Ok, so we have discussed some basics of how to avoid/survive a drive by shooting. What I would like to discuss now is the particular case of Ido Zoldan, and what he might of done differently that would have led to his survival.
Ido left Kedumim to drive to Shavei Shomron, a distance of about 4 klicks. This was at about 2300. He knew he had to pass through or near the Arab Moslem town of Al Funduk. Here are some points I feel he could have used to at least increase the probability of his survival:
1. Drive with someone else. That is a second set of eyes for lookout, and a gunman in case of a firefight.
2. Late at night, in the Shomron, in the vicinity of an Arab Moslem village. You should be expecting trouble. Condition orange to start with (see previous post for security level descriptors).
3. A car that you just passed has taken off and is now trying to match speeds with you. If you are paying attention you know for sure this is an ambush.
4. As the other car matches speeds, you execute a j-turn. This is basically like this: you lock the brakes and slam the wheel all the way to the left, sliding the car 180, then take off the opposite direction.
5. You should have emergency services on speed dial. This would be the time to call.
6. Several options at this point:
a) Maintain your lead until Kedumim. You will have notified them by now, and they will be standing by with armed support.
b) If you will not make it that far, you can get about 30 sec ahead, then get around a curve. Leave the car in your lane and exit to the side of the road, hoping for a collision between your car and the pursuit car. You can then ambush them from the side of the road. You DID bring a weapon, didn't you?
c) If you cannot pull ahead, drive off road until the ground is no longer passable for a car. Park car facing road with brights on. Exit and proceed quickly to cover as far away as possible. Your pursuers will also have to leave their car, and will be blinded by your lights. Depending on your weapon, you could try to take out at least one pursuer.
7. With a second person in the car, that person can open fire on the pursuers as soon as a muzzle comes in to view. I recommend laser sights in a situation like this. The 12 ga pump action shotgun, shooting rifled slugs, is by far the preferred weapon for this scenario. Because of Israeli draconian gun laws, you will probably not have one of these though. In that case, any weapon will do, especially with a laser sight. You need to target and take out the shooters as soon as possible. But all this only in the first few seconds of the encounter. The driver will take evasive action immediately. During a pursuit however shots should be taken at the pursuit car, accurately.
To summarize:
1. The Shomron is a dangerous neighborhood. Start acting like it.
2. Always drive with someone in the Shomron.
3. Always have a weapon in the car.
4. Always have a cell phone in the car.
5. Situational awareness. See trouble coming before you make contact.
6. Think through various scenarios so you can act if need be.
Lets not have any more Jewish victims. Lets start having Jew hater victims. Or, to paraphrase General Patton: The best kiddush HaShem is not dying for your religion. The best kiddush HaShem is making the other SOB die for HIS religion. And amen to that.
Friday, December 14, 2007
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
If you go play ball in the middle of the highway...
Ok, the jumping off point for this post is Ido Zoldan. If you remember, Ido Zoldan was an Israeli driving home from Kedumim to Shavei Shomron in the Shomron (West Bank) on 19 Nov 2007. On the way home, at approximately 2330, he was ambushed while passing through or near the Arab Moslem village of Funduk. There are several accounts of the incident. What I have been able to piece together is that the Arab Moslem terrorists were waiting in a car by the side of the road for an Israeli vehicle. When one came by (Ido Zoldan) they pulled into the road and matched speeds with him. They then rolled down their windows and opened fire on his vehicle with automatic rifles. Interestingly, the shots were fired from the passenger side and exited the drivers side, as can be seen on this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrfDEcmiu1k
What I don't understand is that this is not the first time a car has been ambushed in the Shomron. In fact, there have been many such shootings, including the one in which Binyamin and Talia Kahane were murdered. If these attacks are so common, why do residents of those areas not take more precautions when driving?
This brings me to the title of this post. (For my British and European readers, highway is American for motorway). If you go play ball in the middle of the highway, whose fault is it if you get hurt? I mean, sure, we can bitch and moan about Israeli government policies, the inability of Israel to secure the roads, the insanity of allowing Arab Moslems to own anything more lethal then a butter knife, and on and on, but in the end WE have to take responsiblity for our own security. And that is exactly what I don't see the residents of these areas doing.
So in today's post I would like to discuss tactics for surviving a driveby shooting on your car. For the sake of discussion we are talking about a case in which you are in motion, and another car contains the assailants. Different considerations would apply to assailants on foot. I will divide the recommendations into two areas: equipment and training.
