Sniper Attacks in Iraq
Sniper Attacks Adding to Peril of U.S. Troops
In recent months, military officers and enlisted marines say, the insurgents have been using snipers more frequently and with greater effect, disrupting the military’s operations and fueling a climate of frustration and quiet rage.
Across Iraq, the threat has become serious enough that in late October the military held an internal conference about it, sharing the experiences of combat troops and discussing tactics to counter it. There has been no ready fix.
The battalion commander of Sergeant Leach’s unit — the Second Battalion, Eighth Marines — recalled eight sniper hits on his marines in three months and said there had been other possible incidents as well. Two of the battalion’s five fatalities have come from snipers, he said, and one marine is in a coma. Another marine gravely wounded by a sniper has suffered a stroke.
A sniper team was captured in the area a few weeks ago, he said, but more have taken its place. “The enemy has the ability to regenerate, and after we put a dent in his activity, we see sniper activity again,” said the commander, Lt. Col. Kenneth M. DeTreux.
I had noticed on Iraq Body Count an increase in casualties from hostile, non-IED causes. Whether snipers or other methods, there has been an increase in our losses from the enemy in situations where the enemy has been “willing to engage us.” In other words, an IED is a fairly low-risk proposition. But to fire an RPG, take a shot, or (the ultimate) do a suicide bombing, all require a higher level of commitment and risk-taking by the insurgents.
Troubling.
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