You’ll remember that Kit Up! tipped off our readers to a story from the Wall Street Journal recounting the fear spreading among US and Brit troops in Helmand by a pretty well trained Taliban sharpshooter (the Marine snipers sent out to hunt the guy, suspected of being one shooter and a spotter, refused to give them the respect of calling them “snipers”) who killed three coalition troops in seven days.
Well, it turns out this was no Afghan Taliban Zaitsev.
According to the UK Daily Telegraph, the Sangin Sniper wasn’t just one guy — it was four…and they weren’t even locals. They were hired foreigners from Pakistan, Egypt and Chechnya. The Mercinaries were tracked down by British special forces troops (SAS and SBS blokes) who helped light ’em up with laser designators while a Fighting Falcon put some warhead on the bad guys’ foreheads.
The snipers were thought to have been hired by the Taliban to specifically target the Nato forces’ most highly specialised soldiers, such as bomb disposal experts.
The first pair were caught in Sangin ten days ago and the second two were found on Thursday.
When their identities were confirmed and their exact locations ascertained, pilots of U.S. F-16 jets were sent precise coordinates to ensure their high-explosive bombs killed the enemy without hurting innocent civilians.
This brings up a very interesting point, one that the New York Times’ CJ Chivers brought up a while back and we turned KU readers onto. Is the supposed prowess of the Afghan shooter (who, legend has it, was practically born with an Enfield rifle in his hand) over rated? These guys were taking good shots and informed speculation was that they were locally grown, if not locally trained.
But the Taliban had to hire battle-hardened freelancers to do their dirty work, since local talent either couldn’t — or more importantly, wouldn’t — do the job themselves. And also, let’s consider what this says about the Taliban organization that it has the funding and logistics to call in a team of Jackals. That speaks to greater sophistication, not worse.
{ 48 comments… read them below or add one }
I see your precision rifle and spotting scope, and raise you one 500lb laser guided smart bomb!
LMAO
Lol fold
Superbly illumnaitnig data here, thanks!
Seems a bit like using a sledgehammer to crack an egg. If the snipers could be pinpointed for a smart bomb, it seems like they could have been touched with a 7.62, 338 Lapua or 50 Barret. It would have been a lot cheaper and quieter.
But perhaps less of a lesson?
Reminds of a reporter asking an Air Force general at a news conference during Desert Storm if using B-52s was "like using a sledgehammer to kill flies." The general replied, "I think that's a delightful way to kill a fly." I have to agree.
sometimes killing a fly with a sledgehammer is entirely appropriate. It doesn't make the fly any more dead, but the rest of the flies sit up take notice.
Ah yes…. if only you'd been there Bob we'd all be safer. So you can engage four well trained mercenaries at long range with a rifle and ensure all are dead? Impressive.
Nah, Bigger boom sends a stronger message.:)
Great job all involved.
Well, am sure blasting the bastard to kingdom come with such 500 pounder is a very ground shaking message to anyone who thinks they can do mercenary work against allied troops. Specially if they got found in such few days. I am sure next time the Taliban will have a harder job finding people who are willing to take laser guided ammunition up their own ass, for a little bit of money.
The question though is how long could they be pinpointed in that exact location. Factor in the time required to get a sniper team on the ground, and within range to hit all four guys without them getting away. Cheaper yes, chances of effectiveness? Not nearly as high. I'm sure the F16 was able to be in the air space within minutes.
Just find and kill the enemy. Don't worry about doing some sort of counter sniper response to resolve the situation. Oh by the way, check your spelling Christian. You didn't spell Mercenary correct.
By the way Kayaker, you mean "You didn't spell Mercenary correctLY."
Taliban are primarily recruited from certain Madrassas, which have as their patronage a large percentage of orphans. This means they are NOT inherently good with a rifle, as they haven't the background for it. The Pashtun may have a reputation for marksmanship, but that reputation goes back to the Brits and Kipling. You'll be hard pressed to find many troopers with a great admiration for their marksmanship now. Throw that on top of the overwhelming majority who have a habit of calling every single guy who shoots at Coalition troops "Taliban" to be used interchangeably with "insurgent" and you begin to see the trouble. "Sniper" indicates a professional, but too many folks have a habit of just calling any joker taking a potshot a "sniper". Short of it: language is the problem. As to the Taliban hiring experts, it isn't the first time they've done so. Look into some local history and pay particular attention to a group of folks from nearby countries (northern type) that got isolated in northern Pakistan. Go back into the pre 9-11 events and examine the course of the Taliban and AQ in the same region. There have been foreigners in Astan fighting as Muj for a long time, and not all of them have fought for free. Do some homework before you go shooting off about how strange or new something is and get everyone all riled up for nothing.
The Taliban fear Americas air support, so this gives them all the more reason to stay in their caves.
Reach out and touch someone!
Notice that the mainstream media will not report on this story!
Bullseye!
Not surprised at all they were foreigners. Johnnie hit the nail on the head, Chechens, Pakistanis, Syrians, etc have been showing up in A-stan for a long time now. Doubtful the Taliban sought out these individuals, it's much more likely they just showed up in country offering their services for jihad. Very glad to hear they got what was coming to them.
I do hope there were a few seconds when the shooters and spotters said “Do you guys see that? Wonder what it is. Looks like a……… OH ****!” Better have a sense of humor if you’re gonna be a gun-for-hire for the Taliban. Hopefully your life is too short to take things seriously!
So now does this fighter jock qualify as a Sniper? Do they paint a little set of cross-hairs on his plane, or a Rag-head?
Sophistication? I think that speaks to more about their drug money than anything else. When the news first cam out about the snipers i was suspecting Iranian involvement. Even the Colombians use mercs…….
There was a generally excellent article written on this matter by the NY Times……….
