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Iraq
US snipers 'bait' Iraqis: report
2007-09-24
WASHINGTON (AFP) - At the urging of Pentagon experts in special operations, US military snipers operating in Iraq are "baiting" Iraqis by scattering items like detonation cord, plastic explosives and ammunition and then ambushing and killing those who pick them up, The Washington Post reported Monday.

The newspaper said the classified program was described in investigative documents related to recently filed murder charges against three snipers who are accused of planting evidence on Iraqis they killed.

"Baiting is putting an object out there that we know they will use, with the intention of destroying the enemy," Captain Matthew Didier, the leader of an elite sniper scout platoon is quoted as saying in a sworn statement. "Basically, we would put an item out there and watch it," Didier continued. "If someone found the item, picked it up and attempted to leave with the item, we would engage the individual as I saw this as a sign they would use the item against US forces."
Okay, fine, but what if it's a scavenger?
In documents obtained by The Post from family members of the accused soldiers, Didier said members of the Pentagon's Asymmetric Warfare Group visited his unit in January and later passed along ammunition boxes filled with the "drop items" to be used to disrupt ... attempts at harming Coalition Forces and give us the upper hand in a fight."

Eugene Fidell, president of the National Institute of Military Justice, said such a baiting program should be examined "quite meticulously" because it raises troubling possibilities, such as what happens when civilians pick up the items, the paper said. "In a country that is awash in armaments and magazines and implements of war, if every time somebody picked up something that was potentially useful as a weapon, you might as well ask every Iraqi to walk around with a target on his back," Fidell is quoted in the article as saying.
Yep. Some of the stuff used as bait clearly has no other purpose other than to harm us, but some of the stuff might be picked up for its value in other ways: e.g., the metal of an ammunition box. Careful is the right word for this program.
Soldiers said that about a dozen platoon members were aware of the program, and that numerous others knew about the "drop items" but did not know their purpose, The Post reported.

Two soldiers, who had not been officially informed about the program, came forward with allegations of wrongdoing after they learned they were going to be punished for falling asleep on a sniper mission, the paper said.
One doesn't relate to the other, as these two soldiers are about to discover ...
Army officials declined to discuss the classified program, according to the report.
Posted by:tu3031

#13  "..as the local jag would have a hissy fit/heart attack for the very reasons presented..."

Sounds like a two fer to me.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike   2007-09-24 19:17  

#12  Count me in as a 'doubting Thomas' on this one. I just can't see this being policy but I can see it being individual initiative. Especially, if you are certain there is some gullible IED master-blaster out there who is dying (no pun intended) for some supplies. America was built on initiative and innovation. Give the sniper a medal and move on to important things like Syria and Iran, for Christ's sake!
Posted by: Jack is Back!   2007-09-24 16:47  

#11  Distance-kill data is recorded by snipers, but it is either classified or not released. Rumors have it that the 2000 feet measure has been long passed.
Posted by: Albemarle Elmuque2506   2007-09-24 16:03  

#10  I prefer to just follow them and pick them up for questioning. People tend to pick up things that don't seem to be in place, like finding something is a gift from God or a stroke of luck.
Posted by: wxjames   2007-09-24 15:37  

#9  And since the first thing the scum would do would be to have children collect the items for them, the caution parents to tell their children to NEVER touch such things.

Good point, 'moose.

I personally think such a program would be awesome but then again, I try to be totally pragmatic & see no problems in killing idiots dumb enough to pick up det cord, or 155mm shells, etc. I.E. -- it makes perfect sense to me so I doubt our ROEs allow for it.

Scary, B6. Just plain scary.
Posted by: Zenster   2007-09-24 15:02  

#8  I'm not sure if this program of "baiting" is even true. Seems to me, iraqis screwing w/the bait material would get picked up by coalition forces or ISF vice just getting a round through the skull. Remember, the brass is denying such a baiting operation exists. A couple snipers on charges of murder (based off charges of planting evidence after illegal hits) claim there is such a program -- possibly to cover culpability or obfuscate the issue. I've never heard of such a program in two tours of the place and I know quite a few in the scout/sniper community -- the word on something like this would've gotten out. Nor do I see any commander trying this type of tactic as the local jag would have a hissy fit/heart attack for the very reasons presented. I personally think such a program would be awesome but then again, I try to be totally pragmatic & see no problems in killing idiots dumb enough to pick up det cord, or 155mm shells, etc. I.E. -- it makes perfect sense to me so I doubt our ROEs allow for it.
Posted by: Broadhead6   2007-09-24 14:52  

#7  It's a measure of how far we've come in the last few months that the best is the MSM can do now is to take issue with specific small-unit tactics.
Posted by: Matt   2007-09-24 14:14  

#6  The CYA for this is to broadcast to the public for a long time that they should *not* pick up military items found lying about, that they should notify the police or IA. And be very up front that if they *do* pick up such things they will be considered enemy.

And since the first thing the scum would do would be to have children collect the items for them, the caution parents to tell their children to NEVER touch such things.
Posted by: Anonymoose   2007-09-24 14:12  

#5  This is a toughie, seeing as how—in the face of such grinding poverty—any discarded item can represent something of value. Small children picking up such things should be given a pass, although the object should be retrieved and the kid reprimanded. Adults who scavenge such material—particularly those who rapidly conceal their finds—should be snuffed faster than the devil can get his shoes on.

As gg so aptly notes, this is Darwin at work. Perhaps we simply need to train those populations that we liberate not to screw around with war materiel. Especially so with the Muslim ones, seeing as how they demonstrate an overly curious nature concerning goodies that go "boom" kill.
Posted by: Zenster   2007-09-24 13:32  

#4  "In a country that is awash in armaments and magazines and implements of war, if every time somebody picked up something that was potentially useful as a weapon, you might as well ask every Iraqi to walk around with a target on his back,"

No comment.
Posted by: Excalibur   2007-09-24 12:56  

#3  If nothing else, this will drive home the lesson that trying to recover military material is best left to the experts.
Posted by: Rob Crawford   2007-09-24 12:44  

#2  Just think of it as fishing.
Posted by: DarthVader   2007-09-24 11:27  

#1  Okay, fine, but what if it's a scavenger?

Think of it as evolution in action, tu3031.
Posted by: gromgoru   2007-09-24 11:14  

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