RescueRanger
PDF THINK TANK: CONSULTANT
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I was talking with a friend of mine who works in BDS and they recently rendered safe a timed IED in SWAT. What is interesting is the components:
The terrorists used a cheap Casio watch as a timer device, the watch would have been similar to this one below:
This was connected to a small printed circuit board powered by a D-Cell battery (omitted from this this thread for security reasons), an electric blasting cap was the initiator which was designed to detonate a small primer charge of TATP which would in turn activate the detonation of around 1Kg of ANFO.
This is not new, it was very common with AQN during the Afghan war and actually this type of circuit is known as the Al Qaeda switch. What is interesting is to see it in operation in Pakistan, which would suggest a highly skilled person or persons are operating in Pakistan presently.
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As Pakistan is presently in a very delicate position both in terms of internal and external security, please may I ask members to share the following safety advice with friends, families and colleagues regarding suspicious items:
If you see a suspicious item, vehicle or person - think HOT!
Hidden - i.e. placed where they will not be readily seen or noticed as unusual
Obviously suspicious (e.g. by physical appearance, by placement, or because of the circumstances in which they have been discovered)
Not Typical of what you would normally expect to find in that environment
Items that have any of the following should be treated with extreme caution:
a. external wiring;
b. visible batteries;
c. switches;
d. timers;
e. circuit boards;
f. wire passing from one package to another;
g. items secured by plastic adhesive tape;
h. annotations (e.g., ‘ON’ or anything in reference to the time delay);
i. specially modified wooden or plastic boxes;
j. unidentified powders or other putty-like substances; or
k. carefully wrapped in plastic bags.
What you should DO:
The terrorists used a cheap Casio watch as a timer device, the watch would have been similar to this one below:
This was connected to a small printed circuit board powered by a D-Cell battery (omitted from this this thread for security reasons), an electric blasting cap was the initiator which was designed to detonate a small primer charge of TATP which would in turn activate the detonation of around 1Kg of ANFO.
This is not new, it was very common with AQN during the Afghan war and actually this type of circuit is known as the Al Qaeda switch. What is interesting is to see it in operation in Pakistan, which would suggest a highly skilled person or persons are operating in Pakistan presently.
---
As Pakistan is presently in a very delicate position both in terms of internal and external security, please may I ask members to share the following safety advice with friends, families and colleagues regarding suspicious items:
If you see a suspicious item, vehicle or person - think HOT!
Hidden - i.e. placed where they will not be readily seen or noticed as unusual
Obviously suspicious (e.g. by physical appearance, by placement, or because of the circumstances in which they have been discovered)
Not Typical of what you would normally expect to find in that environment
Items that have any of the following should be treated with extreme caution:
a. external wiring;
b. visible batteries;
c. switches;
d. timers;
e. circuit boards;
f. wire passing from one package to another;
g. items secured by plastic adhesive tape;
h. annotations (e.g., ‘ON’ or anything in reference to the time delay);
i. specially modified wooden or plastic boxes;
j. unidentified powders or other putty-like substances; or
k. carefully wrapped in plastic bags.
What you should DO:
- DO NOT TOUCH IT OR HANDLE IT
- Vacate the area and inform security/police
- Do Not use cell phones or CB radios in close proximity to the device
- Evacuate the area minimum 200 meters, try to get behind a solid building away from any glass or falling hazards and do not return until the police have made the area safe. Terrorists are known to use primary explosions to stage an assault or gather a crowd before detonating a secondary IED, try not to return to the area until the all-clear has been given.
