Neglects to note that the absence of small arms in the hands of the vicitms let the terrorists succeed! B
Gun Control: The theory that a woman found dead in an alley, raped and strangled with her panty hose, is somehow morally superior to a woman explaining to police how her attacker got that fatal bullet wound. -- L. Neil Smith Small Arms Terror The terror attacks on Mumbai late last year demonstrate terrorist reliance on small arms, Dough Tuttle and Rachel Stohl write for CDI. By Rachel Stohl and Doug Tuttle for the Center for Defense Information At 9 pm on 26 November 2008, gunmen began a series of coordinated attacks in the city of Mumbai, India, which terrorized the city and captivated the world. Using only small arms and grenades, roughly two dozen operatives from Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a Kashmir- based militant group, attacked Mumbai, paralyzing the financial and cultural center of India for 62 hours. In the end, nearly 200 were killed and 350 wounded. While much of the international community has focused its attention on the nuclear competition between India and Pakistan, the attacks in Mumbai utilized a different weapon of mass destruction: small arms. Armed with AK-47s and Chinese Type 56 rifles, 9 mm pistols and grenades, the majority of the gunmen arrived by sea and immediately moved against the Colaba Police Station in order to disrupt the potential police response to the impending attacks. As the gunmen broke into smaller teams and moved through the city, they attacked soft (nonmilitary) targets such as the Taj Mahal Hotel and the Nariman House. In total, the gunmen struck 10 locations with coordinated military precision armed solely with low-tech small arms. LeT chose small arms as the weapon of choice for their attacks for a number of reasons. First, small arms are easily accessible to LeT. LeT operates in the northern tribal areas of Pakistan, a region awash with weapons. During the Soviet-Afghan war, much of the military support for the Mujahideen fighters was funneled through Pakistan. Suppliers relied on the "Afghan pipeline" to send millions of small arms, mostly Soviet origin weapons, into Afghanistan. This allowed those supporting the Mujahideen, such as the United States, plausible deniability. However, this hands-off approach, and reliance on Pakistani middlemen, also gave suppliers very limited control over the final recipients of these weapons. An unknown quantity of weapons, but likely in the thousands, were diverted into the hands of Pakistani dealers and have today ended up in border arms bazaars. In addition to the enduring weapons from the Cold War, areas in Pakistan's North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) have a long history of craft production of weapons. For example, gunsmiths in Darra Adam Kehl, located just south of Peshawar, the capital of the NWFP, are thought to produce between 500 and 1,000 firearms daily. Darra is also home to the largest illegal gun market in the world. Second, small arms are easy to use and effective. According to reports, the operatives responsible for the Mumbai attacks received around one month of weapons training, including use of AK-47s. Globally, small arms are estimated to account for roughly 1,000 deaths a day. The AK-47 is so effective and so easy to use that it is very often the weapon of choice for warlords and militias that use children in their ranks. Third, small arms and light weapons are small and inconspicuous, making them easy to transport and conceal, even in large quantities. LeT operatives were able to transport all the weapons and ammunition they would need from Pakistan via sea and transport them to land using small rubber boats. Indian security forces found weapons and ammunition caches in guest rooms of the Taj Mahal Hotel. Small arms were extremely effective tools for the two main tactics of the operatives; "hit and run" and "seize and hold." Using AK-47s and grenades, LeT operatives were able to strike quickly at specific targets creating chaos throughout the area, which consequently confused and impeded the response of Indian security officials. The mobility and multiple use capabilities of small arms also allowed the operatives to elude police and military response and strike multiple targets with deadly accuracy. Small arms were also ideal weapons for the "seize and hold" tactics used at the Taj Mahal and Oberoi/Trident hotels and the Nariman House. Prior knowledge of the facilities gave the gunman the ability to establish strong positions throughout the locations in order to defend against security forces using small arms. The weapons also allowed the LeT terrorists to kill discriminately, particularly focusing on white foreign tourists, and intentionally trying to spare Muslims. Unlike explosives, small arms allowed the gunmen to more accurately choose their targets in close quarters. Despite the recent attack, policy-makers, the media and the public remain focused on a potential nuclear disaster on the subcontinent, while the weapons that have inflicted the most damage, i.e. small arms, continue to proliferate in the fragile region. Since India and Pakistan achieved independence from Britain in 1947, the neighbors have fought three full-scale conventional wars - from 1947-49, in 1965 and in 1971. Smaller scale skirmishes have also occurred regularly in the disputed regions of Jammu and Kashmir, and militant terror attacks have occurred in cities such as Mumbai in the years since. The region is a hotbed of extremism and tension, much of which has been fueled by the wide availability of small arms and conventional weapons. These weapons come from a variety of sources, but the United States is intimately involved in their provision to the region. Although the US had imposed sanctions on arms transfers to India and