Equipment:
1. Kevlar armor installed in car doors.
2. Bullet proof glass in all car windows.
3. Body armor
4. Some sort of weapon, such as a rifle or shotgun for returning fire.
5. Cell phone.
Training:
1. Situational awareness: be able to see threats coming before they are actual.
2. Evasive driving: be able to make j-turns and other evasive maneuvers.
3. Shooting from a moving vehicle.
4. Tactics for evading pursuit.
I will briefly discuss these points. First, equipment. It is obvious that cars in these areas need to be armored. The thing to keep in mind regarding armor is that the preferred small arm for Arab Moslems is the AK-47, which fires the 7.62x39 round. This requires level III ballistic armor, which I realize is not cheap. However, even applying kevlar soft level II ballistic armor to car doors will result in significant slowdown of the rounds. This combined with the metal of the door itself will significantly increase survivability for the passengers. Many companies make auto glass that installs exactly where the original glass went, such as this company:
http://www.secureglass.com/Automobile.html
There have to be Israeli companies that can do this kind of glass. But lets say the cost of these upgrades is prohibitive. One can still take precautions and train oneself to respond in the event of an incident. And we will get to the cell phone and weapon in a minute.
First, situational awareness. Security professionals generally use a five color system to gauge their surroundings:
1. White-I take no notice of my surroundings. No security posture at all. No one should ever be in condition white.
2. Yellow-I am always scanning my environment for threats. I am alert to what is around me. I will immediately notice any unusual activity. This is the preferred condition for everyone at all times.
3. Orange-I have spotted something unusual. I begin to get ready for evasive action. I focus on the potential threat. If I have a weapon, I make sure it is loaded and the safety is off. If driving, I get ready for evasive maneuvers. I get ready to call emergency services for help.
4. Red-The unusual activity is confirmed as a threat. I initiate evasive action, trying to outrun or evade. I call emergency services and report my position and the nature of the attack.
5. Black-I am engaged with the assailants. I am returning fire to their position. I am in full bore combat.
Second, evasive driving: it is possible to learn evasive driving techniques. Here are some websites I found:
http://www.navysealteams.com/drive.htm
This seems to be a good book:
http://tiny.cc/3NiTK
Thirdly, and this is where I will end for tonight, can someone please tell me why anyone, ANYONE, would go driving in the Shomron without a weapon? I honestly don't get it. Like I said in the beginning, if you go play ball in the middle of the highway...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrfDEcmiu1k
What I don't understand is that this is not the first time a car has been ambushed in the Shomron. In fact, there have been many such shootings, including the one in which Binyamin and Talia Kahane were murdered. If these attacks are so common, why do residents of those areas not take more precautions when driving?
This brings me to the title of this post. (For my British and European readers, highway is American for motorway). If you go play ball in the middle of the highway, whose fault is it if you get hurt? I mean, sure, we can bitch and moan about Israeli government policies, the inability of Israel to secure the roads, the insanity of allowing Arab Moslems to own anything more lethal then a butter knife, and on and on, but in the end WE have to take responsiblity for our own security. And that is exactly what I don't see the residents of these areas doing.
So in today's post I would like to discuss tactics for surviving a driveby shooting on your car. For the sake of discussion we are talking about a case in which you are in motion, and another car contains the assailants. Different considerations would apply to assailants on foot. I will divide the recommendations into two areas: equipment and training.
Equipment:
1. Kevlar armor installed in car doors.
2. Bullet proof glass in all car windows.
3. Body armor
4. Some sort of weapon, such as a rifle or shotgun for returning fire.
5. Cell phone.
Training:
1. Situational awareness: be able to see threats coming before they are actual.
2. Evasive driving: be able to make j-turns and other evasive maneuvers.
3. Shooting from a moving vehicle.
4. Tactics for evading pursuit.
I will briefly discuss these points. First, equipment. It is obvious that cars in these areas need to be armored. The thing to keep in mind regarding armor is that the preferred small arm for Arab Moslems is the AK-47, which fires the 7.62x39 round. This requires level III ballistic armor, which I realize is not cheap. However, even applying kevlar soft level II ballistic armor to car doors will result in significant slowdown of the rounds. This combined with the metal of the door itself will significantly increase survivability for the passengers. Many companies make auto glass that installs exactly where the original glass went, such as this company:
http://www.secureglass.com/Automobile.html
There have to be Israeli companies that can do this kind of glass. But lets say the cost of these upgrades is prohibitive. One can still take precautions and train oneself to respond in the event of an incident. And we will get to the cell phone and weapon in a minute.
First, situational awareness. Security professionals generally use a five color system to gauge their surroundings:
1. White-I take no notice of my surroundings. No security posture at all. No one should ever be in condition white.
2. Yellow-I am always scanning my environment for threats. I am alert to what is around me. I will immediately notice any unusual activity. This is the preferred condition for everyone at all times.
