Posted on 09/29/2001 8:18:29 PM PDT by GVnana
Crack force set to prise bin Laden from his lair
By Macer Hall (Filed: 30/09/2001)
SPECIAL forces units are preparing to launch underground attacks on the network of tunnels and caves that conceal Osama bin Laden and his guerrilla fighters.
The SAS and American elite troops will attempt to penetrate the fortified subterranean hideouts to kill or capture terrorists under plans being drawn up by military strategists for a "warning shot" in the war against terror.
Commanders know, however, that such close-quarter combat under the mountains of southern Afghanistan could lead to heavy casualties.
Historically, Afghan fighters have used their detailed knowledge of the caves and hidden trails through the mountains to defeat invaders. Their ability to strike with surprise, then vanish, was the key to their success against the Soviet Army in the 1980s.
Bin Laden's forces have burrowed a complex web of tunnels and caves beneath the mountains. Each base is defended by gun emplacements and anti-aircraft missiles launchers. The networks have dozens of escape tunnels and are linked to observation posts on mountain sides.
An assault on one or more of the caves would need a substantial force of aircraft, artillery and airborne troops to support it. Air strikes with deep penetration weapons would begin the attack, to knock out defences and to blast holes into the caves.
The United States could launch Tomahawk Block III missiles, which are guided by the Global Positioning Satellite system and have 1,000lb warheads, from submarines or warships in the Gulf. For greater accuracy, GPS-guided GBU28 "bunker busting" bombs could be dropped by F15E Eagles, F16 Fighting Falcons or other attack aircraft.
Then a special forces team would be deployed by helicopter - CH-53 Sea Stallions are an option - to attack guerrillas flushed out by the bombing and infiltrate the tunnels. In addition to the SAS and US Delta Force, other elite units with mountain fighting capability may be involved in an attack, including the Americans' 75th Ranger Regiment and the Royal Marines 3 Commando Brigade.
Charles Heyman, the editor of Jane's World Armies, said: "It would be a very difficult operation, there is no doubt about that. Commanders will want a lot of troops and aircraft as well as artillery in support because many defences may still be in place after air strikes.
"The classic terrorist tactic is to desert these places and move away and not get themselves caught by properly organised military forces of any sort. But if there are people trying to defend them, you could have a really bloody battle on your hands."
Contingency plans for airlifting casualties out of the battle zone will also be necessary. American strategists are drawing on the experiences of the "tunnel rats" of the Vietnam War, the US soldiers who, armed with grenades, pistols and torches, fought in the hundreds of miles of tunnels dug by Communist guerillas.
While military technology has moved on, with thermal imaging equipment used to track enemies, the battle would come down to the same techniques of hand-to-hand fighting in claustrophobic conditions.
The terrorists' tunnels are believed to be able to conceal thousands of fighters for months. They include dormitories and other living quarters, communication centres and armouries stacked with Kalashnikov rifles, mortars, ammunition and explosives.
Some of the caves have lighting and electricity supplied by generators and makeshift systems of hot water pipes for heating. Al-Qaeda fighters live a sparse existence with just the Koran for comfort.
Bin Laden was known to be based in a cave in a mountain range above Jalalabad in eastern Afghanistan, the subterranean centre of his global terror network, until disappearing before the US hijack attacks.
His underground lair was reported to have a library of Islamic texts, an arms store and a communication room including computers, faxes and a satellite telephone.
Brutal is right, but I have to admit, I was fantasizing before Bush's speach to Congress that he would lift the still bloodied head of OBL up from behind the dias.
Just a general observatiion regarding the media in general. Carry on...
Maybe Bush really did mean "SMOKE THEM OUT"!
"Well....yadda...yadda...yadda...I will tell you what these great heros will do. They will squeal to their families when they are captured. Their families will go on CNN. They will tear our hearts out about how horribly they are being treated and ..please...please...can't we do something for them. Have all the faith you want in them. I don't." - LarryLied
Here's the link to the thread.
This sounds like something Bin Laden would have said. Disgusting.
??????
No we don't. That was a BIG issue during the cold war when the USSR had us outnumbered with tanks and artillery in Europe by about five to one. Meanwhile, the Soviets promoted their "no first strike" policy and lambasted us for not joining them. Despite pressure from "peace" groups, we stood our ground, kept the option and therefore minimized the USSR's ability to intimidate us into accepting agreements that were more to their favor. (That's something else that will not be taught in most universities.)
There was a report that immediately after the attack, the Bush administration was inquiring into the kiloton yield of an exploding fully fueled 757. Speculation was that they were preparing a case for the terrorist having used weapons of mass destruction first.
oooh, oooh..maybe we could use sevin dust.
Dangerous yes, but only bloody for the Bin Laden crowd.
I can think of no situation that could give me more pleasure than to find my enemy in a cave. The entrances can be identified easily. Air vents and generator units can be found in the cold winter air by the vapor plumes that they will emit. Any heating system will show up as melted snow on the surface and as heat tracks on infrared satellite photographs. The cave entrances will be like big red bloches on those same photos.
A few well placed missles will take out any above ground defences and a few sachel charges will close all the openings. Then on to the next complex.
I do not understand why the mind set is that we have to go into each complex and poke every raghead in the eye with a sharp stick. If 1000 of them are in a cave, you shut them in the cave and then go on to the next cave. A small company of Marines could keep 1000 armed camel jockies bottled up in a cave for years. They will run out of food, water and air eventualy.
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