Pakistan in 1998 - for their nuclear testing and for Pakistan's military coup - all sanctions were lifted after 9/11. The United States has since sent billions of dollars of military assistance, including small arms, to the subcontinent. The horror in Mumbai reinforces the undeniable link between small arms and terrorism. Using low-tech, cheap and available weapons, terrorists have inflicted major damage and fear. Half of the terrorist incidents reported in the 2003 US State Department's "Patterns of Global Terrorism" were carried out with small arms and light weapons. Although the threat of nuclear weapons and their use on the subcontinent are significant, the international community must do more to stem the flow of small arms to, and within, the region. Before selling additional weapons supplies, surplus and obsolete weapons must be destroyed or securely stored. Illegal arms bazaars must be shut down and weapons confiscated. Known traffickers and supply routes must be stopped. Small arms must be placed on the security and policy agenda of India, Pakistan and other countries involved in ensuring a sustainable and lasting peace and stopping terrorism on the subcontinent. <http://www.isn.ethz.ch/isn/Current-Affairs/Security-Watch/Detail/?ots591=48 88CAA0-B3DB-1461-98B9-E20E7B9C13D4&lng=en&id=95553> http://www.isn.ethz.ch/isn/Current-Affairs/Security-Watch/Detail/?ots591=488 8CAA0-B3DB-1461-98B9-E20E7B9C13D4&lng=en&id=95553 (F)AIR USE NOTICE: All original content and/or articles and graphics in this message are copyrighted, unless specifically noted otherwise. All rights to these copyrighted items are reserved. Articles and graphics have been placed within for educational and discussion purposes only, in compliance with "Fair Use" criteria established in Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The principle of "Fair Use" was established as law by Section 107 of The Copyright Act of 1976. "Fair Use" legally eliminates the need to obtain permission or pay royalties for the use of previously copyrighted materials if the purposes of display include "criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research." Section 107 establishes four criteria for determining whether the use of a work in any particular case qualifies as a "fair use". A work used does not necessarily have to satisfy all four criteria to qualify as an instance of "fair use". Rather, "fair use" is determined by the overall extent to which the cited work does or does not substantially satisfy the criteria in their totality. If you wish to use copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: <http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml> http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml THIS DOCUMENT MAY CONTAIN COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL. COPYING AND DISSEMINATION IS PROHIBITED WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE COPYRIGHT OWNERS. Gun Control: The theory that a woman found dead in an alley, raped and strangled with her panty hose, is somehow morally superior to a woman explaining to police how her attacker got that fatal bullet wound. -- L. Neil Smith _____ From: eheyman [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Tuesday, January 20, 2009 1:09 PM To: eheyman Subject: Small Arms Terror Small Arms Terror The terror attacks on Mumbai late last year demonstrate terrorist reliance on small arms, Dough Tuttle and Rachel Stohl write for CDI. By Rachel Stohl and Doug Tuttle for the Center for Defense Information At 9 pm on 26 November 2008, gunmen began a series of coordinated attacks in the city of Mumbai, India, which terrorized the city and captivated the world. Using only small arms and grenades, roughly two dozen operatives from Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a Kashmir- based militant group, attacked Mumbai, paralyzing the financial and cultural center of India for 62 hours. In the end, nearly 200 were killed and 350 wounded. While much of the international community has focused its attention on the nuclear competition between India and Pakistan, the attacks in Mumbai utilized a different weapon of mass destruction: small arms. Armed with AK-47s and Chinese Type 56 rifles, 9 mm pistols and grenades, the majority of the gunmen arrived by sea and immediately moved against the Colaba Police Station in order to disrupt the potential police response to the impending attacks. As the gunmen broke into smaller teams and moved through the city, they attacked soft (nonmilitary) targets such as the Taj Mahal Hotel and the Nariman House. In total, the gunmen struck 10 locations with coordinated military precision armed solely with low-tech small arms. LeT chose small arms as the weapon of choice for their attacks for a number of reasons. First, small arms are easily accessible to LeT. LeT operates in the northern tribal areas of Pakistan, a region awash with weapons. During the Soviet-Afghan war, much of the military support for the Mujahideen fighters was funneled through Pakistan. Suppliers relied on the "Afghan pipeline" to send millions of small arms, mostly Soviet origin weapons, into Afghanistan. This allowed those supporting the Mujahideen, such as the United States, plausible deniability. However, this hands-off approach, and reliance on Pakistani middlemen, also gave suppliers very limited control over the final recipients of these weapons. An unknown quantity of weapons, but likely in the thousands, were diverted into the hands of Pakistani dealers and have today ended up in border arms bazaars. In addition to the enduring weapons from the Cold War, areas in Pakistan's North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) have a long history of craft production of weapons. For example, gunsmiths in Darra Adam Kehl, located just south of Peshawar, the capital of the