Death by Rules 0f Engagement

Why are we failing in Iraq and Afghanistan? ROEs must step to the front of the line. They may not be all of the explanation, but they seem to be death sentences for the good guys.

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http://sixthcolumn.typepad.com

Posted by George Mason on Friday, 06 April 2007
Moments ago representatives of the fifteen British marines and sailors, taken hostage by Iran, launched their news conference. A captain explained why they were seized by the Iranians, without a shot fired...

The frigate HMS Cornwall was standing by and could have blown the Iranians out of the water. The frigate just stood by.
Explanation this morning? "Rules of engagement."

. . .

Earlier this week, an embedded reporter with our own surging troops in Iraq reported on National Public Radio that our troops chased a very bad guy, a big time leader of the bad guys in Sunni Iraq, into a mosque.

Did they go get him?

Of course not.

Why not? Rules of engagement.

http://sixthcolumn.typepad.com/sixth_column/2007/04/death_by_rules_.html