Strategy to combat attacks

[Sxotty]

Perhaps they could predeploy snipers along the routes or something. It seems obvious that heavy weaponry is not the best solution when attackers are hiding behind children. In any case I don't know if this would be feasible or not, i.e. the snipers themselves might be in to much danger to operate alone, and therefore it would take to much manpower, but perhaps at least on points that are vunerable they could do this.

from nytimes

Moments later, two men on a motorcycle firing automatic weapons used children leaving school as cover to attack the patrol, the statement said. American forces deployed snipers. As the patrol continued, gunmen using an overgrown field as cover attacked it with automatic weapons, while others fired rocket-propelled grenades and mortars, the statement said.

The statement said the soldiers killed 11 attackers, and that there were no American casualties.

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/16/international/middleeast/16CND-IRAQ.html?hp

 

[Natoma]

The only problem I could see with this is that many of the attacks are long range and/or of the "lay in wait" kind. You can't really pinpoint the terrorists if they dig a hole in the ground the previous night, plant a bomb, and leave, letting us roll over them the next day.

And it's hard as well to pinpoint terrorists who would use shoulder mounted rocket launchers which can be launched from miles away.

I think a strategy such as that would cut down on direct confrontation and push it even further into the guerrilla strategy.

 

[RussSchultz]

I was reading this yesterday, and one of the points it makes toward the bottom is that convoys that appear ready, and would be willing to engage the enemy instead of fleeing the combat zone (as apparently is standard operating procedure) would deter many convoy attacks because the enemy currently knows they get "free shots without engagement" as it stands now.

 

[ByteMe]

Open many brothels.