The "deadly game" continues in Iraq.
In a deadly game of technological one-upmanship, insurgents have been adapting their most effective weapon, a concealed and remotely detonated bomb, to increasingly sophisticated American attempts to detect the devices before they explode.Posted by Alan at July 17, 2004 06:09 AMDuring a morning security sweep of city streets on Thursday, American soldiers based here at Camp Freedom said the modifications suggested that there was a kind of technical elite, sometimes referred to generically as "the bomb makers," who were guiding the changing designs.
"It's this constant chess match," said Capt. J. Philip Ludvigson, a member of the Stryker brigade combat team, named for the nimble armored vehicle that made the sweeps. "They change their techniques around and find out new ways to kill us," he said, "and we figure out new ways to counter it."
The test of wits is important in itself, expressing itself in lives gained and lost. But soldiers involved in detecting and analyzing the devices said the game might also be providing new insight into the mysterious, dedicated and skilled core of people who might be leading the insurgency, with devastating effect across Iraq.
"The education level of the ordinary Iraqi is not sufficient to be able to initiate these things," said Capt. Kenneth Mitchell, commander of the Stryker brigade's engineer company.
"I couldn't build one of these," Captain Mitchell said. "They are smart. There is a training network out there. There is an instructor."