A spokesman for the Iraqi Interior Ministry stated yesterday that a new part of the security plan for Baghdad is to build a trench around the city and control vehicle access to the city by means of 28 check points.
The trench idea is being denied by the US military in a [http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060916/wl_nm/iraq_trench_dc Reuters], story but the plans for 28 checkpoints are being acknowledged.
Think about two aspects of this security plan, with or without the incredible idea of building a trench around the city. First, Baghdad is a city of 5-6 million people and has a circumference of roughly 60 miles. Access is to be limited to 28 checkpoints? That seems like a fantasy.
Second, suppose the Iraqi military and police and US military actually pull of this plan sufficiently to create controlled access to the city though a relatively small number of checkpoints, even if it is greater than 28. Can you imagine the traffic that would pile up at each of these checkpoints.
Has anyone considered the security problem posed by having masses of vehicles piled up at checkpoints? The only question is will the insurgents use the tactic of hitting a different checkpoint each day for a couple weeks, or will they plan coordinated attacks on many of them simultaneously?
Not only does the plan for a small number of checkpoints into Baghdad seem unrealistic, but it also seems like a plan that decreases security and provides an opportunity for spectacular attcks by insurgents.
Brilliant.