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The Taliban Have Gone High-Tech. That Poses a Dilemma for the U.S.
Once described as an ill-equipped band of insurgents, the Taliban are increasingly attacking security forces across Afghanistan using night-vision goggles and lasers that United States military officials said were either stolen from Afghan and international troops or bought on the black market.
The devices allow the Taliban to maneuver on forces under the cover of darkness as they track the whirling blades of coalition helicopters, the infrared lasers on American rifles, or even the bedtime movements of local police officers.
With this new battlefield visibility, the Taliban more than doubled nighttime attacks from 2014 to 2017, according to one United States military official who described internal Pentagon data on the condition of anonymity. The number of Afghans who were wounded or killed during nighttime attacks during that period nearly tripled.
That has forced American commanders to rethink the limited access they give Afghan security forces to the night-vision devices. Commanders now worry that denying the expensive equipment to those forces puts them at a technological disadvantage, with potentially lethal consequences.
See also: Taliban ramps up attacks to send message that no one is safe
(Score: 3, Interesting) by terrab0t on Monday April 02 2018, @02:32PM (4 children)
I’m sure this will be a huge change for well supplied militaries who are used to combatants like these being blind at night, but drones are the oncoming game changer [thesun.co.uk].
The technology is already there. Like hijacking commercial airliners and ramming them into skyscrapers, it’s just a matter of putting the idea in the wrong peoples’ minds and our world will suddenly get a whole lot more dangerous and restrictive. Scott Adams believes we could be the last generation to attend large outdoor events.
(Score: 2) by VLM on Monday April 02 2018, @03:01PM
Easy bet because of other cultural pressures like decline of arena rock, check out the wikipedia list of largest concerts
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_highest-attended_concerts [wikipedia.org]
For better or worse, the decline of arena rock means large concerts no longer happen anymore.
Of course by "large outdoor" he might mean my 10K county fair in the late 2010s, not a 130K Madonna concert from the 80s. I suppose for a terror attack, 10K, 130K, whats the difference really in terms of PR?
(Score: 1) by khallow on Monday April 02 2018, @04:00PM (2 children)
(Score: 2) by Dr Spin on Monday April 02 2018, @04:46PM (1 child)
Cant we just use turtles to combat the drones?
Warning: Opening your mouth may invalidate your brain!
(Score: 3, Funny) by bob_super on Monday April 02 2018, @07:27PM
If the turtle is being carried by an eagle, yes.