Thugs (constantly) improve road bombs in Iraq -via: The Washington Times: Nation/Politics - April 25, 2005

Rowan Scarborough, in today's WashTimes, has read some secret military docs that state (big surprise) that thugs can think and apply lessons learned analysis to their road side bomb experiments. Big Whoop. Thank you Mr. Sherlock Holmes. Thugs can actually think and say: "Ali Dude, that last bomb you made was a bust, man. We think it was jammed by the American Marines radio signal. Why don't you make the next one with direct wire ignition."

: " 'Enemy sophistication continually improves,' said a recent U.S. military briefing to commanders. 'The enemy is adapting all the time.'
"The document said that after the U.S. had success with jamming radio signals between the bomber and the improvised explosive devices (IEDs), insurgents quickly reverted to direct-wire ignition that cannot be jammed. " WoW! Isn't that amazing. The documents, which are distributed to U.S. commanders as updates on Pentagon efforts to defeat IEDs, show, for example, that insurgents last summer began burying the bombs under roads and then paving over the holes. The enemy also has used dead animals as hiding places, and has put smaller ordnance inside white bags placed on the roadside."

Clever

The paved-over bomb "can be spotted by the stain that usually remains on the road," said one briefing paper, a copy of which was obtained by The Washington Times.
These crude, remotely detonated bombs have emerged has the insurgency's top weapon against American and coalition troops in Iraq. As intelligence reports indicate,
it is getting more difficult for Saddam Hussein's loyalists to recruit Iraqi attackers, so the IEDs are gaining importance as a weapon to kill troops and civilians.

The Pentagon has attempted to stay ahead of the game by creating an Army-led task force that issues confidential reports, such as the ones obtained by The Times. Thugs are " using door bells and car alarm systems," one confidential briefing stated. "If you stop someone with a bunch of door bells or phones or toy cars, you probably have a bomber."

The explosive is typically an artillery shell, thousands of which existed in arms caches throughout the militarized country.

In some cases, the jammers work. But the insurgents have adapted by using the hard-to-jam signals from cordless phones or cell phones, or simply stringing a wire from the remote control to the bomb's battery.
"I hate to say this, but the Defense Department is not where it should be in defeating these things," said a Defense source who is working on solutions to the problem.

The confidential documents show American patrols have found multiple telephone wires leading to houses that did not have telephones. On inspection, soldiers determined the wires led to past IED detonations.

The lesson: Inspect homes that have multiple telephone wires.