定点清除的其他办法: 美国司法部备忘录并非无人机备忘录

Stop Calling It The Drone Memo
The United States uses a whole arsenal of tools to carry out the targeted killing policy detailed in a recent DOJ memo. Why is everyone focusing on drones?

Here's the thing: The paper hardly mentions drones. It just sets out rules for a targeted killing policy and lists "pilotless aircraft or so-called smart bombs" as possible tools for carrying out those killings. The policy itself is not technology-specific. Yet somehow drones have become shorthand for targeted killing. Why?

While it's true that drones are the best-known tool for carrying out targeted strikes, they are only one of many methods by which the United States attacks individual terrorists from afar. Here are some others:

AC-130
The AC-130 is a type of gunship built on the body of a troop transport that has been in service since Vietnam. In Vietnam, AC-130s were used to attack truck convoys that could not shoot down aircraft. They carry sophisticated sensor equipment and can linger over a target for a long time, making them an ideal tool for attacking an enemy base.

Tomahawk cruise missiles
Tomahawk cruise missiles, in use since the 1980s, are also part of the targeted killing program. In 2009, missiles were fired at an alleged al Qaeda training camp, with the goal of eliminating al Qaeda deputy Muhammad al-Kazemi. This was hardly the first time cruise missiles were used to take out a militant leader.

Special operations forces
Another way the U.S. does targeted killings is with special forces. The most famous example of this was the Abbottabad raid in May 2011. As has been told in multiple books, and adapted into a major film, Operation Neptune Spear was carried out by SEAL Team 6, with the express purpose of killing Osama bin Laden. Sending people on a strike is riskier than using a drone or a missile, but having eyewitnesses makes it much easier to know if your mission was a success--which was vital in this case.

不要再叫它无人机备忘录了好不好
美国已经动用了国家兵工厂的可用的所有工具来施行定点清除任务, 这可已经是被记录在美国司法部的备忘录里面的, 但是为什么大家还都把目光聚焦在无人机上呢?



其实事情是这样的: 这备忘录里极少提到无人机. 只是在一些条款里面提到了定点清除确实可以有这项选择而已: “使用无人驾驶的飞行器或者所谓的智能炸弹”. 但整个政策还并没有具备很高的科技性. 但又不知为何, 现在无人机居然已经成了定点清除的代名词. 为什么呢?

不可否认无人机确实是众所周知的, 而且可以起到对目标的针对性打击的武器, 但是它们也只是美国打击个别恐怖分子的手段之一而已.其实这里还有些别的:


图为AC-130播撒热诱弹

AC-130
AC-130自越战开始就是一种为了部队运输及火力支援的目的而服役的.  在越战期间, AC-130用来打击可防空的卡车运输队. 它拥有着先进的传感器设备, 还可以在目标上空盘旋很长一段时间, 使它成为了攻击敌人军事基地的给力武器.


图为战斧式导弹发射

战斧式巡航导弹
自1980年起就开始使用了, 而且也是定点清除计划的一部分. 在2009年的时候, 美军向“基地”组织训练营发射了导弹，消除了“基地”组织副手穆罕默德·卡齐米. 这很有可能是巡航导弹第一次用来针对性地打击敌人头目.


图为夜视中的海豹突击队

特种部队
美国定点清除的另一种方式就是使用特种部队. 最有名的例子就是在2011年五月在阿卜塔巴德的行动了. 这个事件还被编入书籍, 写入电影. 那就是海豹突击队第六分队, 针对本拉登个人的"海王星之矛"行动. 当然了, 派遣特种部队比用无人机或导弹更具风险, 但可以亲眼看到的话, 岂不是更加容易判断任务成功与否 - 况且在这场行动中, 可以"亲眼看到"是至关重要的.



P.S. 大家看得到图片么?





Stop Calling It The Drone Memo
The United States uses a whole arsenal of tools to carry out the targeted killing policy detailed in a recent DOJ memo. Why is everyone focusing on drones?

Here's the thing: The paper hardly mentions drones. It just sets out rules for a targeted killing policy and lists "pilotless aircraft or so-called smart bombs" as possible tools for carrying out those killings. The policy itself is not technology-specific. Yet somehow drones have become shorthand for targeted killing. Why?

While it's true that drones are the best-known tool for carrying out targeted strikes, they are only one of many methods by which the United States attacks individual terrorists from afar. Here are some others:

AC-130
The AC-130 is a type of gunship built on the body of a troop transport that has been in service since Vietnam. In Vietnam, AC-130s were used to attack truck convoys that could not shoot down aircraft. They carry sophisticated sensor equipment and can linger over a target for a long time, making them an ideal tool for attacking an enemy base.

Tomahawk cruise missiles
Tomahawk cruise missiles, in use since the 1980s, are also part of the targeted killing program. In 2009, missiles were fired at an alleged al Qaeda training camp, with the goal of eliminating al Qaeda deputy Muhammad al-Kazemi. This was hardly the first time cruise missiles were used to take out a militant leader.

Special operations forces
Another way the U.S. does targeted killings is with special forces. The most famous example of this was the Abbottabad raid in May 2011. As has been told in multiple books, and adapted into a major film, Operation Neptune Spear was carried out by SEAL Team 6, with the express purpose of killing Osama bin Laden. Sending people on a strike is riskier than using a drone or a missile, but having eyewitnesses makes it much easier to know if your mission was a success--which was vital in this case.

不要再叫它无人机备忘录了好不好
美国已经动用了国家兵工厂的可用的所有工具来施行定点清除任务, 这可已经是被记录在美国司法部的备忘录里面的, 但是为什么大家还都把目光聚焦在无人机上呢?



其实事情是这样的: 这备忘录里极少提到无人机. 只是在一些条款里面提到了定点清除确实可以有这项选择而已: “使用无人驾驶的飞行器或者所谓的智能炸弹”. 但整个政策还并没有具备很高的科技性. 但又不知为何, 现在无人机居然已经成了定点清除的代名词. 为什么呢?

不可否认无人机确实是众所周知的, 而且可以起到对目标的针对性打击的武器, 但是它们也只是美国打击个别恐怖分子的手段之一而已.其实这里还有些别的:


图为AC-130播撒热诱弹

AC-130
AC-130自越战开始就是一种为了部队运输及火力支援的目的而服役的.  在越战期间, AC-130用来打击可防空的卡车运输队. 它拥有着先进的传感器设备, 还可以在目标上空盘旋很长一段时间, 使它成为了攻击敌人军事基地的给力武器.


图为战斧式导弹发射

战斧式巡航导弹
自1980年起就开始使用了, 而且也是定点清除计划的一部分. 在2009年的时候, 美军向“基地”组织训练营发射了导弹，消除了“基地”组织副手穆罕默德·卡齐米. 这很有可能是巡航导弹第一次用来针对性地打击敌人头目.


图为夜视中的海豹突击队

特种部队
美国定点清除的另一种方式就是使用特种部队. 最有名的例子就是在2011年五月在阿卜塔巴德的行动了. 这个事件还被编入书籍, 写入电影. 那就是海豹突击队第六分队, 针对本拉登个人的"海王星之矛"行动. 当然了, 派遣特种部队比用无人机或导弹更具风险, 但可以亲眼看到的话, 岂不是更加容易判断任务成功与否 - 况且在这场行动中, 可以"亲眼看到"是至关重要的.



P.S. 大家看得到图片么?