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| Iraq |
| Car-bomb factory discovered, destroyed in Qanat Banat Al Hasan |
| 2007-07-17 |
| A vehicle-borne improvised explosive device factory was discovered and destroyed by Coalition Forces in a rural area west of Saab al bor, Iraq July 14. While conducting a reconnaissance mission in the Qanat Banat Al Hasan area, west of Saab al bor, troopers from Company A, 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment discovered a large car bomb factory containing 2,000 lbs. of ammonium nitrate, 1,000 lbs. of nitric acid, 10 large shape charges and two trucks already rigged for detonation. After cordoning off the area, the Soldiers destroyed the factory using artillery fire. There were no injuries in the destruction of the site. An investigation has been launched to determine who was using the facility. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #9 Besoeker gives me hope; Manolo and Jack raise reasonable points, which I can't address absent all the details of the situation. My general point is that deception, or finesse of any kind, and especially use of our unique advantages, has been sorely lacking for the most part. All the "finesse" is the bogus sort that confuses nation-building with war - forgetting that it's the hammer in the back pocket, and the hammer that's taken out and used, that makes any of the DAC/NAC meetings and projects meaningful (I'm talking about contested areas, not friendly villages in the south). |
| Posted by: Verlaine 2007-07-17 23:18 |
| #8 These ideas also need to assume that the boom-makers and gunners aren't watching you or know that you found the stuff. Never take points off the scoreboard. Destroy when found. That way it doesn't see another day period. |
| Posted by: Jack is Back! 2007-07-17 13:52 |
| #7 Just don't let the lawyers find out... |
| Posted by: tu3031 2007-07-17 12:33 |
| #6 Please give your troops a heartfelt "Well done!" from the folks back home, Besoeker dear. They've been going gangbusters, based on what we're seeing here. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2007-07-17 12:30 |
| #5 #1 Too bad we couldn't pretend we didn't find the place. Set a remote-detonation pack with a microphone, and listen for any likely exploders coming back. Variations on that theme are already producing success. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2007-07-17 12:18 |
| #4 I have been in the AO and it is the last place you want to have to go back too. Definately not going to leave the much cached material in place. Great idea to try and trap the bad guys, but the trade off of taking that kind of material off the street just isn't worth it. |
| Posted by: TopMac 2007-07-17 12:15 |
| #3 That kind of undercover op requires a fair mount of deception. If they were involved in the initial detection, I'd be concerned about leaks from the IF compromising it. |
| Posted by: Manolo 2007-07-17 07:40 |
| #2 Glenmore, a variation on your idea has haunted me for years (i.e., the apparent decision never to do anything like it has haunted me): why not de-mil/disarm the devices ready to go, put the place under surveillance, grab the first few people who show up, squeeze them for info, and roll up the rest? The (apparent) utter lack of thoroughness, of full exploitation of successes, of any use of deception or mobility or the other dozen advantages we wield as against no other enemy in our history - I have puzzled and agonized over this since early 2005 when I first got my close-up seat to the fun. Next to the epidemic of "soft power" delusions (refusal to use power to show who owns the future to a populace whose only rational approach is to focus on that issue), this operational mediocrity has been the most baffling and frustrating thing to watch. All may be attributable to my lack of info and expertise, but extensive anecdotal data and direct interaction with military in-theater who shared much of my reaction makes me wonder .... |
| Posted by: Verlaine 2007-07-17 02:32 |
| #1 Too bad we couldn't pretend we didn't find the place. Set a remote-detonation pack with a microphone, and listen for any likely exploders coming back. Then, when necessary or appropriate, initiate a 'work accident'. Of course, given the number of such accidents, we may be doing this already. |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2007-07-17 01:00 |