Feral Jundi

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Industry Talk: Extremists Use Iranian Weapons, Iraq Command Spokesman Says

Filed under: Industry Talk,Iran,Iraq — Tags: , , , , , , , — Matt @ 11:39 AM

This is not particularly new, and I have talked about IRAMs and EFPs here in the past. But it is still important to keep the information flow going out there as far as what are the ongoing threats. Military forces and contractors are still in Iraq, and they still face these threats. It is also important to point out that we have seen the highest amount of deaths in Iraq since 2009.

Both of these types of weapons are pretty specialized, and it would make sense that Iran would be behind the construction of ‘effective’ IRAM’s and EFP’s. It is also important to note that the spokesman made a very interesting point about the construction of this stuff. Here is the quote, and this kind of goes against the conventional wisdom about how ‘easy’ these weapons are to produce.

Neither weapon is something someone can produce on a lathe in a garage. The EFP requires very precise machining, and the explosive charge is cast. For the IRAM to be effective, it requires specially machined parts to attach the larger warhead to the missile.
The firing mechanisms are factory-made electronic parts that have no other use than firing off IRAMs or EFPs.
And the forensic teams can categorically state that the weapons are from Iran. In one case, an IRAM built in Iran was turned over to the Quds Force – part of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard – and then given to an Iraqi extremist in Kitab Hezbollah, a terrorist group that is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Quds Force, officials said.

So there you have it, and take that for what it is worth. I would imagine that insurgents would take the path of least resistance when it comes to weapons. If Quds are handing these things out, then why go through the effort to make these weapons in a garage?  DIY weapons are nice and all, but getting them for free is better. Especially if Iran is logistically able to keep the flow of weapons consistent and sufficient. –Matt

Extremists Use Iranian Weapons, Iraq Command Spokesman Says
By Jim Garamone?American Forces Press Service
CAMP VICTORY, Iraq, July 11, 2011 – There is no doubt that deadly weapons being used against American forces in Iraq originated in Iran, a U.S. Forces Iraq spokesman said here today.
Army Maj. Gen. Jeff Buchanan led reporters traveling with Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta on a tour of Joint Task Force Troy here, where they were free to talk to the men and women who examine all enemy ordnance to determine its origin and to look for ways to defeat the threat or prosecute those who launch attacks.
Part of the unit is the combined explosive exploitation cell laboratories. “When p[explosive ordnance disposal] teams go out and they respond to an explosive event, they collect whatever evidence they find and bring it back,” said a military official at the unit, speaking on background. “We take that evidence and take it apart and exploit it.”
The team looks at the weapon from a technical and chemical viewpoint. “You put all those puzzles together, and you can determine where they are from,” the official said. The team also can sweep the weapons for fingerprints and DNA evidence.

(more…)

Friday, July 8, 2011

Funny Stuff: Primate Studies– Chimpanzee With AK 47, West Africa

Filed under: Funny Stuff — Tags: , , , — Matt @ 10:13 PM

Just as a side note, this video is obviously a fake. The original source was from 20th Century Fox and the Youtube channel it came from was called Apes Will Rise, which is a movie coming out in the near future.

But what must be noted here is the incredible viral value of this short clip. It has been out since July 6 of this year, and it already has 3,035,389 views!(and rising) The thing is also getting passed around on places like Facebook and Twitter. Why does this have value? The return on investment is what makes it valuable. The cost to film and produce this clip was cheap, compared to how many viewers have checked it out and commented on it. All because it was downloaded on youtube.

If you were to pay for that kind of ad through television or film, you would not only have to pay for the production cost, but pay the networks involved to run the ad. Viral videos are a great tool for business, because of this ROI. But it also takes imagination and luck to make a viral video that works. –Matt

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Cool Stuff: Belt Fed AR 10

Filed under: Cool Stuff,Weapons — Tags: , , , , , — Matt @ 10:54 AM

Now this is cool. I found this link while reading about the latest developments in back pack systems to feed machine guns. I will not comment on if this is a good move or not, because I have yet to hear any serious testing with this kit, but it is an interesting concept.