NWFP, are thought to produce between 500 and 1,000 firearms daily. Darra is also home to the largest illegal gun market in the world. Second, small arms are easy to use and effective. According to reports, the operatives responsible for the Mumbai attacks received around one month of weapons training, including use of AK-47s. Globally, small arms are estimated to account for roughly 1,000 deaths a day. The AK-47 is so effective and so easy to use that it is very often the weapon of choice for warlords and militias that use children in their ranks. Third, small arms and light weapons are small and inconspicuous, making them easy to transport and conceal, even in large quantities. LeT operatives were able to transport all the weapons and ammunition they would need from Pakistan via sea and transport them to land using small rubber boats. Indian security forces found weapons and ammunition caches in guest rooms of the Taj Mahal Hotel. Small arms were extremely effective tools for the two main tactics of the operatives; "hit and run" and "seize and hold." Using AK-47s and grenades, LeT operatives were able to strike quickly at specific targets creating chaos throughout the area, which consequently confused and impeded the response of Indian security officials. The mobility and multiple use capabilities of small arms also allowed the operatives to elude police and military response and strike multiple targets with deadly accuracy. Small arms were also ideal weapons for the "seize and hold" tactics used at the Taj Mahal and Oberoi/Trident hotels and the Nariman House. Prior knowledge of the facilities gave the gunman the ability to establish strong positions throughout the locations in order to defend against security forces using small arms. The weapons also allowed the LeT terrorists to kill discriminately, particularly focusing on white foreign tourists, and intentionally trying to spare Muslims. Unlike explosives, small arms allowed the gunmen to more accurately choose their targets in close quarters. Despite the recent attack, policy-makers, the media and the public remain focused on a potential nuclear disaster on the subcontinent, while the weapons that have inflicted the most damage, i.e. small arms, continue to proliferate in the fragile region. Since India and Pakistan achieved independence from Britain in 1947, the neighbors have fought three full-scale conventional wars - from 1947-49, in 1965 and in 1971. Smaller scale skirmishes have also occurred regularly in the disputed regions of Jammu and Kashmir, and militant terror attacks have occurred in cities such as Mumbai in the years since. The region is a hotbed of extremism and tension, much of which has been fueled by the wide availability of small arms and conventional weapons. These weapons come from a variety of sources, but the United States is intimately involved in their provision to the region. Although the US had imposed sanctions on arms transfers to India and Pakistan in 1998 - for their nuclear testing and for Pakistan's military coup - all sanctions were lifted after 9/11. The United States has since sent billions of dollars of military assistance, including small arms, to the subcontinent. The horror in Mumbai reinforces the undeniable link between small arms and terrorism. Using low-tech, cheap and available weapons, terrorists have inflicted major damage and fear. Half of the terrorist incidents reported in the 2003 US State Department's "Patterns of Global Terrorism" were carried out with small arms and light weapons. Although the threat of nuclear weapons and their use on the subcontinent are significant, the international community must do more to stem the flow of small arms to, and within, the region. Before selling additional weapons supplies, surplus and obsolete weapons must be destroyed or securely stored. Illegal arms bazaars must be shut down and weapons confiscated. Known traffickers and supply routes must be stopped. Small arms must be placed on the security and policy agenda of India, Pakistan and other countries involved in ensuring a sustainable and lasting peace and stopping terrorism on the subcontinent. <http://www.isn.ethz.ch/isn/Current-Affairs/Security-Watch/Detail/?ots591=48 88CAA0-B3DB-1461-98B9-E20E7B9C13D4&lng=en&id=95553> http://www.isn.ethz.ch/isn/Current-Affairs/Security-Watch/Detail/?ots591=488 8CAA0-B3DB-1461-98B9-E20E7B9C13D4&lng=en&id=95553 (F)AIR USE NOTICE: All original content and/or articles and graphics in this message are copyrighted, unless specifically noted otherwise. All rights to these copyrighted items are reserved. Articles and graphics have been placed within for educational and discussion purposes only, in compliance with "Fair Use" criteria established in Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The principle of "Fair Use" was established as law by Section 107 of The Copyright Act of 1976. "Fair Use" legally eliminates the need to obtain permission or pay royalties for the use of previously copyrighted materials if the purposes of display include "criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research." Section 107 establishes four criteria for determining whether the use of a work in any particular case qualifies as a "fair use". A work used does not necessarily have to satisfy all four criteria to qualify as an instance of "fair use". Rather, "fair use" is determined by the overall extent to which the cited work does or does not substantially satisfy the criteria in their totality. If you wish to use copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: <http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml> http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml THIS DOCUMENT MAY CONTAIN COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL. 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