NY Times
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
At War – Notes from the Front Line
The Weakness of Taliban Marksmanship
By C.J. CHIVERS
Sorry no direct link but the conclusion was that marksmanship was generally poor, the AK47 has difficulty hitting anything beyond close range, the standard of equipment was often poor to abysmal, etc etc………as Johnnie so eloquently put it, hiring in Outsiders has always been likely and continues even now especially Pakistani Tribal and others……..
Just glad they got them, don't care who, or how.
For sale four slightly used or excuse me bombed sniper rifles LMFAO Ya gotta love it OOOOOOORRRRRAAAHHHH
Hi Christian
First of all, I don't think the Taliban HIRED them… I don't think mercks would risk their lives like that knowing full well all the 'Allies' would need to wipe them out was a well-placed bomb! I think they may be Al-Qaeda and/or Taliban sympathizers.
Mercenaries are usually smarter than this, and more calculated! This was a martyrdom initiative! Take as many as they can before being blown away! Either that or they were arrogant as hell!
So, before any hasty victory speech like 'The Taliban are using ouotside help because they're losing' takes place, there is no hard evidence the Taliban hired them at all or if they were there on their own accord, as sympathizers to their cause!
So, this need more digging! One thing is for sure, if this outside help is continued, the US and Brits have a new problem on their hands: the Taliban cause attracting more followers from neighboring coutries, especially the recently ravaged Pakistan, where there is very favorable ground for the Al-Qaeda and Taliban to spread their ideology!
Time will tell if this is a singular event, or if more are to come!
Cheers!
The bomb could be considered a fluke. One in the forehead says, ‘Saw ya! Got ya!’
And no sniper likes to think that’s happening.
PS: among those highly trained personnel getting targetted were, guess what? Snipers.
PPS: Given the odds of not coming home, how much do you think these private contractors are getting? It would have to be a hell of a lot more than the Xe crew. the working conditions are ******, the security is marginal and you can’t even get together with ‘the boys’ for Friday booze-up and circle jerk.
I am just glad that they were taken out and a 500 lb bomb speaks volumes. Urrugah
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHDCWldwRB4 (the Taliban)
That sickened me. And what the hell does that have to do with the subject matter of this topic? I nearly threw my computer across the room when the commander was bragging how that AK had 30 American confirmed kills.
I love reading these articles beacsue theyre short but informative.
no, but iam sure HE will be on You Tube one day soon, and it will be a view from an aircraft putting bomb on his head. Ur an agitator.
These are all just rumors, passed on by lapdog writers.
Speaking as a retired (Intell Target Analyst) NATO/EAC…I offer a long and loud round of applause for a job well done. Keep up the good work. MSG (USA,Ret.)
The Israelis learned in Beirut the first time that when faced with a well placed sniper just blow him up rather that root him out and play his game.
it's amazing what a single guy with a good rifle and some skills can do in the way of crushing morale etc. don't have to actually kill very many at all or really do that much actual damage. just have to create the illusion of omnipresence.
What's amazing is the armchair quarterbacks, with the help of the media, create this illusion of omnipresence. Pay (your taxes), Pray (for your troops), Trust (the grunts on the ground), and not the thrice filtered story you read the next day or so about a few incidents when the luck of the upper hand went the other way. But these stories sell I suppose…
it mthink it's hilarious,than the taliban were whining because the Marine snipers were so effective,that the sissys at Nato practically forced the marine snipers to leave.We don't need boots on the ground.We need special forces to scare the crap out of the al-Quida people.Even thew Taliban are laughing at the al-Quida people for being scared.Aren't they supposed to be willing to give their lives for that whorehouse in the sky?
Great job but the cost of a 7.62, .338 or .50 compared to a LGB? Seems the military aint what it used to be. Clone Carlos Hathcock for crying out loud!
Brit SF doing what they do so well, and the use of air support means job done with nil loss of allied lives. Score one for the good guys
damn, those SAS dudes are serious. Manhunters. Wat a great job by silent warriors.
So you say they weren't shot in the eye through their own scopes? How boring! Gunny Hathcock we hardly knew ye!
Hooah! That's f$@&n team work! To bad they didn't get video :(
I happen to know the gunnery officer who obliterated the sniper near Cam Ranh Bay using a 5"-54 firing a VT fused round. For some strange reason, the sniper never returned and a paucity of volunteers developed to take his place.
British Special Op's are awesome, glad they are on our side.
Yes…I think that a Hired Sniper from where ever…ends up eating his own bullet…
To those thinking that these guys weren't hired, but just showed up…
Money is what runs the Taliban – jihad is a motivation, but a negligable one in comparison to money. This is why the drug game is SO crucial right now in Afghanistan/Pakistan: with the lethality of ISAF forces, it's hard to motivate troops based on "virigns in paradise" alone. Afghan farmers still make much more profit growing canabas and opium poppies than from growing staple grains. The Taliban are the main operators that move these raw drugs into the world market, and the cash they get is more than likely going right into their ground opperations: not only is a Taliban soldier paid more per month than a Nato paid ANA or APF, they also offer kill bonuses for things like Helos, and in the case of these snipers, special schools troops. A little Soviet marksman training can go a long way, I'm guessing that late Chechnyan operator negotiated a damn good sum from the Taliban for that work in Helmand. Considering how much it cost us (ISAF) in resources and manpower to hunt down those guys, it's a hard earned lesson. Choke off the Taliban's resources, and you choke off their ability to attract forigne fighters.
One other effective deterrent – Coalition Sniper kills imported sniper leaving a 'holy martyr's corpse' to be paraded among the faithful vs the LGB leaving a few dubious fragments that might be the remains of the imported sniper or an innocent by-standing mule belonging to a local opium poppy farmer.