As to the film below, I do not know much about this particular AR 10 model. But what a cool concept to be able to switch from belt-fed 7.62 caliber machine gun mode to magazine fed rifle, and have that capability within the compact size of an AR 10? Although the downside would be the barrel and not being able to switch it out, or the amount of heat it would be exposed too. It would be fun to see a modern gun manufacturer pick up where Stoner left off with this design. Modern materials might make something like this viable. Check it out. –Matt

 

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Industry Talk: A Review Of ‘States Of Security’

Or at least a review of the PSC part of this survey. Although I did find it disconcerting that they talked with several ‘private security commentators’ and industry professionals, but made no effort to contact this blog. I mean there are only a handful of us folks who actually work in this industry, and write about it on a day to day basis. To not recognize the significance of such a resource, tells me that perhaps they were lazy or did not care to gain that kind of insight? Such information would have made a better product, and all it would have taken is an email….Oh what a burden? lol  With that said, let me highlight some of the pros and cons of this survey.

The lack of information about PSC’s and their weapons use in the maritime security market is disappointing. These figures would have been very useful for pointing out deficiencies or strengths in this part of the industry. And if you were to make the connection between the statistic of low rates of armed PSC’s and Western Europe, and the fact that most of today’s maritime security PSC usage comes from this region, then you can see exactly what I am getting at here. If these countries are adverse to arming PSC’s, and yet those same PSC’s are the majority of security out there protecting vessels from heavily armed pirates, then that is not a good ratio.

Furthermore, their data on the types of weapons contractors are using out there is off. The type of weapons that contractors are using and have available to them, is far more varied than what they listed. I will leave it at that.

I would have also liked some more statistics and focus on homemade weaponry. With the internet and the availability of opensource information about the proper construction of weapons, I would be very curious as to the state of DIY weapons manufacturing out there. It would have also brought more attention to the concept of Opensource Military Hardware.

I do want to give praise for the effort, and it was very informative.  It was very interesting to know that there are more PSC’s than police, and yet the police and the militaries of the world have far more weapons.  To me, this is shocking. PSC’s are increasingly becoming the front line troops when it comes to terrorism, drug wars, pirates, etc., and yet here we are throwing guards into harms way without these very basic tools of defense and self protection.

I have not been able to read the rest of the survey, but I would be interested to hear about the small arms usage of terrorists, pirates, drug cartels, etc. if such a statistic could be formulated. I imagine this figure would be pretty startling. But the most disturbing aspect of such a statistic, is the idea that we are using all of these unarmed private security forces to defend against these heavily armed malcontents. I am already seeing this with the maritime security industry, and that alone has been a battle to promote the idea of putting armed guards on boats. And not just armed, but armed with sufficient firepower to deal with the potential threats.

To me, it is an issue of safety for the guard and an issue of actually providing ‘real security’ services to the client, as opposed to providing security theater. Every guard out there should be able to look their client in the eye and say ‘I am ready to take on any and all threats, in the defense of you and your property’. Guards that are unarmed or poorly trained will contribute to failure–which equates to more industry scrutiny and consternation.

The survey noted this, and also noted the important efforts of this industry to get squared away.  Things like signing the ICoC or rallying around the Montreux Document are all signs that the industry wants accountability, and they want to give the client the confidence to use their services.

But as the survey has noted, time and time again, it is the governments of the world who have dropped the ball when it comes to regulating or coming up with the laws to properly manage this industry. I have done much to highlight these deficiencies in the past on this blog, and will continue to do so. I will also continue to provide solutions for countries and clients, to help them get the best service and contract they can get out of their PSC’s and PMC’s. I will also continue to do my part to promote a business/warrior ethos called Jundism amongst my peers, as well as promote real security solutions to the world’s complex security environments.

It is also very interesting to me that the Police and Military forces of the world get far more respect than PSC’s, and yet here we are, taking on more and more responsibilities and dealing with more complex threats. Everything a cop or soldier might encounter, PSC’s could encounter as well. And yet PSC’s continue to do what they do with less arms, less legal authority, less regulation, less training, less accountability and all because we are less cost. We have ‘cheaper’ down, we have ‘faster’ down, but we still have a ways to go when it comes to ‘better’. But I am optimistic, because we are slowly evolving, learning, improving our standing as ‘better’, despite the nation state’s inability to keep up with regulations/management/accountability. –Matt

On Growth

The private security sector has been booming since the mid-1980s and continues to grow steadily (van Dijk, 2008,
p. 217). Recent estimates show that the security market is worth about USD 100–165 billion per year, and that it has
been growing at an annual rate of 7–8 per cent.4 The scale of growth is further illustrated by significant increases in
the number of personnel employed over time and across regions:

(more…)

Publications: Small Arms Survey 2011, Chapter 4–Private Security And Small Arms

Small Arms Survey 2011 Chapter 4: Private Security And Small Arms

« Newer PostsOlder Posts »

Powered by WordPress