3. Orange-I have spotted something unusual. I begin to get ready for evasive action. I focus on the potential threat. If I have a weapon, I make sure it is loaded and the safety is off. If driving, I get ready for evasive maneuvers. I get ready to call emergency services for help.
4. Red-The unusual activity is confirmed as a threat. I initiate evasive action, trying to outrun or evade. I call emergency services and report my position and the nature of the attack.
5. Black-I am engaged with the assailants. I am returning fire to their position. I am in full bore combat.
Second, evasive driving: it is possible to learn evasive driving techniques. Here are some websites I found:
http://www.navysealteams.com/drive.htm
This seems to be a good book:
http://tiny.cc/3NiTK
Thirdly, and this is where I will end for tonight, can someone please tell me why anyone, ANYONE, would go driving in the Shomron without a weapon? I honestly don't get it. Like I said in the beginning, if you go play ball in the middle of the highway...
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Be Prepared, or Be Dead
This post is a follow-on to the post of 11 Dec 2007 regarding Rachel Shabo and children who were murdered in Itamar. A Yossi Twito who lived nearby overheard the shooting, grabbed a weapon, and rushed to the house. I assume the weapon he took with him to the house was either a standard M-16A service rifle, or a "shortened" M-16A, this is where the Israelis take a standard M-16A and rebuild it to resemble the M-4. Not sure why they do this, maybe it is cheaper then buying M-4's. At any rate, he engaged the terrorist in the house, getting a number of shots fired, before he himself took several hits and was killed. You can find a link to this at:
http://www.shechem.org/itamar/eshabo.html
Unfortunately, details are sparse as to Twito's exact fate. And I am sure Twito did the best he could. But if we can draw some lessons from Twito's fate, his death will not have been in vain. With that in mind, I would like to offer some guidelines for people facing similar situations. Whether or not Twito employed proper tactics is something we will never know. But we should be prepared in case of such a situation. Here are some ideas which are not just mine, but are accepted tactics for entering a house containing a barricaded suspect. I will use the Shabo case as an illustration:
1. Approach the scene with weapon in ready position, keeping close to cover. There might be accomplices outside the house.
2. Once at the house entrance, establish a covered position outside at the side of the doorway.
3. Quickly peek around to try to establish the location of the suspect, then withdraw.
4. If suspect is not in sight, try to locate a position of cover to move to, and move in.
5. Make sure weapon is set to semi-automatic, not full auto.
6. Do not advance around a corner with weapon leading. Swing out from corner to advance.
7. If suspect comes into view, be ready to "double tap" that is two shots to center of mass, ie, chest area.
8. If suspect appears to have body armor, two shots to groin.
9. If suspect is still up, attempt shots to head and eyes.
10. At all times, if possible, try to maintain proper cover, or at least concealment. Try not to shoot out in the open.
11. If no body armor is present, but suspect does not go down immediately, keep firing shots to center of mass until suspect goes down.
12. With suspect down, reload if possible.
13. Maintain weapon ready in a covered position, out of reach of suspect, until help comes. Be prepared for the entry of accomplices.
14. Be prepared to carefully relinquish weapon when authorities arrive on scene. Move slowly, they do not know who you are.
It is important to be able to train for these scenarios, because, "you fight like you train". Unfortunately, training opportunities are few for civilians. Maybe civilian guards like Yossi can develop training protocols, such as going through mock scenarios with water pistol or paint ball guns.
Merely having possession of weapons, though an important first step, is not all that needs to be done. Even a small amount of training, even classroom training, can make the difference between life and death.
http://www.shechem.org/itamar/eshabo.html
Unfortunately, details are sparse as to Twito's exact fate. And I am sure Twito did the best he could. But if we can draw some lessons from Twito's fate, his death will not have been in vain. With that in mind, I would like to offer some guidelines for people facing similar situations. Whether or not Twito employed proper tactics is something we will never know. But we should be prepared in case of such a situation. Here are some ideas which are not just mine, but are accepted tactics for entering a house containing a barricaded suspect. I will use the Shabo case as an illustration:
1. Approach the scene with weapon in ready position, keeping close to cover. There might be accomplices outside the house.
2. Once at the house entrance, establish a covered position outside at the side of the doorway.
3. Quickly peek around to try to establish the location of the suspect, then withdraw.
4. If suspect is not in sight, try to locate a position of cover to move to, and move in.
5. Make sure weapon is set to semi-automatic, not full auto.
6. Do not advance around a corner with weapon leading. Swing out from corner to advance.
7. If suspect comes into view, be ready to "double tap" that is two shots to center of mass, ie, chest area.
8. If suspect appears to have body armor, two shots to groin.
9. If suspect is still up, attempt shots to head and eyes.
10. At all times, if possible, try to maintain proper cover, or at least concealment. Try not to shoot out in the open.
11. If no body armor is present, but suspect does not go down immediately, keep firing shots to center of mass until suspect goes down.
