Surgical strike

A surgical strike is a military attack which results in, was intended to result in, or is claimed to have resulted in only damage to the intended legitimate military target, and no or minimal collateral damage to surrounding structures, vehicles, buildings, or the general public infrastructure and utilities.[1]

Description

A swift and targeted attack with the aim of minimum collateral damage to the nearby areas and civilians is a surgical strike. Neutralization of targets with surgical strikes also prevents escalation to a full blown war. Surgical strike attacks can be carried out via air strike, airdropping special ops teams or a swift ground operation or by sending special troops.

Precision bombing is another example of a surgical strike carried out by aircraft – it can be contrasted against carpet bombing, the latter which results in high collateral damage and a wide range of destruction over an affected area which may or may not include high civilian casualties. The bombing of Baghdad during the initial stages of the 2003 invasion of Iraq by US forces, known as "shock and awe" is an example of a coordinated surgical strike, where government buildings and military targets were systematically attacked by US aircraft in an attempt to cripple the Ba'athist controlled Iraqi government under Saddam Hussein.

Examples

Israel

Israel's 1981 bombing of the Iraqi nuclear reactor at Osirak is considered a prime example of a surgical strike.[2] Its 1976 commando operation at Entebbe in Uganda, through which Israeli passengers were freed from a hijacked plane, is also mentioned as a successful surgical strike. Even though it did not involve taking out targets, striking deep inside foreign territory, covering 5,000 miles from start to finish without engagement with any other forces, qualified it to be 'surgical'.[3][4]

United States

The United States carried out numerous surgical strikes against Al-Qaeda targets in Afghanistan using cruise missiles. It also used the same technology against a purported chemical weapons facility in Sudan.[5]

India

On 29 September 2016, eleven days after the Uri attack, Indian army said it had conducted "surgical strikes" against suspected militants in Pakistani-administered Kashmir.[6] However, analyst Sandeep Singh, writing in The Diplomat, said that the operation is better characterised as a cross-border raid because "surgical strikes" involve striking deep into the enemy territory and typically using air power.[7].

See also

References

  1. ↑ Shultz, Jr., Richard H.; Pfaltzgraff, Robert L., eds. (1992). The Future of Air Power: In the Aftermath of the Gulf War. DIANE Publishing. ISBN 1-58566-046-9.
  2. ↑ Weeks, Albert L. (25 November 2009), The Choice of War: The Iraq War and the Just War Tradition: The Iraq War and the Just War Tradition, ABC-CLIO, pp. 54–, ISBN 978-0-313-08184-2
  3. ↑ Sandler, Stanley (2002), Ground Warfare: An International Encyclopedia, ABC-CLIO, pp. 264–265, ISBN 978-1-57607-344-5
  4. ↑ Lalit Mansingh (19 January 2009), "Should India Carry Out Surgical Strikes In Pak?", Outlook, retrieved 16 October 2016
  5. ↑ Cilluffo, Frank J.; Cardash, Sharon L.; Lederman, Gordon Nathaniel (2001), Combating Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Terrorism: A Comprehensive Strategy : a Report of the CSIS Homeland Defense Project, CSIS, pp. 13–, ISBN 978-0-89206-389-5
  6. ↑ India and Pakistan: Reversing roles, The Economist, 8 October 2016.
  7. ↑ Sandeep Singh (5 October 2016), "India's Surgical Strikes: Walking Into Pakistan's Trap?", The Diplomat, retrieved 15 October 2016
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