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Caucasus |
US Forces Hunting Al-Qaida Inside Chechnya? |
2002-11-22 |
Source: Jihad Unspun A US Military document has been leaked to Jihad Unspun that indicates that US Army forces are operating inside Chechnya in pursuit of Al-Qaida members. The document was presented sometime in October 2002 and describes the planning of a US military forces operation inside Chechenya called Operation BLUNT SWORD. In April of 2002, the CENTCOM CDR approved a contingency plan titled âBLUNT SWORD.â This CONPLAN called for the forced entry into the Grozny area by elements of the Special Operations Command, with early entry forces pulled from the 1-25 IBCT and the 101st ABN DIV (AASLT). The purpose of the operations was to restore order, assist in the establishment of a legitimate military, and see to the free and fair election of a local government...They seem to know the patter. Legitimate? Guess we'll find out eventually. I suspect not, though. Putin probably feels they have a "legitimate military" in the area. And that the Russers are capable of maintaining local civil government. I have no idea what "digitized IN[fantry?] Battalions" might be, or what kind of unit an "IBCT" might be â but that could be because I've been out of the Army for almost 20 years and they've got things they didn't have when I was green. Even if legit, I'd also suspect it would be from a CPX (command post exercise) rather than from an actual operation. The intel section (b., in the original article) seems rather more fully filled out than I'd expect... |
Posted by:Fred Pruitt |
#3 1. Neither the 101st Airborne nor the 1-25th are part of Special Operations Command. (The IBCT is the Interim Brigade Combat Team. The so called Stryker Brigade from Ft. Lewis.) 2. This is labeled as a "contingency plan." If it was real it would be referred to as an OPORD. 3. My gut feeling is that this is a schoolhouse exercise that somehow ended up on the web. Yes it does have some of the patter down, but it is not well done. I would say either a smart captain or a dumb major wrote it. |
Posted by: Anonymous 2002-11-22 11:22:32 |
#2 I agree this, if at all true, is probably a command post exercise. I can't see Putin allowing us to put the 101st and the 10th into what is a Russian sphere of influence region. In addition, this really would be a quagmire. It's a shitty little country with a centuries old history of banditry. Like France, only they bathe more. Let the Russian handle it. |
Posted by: Chuck 2002-11-22 11:16:19 |
#1 I am not, nor have been in the miitary, but surely continency plans are a dime a dozen. I really dont see us forces in strength entering previous russian territories - the russians are sure to object. And "blunt sword" is a terrible name. How about "flaming rapier of slow painful death!"? I smell hoax. |
Posted by: flash91 2002-11-22 11:14:28 |