In a shift in tactics, the U.S. military in Afghanistan plans to rely more on old-fashioned surveillance, as compared with new-age technology, to stop the biggest killer of American service members in the field.
Rep. Duncan Hunter, a Marine Corps veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, said he was informed by the Pentagon in recent weeks that the command is building up a special task force to defeat improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
Task Force ODIN (Observe, Detect, Identify, Neutralize) is designed to constantly watch troop and convoy routes to catch the enemy planting IEDs, which account for more than 50 percent of U.S. fatalities in Afghanistan.
“I just found out they finally instituted ODIN in one province, Ghazni, in Regional Command East,” Mr. Hunter, California Republican and a member of the House Armed Services Committee, told The Washington Times. “IED attacks dropped by 70 percent. They have already killed 25 insurgents. That was after 20 days of being on line.”
Full Story: Hunter lauds tactic to snuff IEDs – Washington Times