Afghanistan. Whether it be through training or the supply of weapons such as EFPs. Frankly --
Q Afghanistan?
MR. MORRELL: You're asking Iraq.
Q I was asking about Iraq.
MR. MORRELL: Iraq.
(Cross Talk.)
MR. MORRELL: Okay. I did that last week, too, and I apologize, but it wasn't a Freudian slip. Actually, we have seen evidence, obviously, of it in Afghanistan, as well -- or perhaps it was a slip, but it was deliberate.
It's possible that Morrell was referring to other Iranian help to Afghanistan, but he made no attempt to correct the statement about the supply of weapons such as EFPs in that country. So, perhaps, this is his way of letting us know that the threat is there, even if it isn't being reported. (Of course the EFPs in Afghanistan may also be home made; Hamas, Hezbollah and even the IRA have made them in the past, and information gets exchanged.)
But wherever they are from, it's not good news. Currently the only way of stopping an EFP is thick armor, and heavy armored vehicles have problems in Afghanistan, where the roads are narrow and the bridges weak. Roadside bombs of all types in Afghanistan hit an all-time high last year, up by almost half to 3,376; coalition casualties more than doubled to 161. The fact that the casualties have gone up by a higher percentage than the number of bombs indicates that the bombs are getting deadlier.
If the bombs are coming from Iran, then President Obama's conciliatory approach may pay dividends. Even so, 2009 may be a tough year in Afghanistan.
Wired
Our good friends the Iranians?
posted by madtom at 9:16 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home