Can modern technology help?
I write in complete ignorance as I have not been to Iraq. I know the following facts:
* Suicide bombers will do anything to get to their targets. They are becoming more sophisticated as I speak.
* Suicide bombers form the second arm of the insurgent attack to disrupt Iraq and prevent it from becoming a democratic, peaceful country.
* Suicide bombers use explosives strapped to their bodies or hidden in vehicles.
Now, and bear in mind that I have not been on the ground in Iraq, I ask, why we, in a sophisticated world with the most modern technology available to us , cannot vet, detect, eliminate this threat?
Our airports are geared up for this sort of thing. Our US forces and British police are constantly on the alert for this threat in our respective countries---yet they (the bombers) get through in Iraq. Surely someone can come up with a way to spike this sort of activity.
You're going to say to me that the bombers are like ants. Knock the first one down and there are thousands of others close behind. Baghdad is a massive city and there are few controls. Bombers seek out soft targets like new recruits to the police or army and they are so easy to get to.
My frustration is with the anti-insurgency methods in use. Am I naive in thinking that there is no way these bombers can be stopped? Have we no way of sensing the presence of explosives? Can we not take measures to eliminate this threat. As I said before, Baghdad is a large city---is there no way a perimeter force can be deployed to keep the threat out?
Finally, in my naive assessment of the situation, is there nothing we can learn from the Israelis in the way they contain bomb threats. Sure, many Israelis have died in cafes, markets and restaurants but the Israelis have certainly kept many murderous attempts in check. The threat exists but the Israeli authorities have reduced this threat.
Why can't the same be done in Iraq?