12. With suspect down, reload if possible.
13. Maintain weapon ready in a covered position, out of reach of suspect, until help comes. Be prepared for the entry of accomplices.
14. Be prepared to carefully relinquish weapon when authorities arrive on scene. Move slowly, they do not know who you are.
It is important to be able to train for these scenarios, because, "you fight like you train". Unfortunately, training opportunities are few for civilians. Maybe civilian guards like Yossi can develop training protocols, such as going through mock scenarios with water pistol or paint ball guns.
Merely having possession of weapons, though an important first step, is not all that needs to be done. Even a small amount of training, even classroom training, can make the difference between life and death.
The Mommy Factor
I realize that women (in general) love children and babies. That is a good thing. But what I have been seeing is that women who make aliyah (immigrate to Israel) seem to want to emphasize it, with all sorts of intimate posts about cuteness and babies and children. Possibly compensating for what they consider to be a dangerous and violent situation. But even women can take this too far I think.
A few years ago a Palestinian Arab Moslem penetrated the settlement of Itamar at night, carrying various small arms, and entered the Shabo home, where he shot and killed a mother and several children, in June 2002. He first tried to enter another home but was deterred by a barking dog. Yossi Tuito, who came to "help", was shot and killed as well. Here is an account from the www.shechem.org website:
"Their wife/mother Rachel, 40, and three of her seven children - Neriah, 15, Tzvikah, 12 and Avishai, 5 - were murdered. Two other children in the family, Aviyah and Asah'el - were wounded, one of them seriously."
Now, this is a tragedy, and we are not here to point fingers, but I have a question. Here is a woman with 7 children, who has chosen to live in one of the most dangerous environments on earth: in the middle of a large population of hostile Arab Moslems. And she is not armed. So, here is what I find disturbing: there are no weapons in the home, she does not have a firearm on her, the door is unlocked, no dog. No security precautions whatsoever. People, this does not make sense. I live in a relatively safe neighborhood in Baltimore, MD, and I can assure you that my door is never unlocked. NEVER. Where Shabo lived is 10 times as dangerous.
I put it to you the way I heard it from Dr. Laura-think mother bear. No one can claim that a mother bear does not love her cubs. Now, try to come between her and her cubs and she will rip you open like a can of sardines. That is what a loving mother does-protect her children. I say that we need our women to be like that mother bear-loving and nurturing to those that deserve it, but ready to deal swift and violent death to those who would threaten the ones she loves. I will leave this post with my favorite quote from the Navy Seals creed, which I hope each and every Jewish mother will engrave upon her heart:
"...We train for war and fight to win. I stand ready to bring the full spectrum of combat power to bear in order to achieve my mission and the goals established by my country. The execution of my duties will be swift and violent when required yet guided by the very principles that I serve to defend. ..."
A few years ago a Palestinian Arab Moslem penetrated the settlement of Itamar at night, carrying various small arms, and entered the Shabo home, where he shot and killed a mother and several children, in June 2002. He first tried to enter another home but was deterred by a barking dog. Yossi Tuito, who came to "help", was shot and killed as well. Here is an account from the www.shechem.org website:
"Their wife/mother Rachel, 40, and three of her seven children - Neriah, 15, Tzvikah, 12 and Avishai, 5 - were murdered. Two other children in the family, Aviyah and Asah'el - were wounded, one of them seriously."
Now, this is a tragedy, and we are not here to point fingers, but I have a question. Here is a woman with 7 children, who has chosen to live in one of the most dangerous environments on earth: in the middle of a large population of hostile Arab Moslems. And she is not armed. So, here is what I find disturbing: there are no weapons in the home, she does not have a firearm on her, the door is unlocked, no dog. No security precautions whatsoever. People, this does not make sense. I live in a relatively safe neighborhood in Baltimore, MD, and I can assure you that my door is never unlocked. NEVER. Where Shabo lived is 10 times as dangerous.
I put it to you the way I heard it from Dr. Laura-think mother bear. No one can claim that a mother bear does not love her cubs. Now, try to come between her and her cubs and she will rip you open like a can of sardines. That is what a loving mother does-protect her children. I say that we need our women to be like that mother bear-loving and nurturing to those that deserve it, but ready to deal swift and violent death to those who would threaten the ones she loves. I will leave this post with my favorite quote from the Navy Seals creed, which I hope each and every Jewish mother will engrave upon her heart:
"...We train for war and fight to win. I stand ready to bring the full spectrum of combat power to bear in order to achieve my mission and the goals established by my country. The execution of my duties will be swift and violent when required yet guided by the very principles that I serve to defend. ..."
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